Proud to be an American

Our 4th of July was very eventful. We started out the day by going to our neighborhood picnic. My mom, dad, grandma and I made our way to the park for music, a parade, and- of course- hot dogs. It was nice and well attended. We got off on the right foot with true summer food including shaved ice. As part of athe parade there were some hispanic dancers who wore really big beautiful costumes. By the time they reached the end they were so exhausted. We ran home for a bit to change and get ready to go to a party at the home pool of a family in our church. It was way hot but we had lots of fun playing outdoor volleyball and eating all the yummy food people brought to share. Too bad the bugs were KILLER! Grandma was a trooper and even after two parties agreed to head to DC for the annual fireworks. Everyone and their grandmother (some pun intended) was there. We have a family tradition of packing a picnic and sitting on the mall waiting for the fireworks to be set off after dark. I remember it being a huge ordeal when we were younger. We have pictures of us all in these white American flag shirts. This time mom packed up small hand held cooler- a huge difference from the massive ones on wheels we brought before but it was nice. We took grandma around to see some of the tents that the Hare Krishna (or whatever they are) had set up. I watched the fireworks while listening to Lee Greenwood's "God Bless the USA." It made the show much more amazing. I am so glad to live in this free country but I am especially grateful for all those who came before me who had a hand in ensuring my freedom and security. I thought I could use a little meditation to ease my high stress life :) Grandma's new friend Mom thought this statue thing looked like Herb. Grandma is holding what is supposed to be a dog. Mom said "LOOK- Herb has found Jesus!!"... I guess that is who she thought the Mona Lisa was at a quick glance. pfffffft haha The girls in front of the Capitol Mom's chosen pose with the Washington Monument in the background. She let me pick her up- this was after she got up out of the wheelchair (which we only brought so we could move quickly and to hold some of our stuff) and mom yelled "SHE"S HEALED"... Dad was a bum and decided not to dress patriotically This is from the neighborhood picnic in the morning Yes- my mom brought our dog, Baby, to the park.

Quick Update

Yes, yes I'm still around. I just have not been able to find the time to update the blog with new pictures- but I HAVE been doing lots of things. Frankly, I am doing too much. I watch one of three families of kids for 5-9 hours a day, go to the gym, and work at Jobin Realty on Saturday mornings. Gee did I mention that I have to start teaching Sunday School to 10 year olds?... yay. Thank goodness Western Civ class is over. Recently I had my wisdom teeth taken out, had the flu, did a bunch of things on the 4th of July, visited the Spiveys in Maryland, finally bought my dad a Father's day present and took the kids I watch all over this town. Things I have to look forward to: Taking Javi and his friend Todd to EFY at SVU on monday (I'll go insane. 3 hours in the car with those guys- and 3 hours back alone the same day) family vacation to Florida last week of July, and a trip to the Spiveys for a few days. Needless to say, I'll get the pictures up as soon as I get a spare minute and the internet I "borrow" from some neighbor quits cutting out on me.

Family Reunion

Friday afternoon my mom and I hopped into the car to head down to the annual Via family reunion. It was right outside Blacksburg, VA this year. Frankly, I don't know too many of those people but it was cool to see (even ones I don't know) my relatives. My Aunt Cathy brought my grandma with her from Florida and picked up her son (my cousin) Joe and his 2 year old boy Chase along the way. It was nice to have them there- especially Chase- he was fun to play with. Our family is big into food. Every time we got together we had a huge meal- hey I'm not complaining- I love food. Saturday some of the family, including my mom and I. went tubing on a river. It was nice and relazing. We went two times since the current was so quick. My mom got a little crispy- for once in my life I didn't get burned. It was a nice visit- the best part was watching little Chase dance his heart out until midnight on the dance floor by the DJ. He was the life of the party. We had a good time with him in the hotel pool too. Least favorite part- the acution and me sitting around realizing that there is nobody else my age there. The auction is people dontating their junk that nobody else would want to raise money for next year's reunion. All in all- it was alright- brought out the honkey tonk in us northern folk.