Old traditions with a surprise

7-24-09 more reminiscing vacation brain
This year on our 4th of July holiday, things played out pretty much as they usually do:

- We attended the parade in the morning.

- We met friends in the city park after the parade and ran into others we only see once a year.

- We walked across the street to the old Carnegie Library building which is now the art center and took in the current show- usually a local artist. There we also run into others we know from the past.

- Eat lunch with Robin, Tom, Taylor, Steve and Vanni, either in the city park or at the Moose Lodge’s BBQ, corn on cob, bake beans lunch.

- If we are lucky, we get a short nap in before our traditional evening dinner on my parent’s back screened in porch.

- Dinner this year, we were a group of 14. We did our flag pledge and we did sing 3 songs, America, America the Beautiful, and the Marine’s Hymn (for my Dad). We did a great job singing this year, since Vanni remembered to print off the words for us. Steve and Vanni also presented my Dad with a special Iwo Jima silver dollar. That was so special!

- For dessert we ate homemade ice cream along with Sarah’s traditional flag cake.

- Then we usually attend the band concert followed by the fireworks. This year I skipped the band concert, since they moved the location from downtown to the old College Grounds. The fireworks were also different this year, which changed our traditions a bit. We ended up watching the fireworks from Jefferson School yard close to my parent’s house. We only saw them from a distant this year.


The special surprise this year was that my Dad was in the parade! Someone had talked him into riding on the float honoring the Marines…. And we all were glad that he agreed. Turns out he had great fun too. Since Dad was a teacher for years and also served on the City Counsel, many people in town know him and all were waving at him. This picture came from Sarah’s camera.