There I was hair in pigtails, juicy watermelon dripping from my chin, the part in my hair and top of my ears staring to redden up from the hot sun...and having the time of my life!
It was my birthday and I had the best parties in the world! My day would start with jumping in the car and hurrying to get the best spot for the parade. There were floats and bands and beautifully dressed girls waving, horses, cops on motorcylces tossing candy to the crowds lining the street and goofy clowns mingling and etertaining us with balloon animals. It was the big parade! Coming from Connell, anything with more than 2 marching bands and 4 floats was a big deal.
Afterwards we'd eat ourselves to death on 'Tucky Chicken , coleslaw, Grandma's potato salad and have a strawberry shortcake with candles all over it just for me with homemade ice cream and a few presents to open. With all the cousins and family around to run through the State park screaming and playing tag, swimming and goofing off. Naps on blankets under the trees when were we tired and lots of cold water and "Real Lemonade" made with the Pink Lemonade Kool-aide spiked with 7-Up and sliced lemons.
Later on there was the oooh's and aahhh's of the people watching the fireworks being shot off from the park out across the lake. Their brillant colours reflecting in the water so that we could doubly enjoy them. Then being carried to the car by Daddy and falling asleep on the way home. Who could ever ask for a better party?
As an adult it's been a more quiet holiday. Still fried chicken and potatoe salad, still strawberries and icecream only it's not homemade. I still get presents... mostly from my MIL on her way home from the parade in Grantsville.
Sometimes I wake up and it's off to the park for the all you can eat for $4.00 Chuckwagon breakfast with Fast Freddie Flapjack flipping out pancakes on his famous 12 foot long griddle. Waiting for a little fun with his old friends or a cocky teenager or two. Asking them to step back, no just a little farther, a bit farther please and watching him flip the pancakes to their plates from as far away as Fifty feet. It's all a part and parcel of the entertainment. For seconds you just stand and hold your plate and magically from thin air a hot pancake lands right in the middle of your plate! Fast Freddie is the best Flapjack Flipper in all the world!
The hashbrowns, sausages and the eggs are all playing second fiddle to the Star of the show!
I watch the fireworks from the dining room window or from the back porch, with the TV playing the fireworks from New York or DC to help the ambience and so the Frog and see them. Then it's out to the frontporch to watch the neighbourhood waste their money blowing up the illegal fireworks they drove to Wyoming to get. Who could ask for a better party?
I must have been about 7 or 8 before I realized that my birthday is actually on the 7th of July but the family all got together on the 4th so that was when I got my cake and presents. B's birthday fell on Labour Day alot so he had a big extended family BBQ party too. We used to tease J that her Bday was so close to Christmas she didn't get a big blowout cuz people were too tired. But secretly I was terribly jealous because she always got to take cupcakes to school for her Birthday and I never did. But I got a parade and fireworks.
So though my official Bday isn't til Friday I'm celebrating in a big way today! I slept in, I took the longest shower ever on record, I've watched a parade on TV, and vegged out with a Law and Order Marathon. Tonite I'll watch the Fireworks from the porch and take a few pictures of the neighbourhood blowing up hundreds of dollars worth of bottle rocks while I'm running my sprinklers full blast then tuck the Frog into Bed and have some Cherry Garcia over some fresh strawberries... Who can ask for a better party?
No comments:
Post a Comment