Festivities on the Fourth

When the kids got old enough to enjoy them, one of our favorite things to do back in Grove City was to go to the corner of Southwest and Broadway to watch the annual Independence Day parade, and it was nothing to sneeze at, if I do say so myself. But everything's bigger in Texas (are you tired of hearing that yet?) and that goes for its parades, too! Yesterday we were invited by some church members who are on the planning/steering committee to take a front-row, VIP, reserved seat for what has become the 3rd largest Independence Day parade in the nation. Yes, I said the nation.

First up, we got to come down to City Hall and hobnob with the glitterati (well, okay, it was just the mayor and his wife and I didn't actually have a conversation with them, but they were close enough to touch!) while enjoying a hot, gratis breakfast provided by Grandy's. In the background of this picture you'll see Emily, our children's minister--we didn't know she and her husband were going to be there and I thought it was hilarious that I took the picture just as she walked in the room! Okay, maybe I'm the only one who finds that funny.




In this photo, Sawyer is playing a modified "fife" that he fashioned from the mini-pole of one of the many flags that had been distributed to lend a decidedly patriotic air to the proceedings.


Later that evening, we went to the Wharton home where the youth group had a 4th of July party. Here is Tyler with best bud Hunter. They spent the afternoon together after we came home from the parade and lunch with Emily and Jared.


Jesse, April, Olivia, Katy and Kayla (?)--sweet, sweet girls


You'd be hard-pressed to find a nicer guy than this one, Alan (of course, I say that about a lot of our youth!). Sawyer thinks he's awesome!


See what I mean?


My camera has an annoying delay between the time I "click" and the camera actually "shoots" so I missed a great photo op here, but the guy cradling Sawyer in his arms is Jacob, the brother of Daniel (Tyler's friend from his party), and he is also a fave of Sawyer's. Sadly, I didn't get a photo of Jason, the kid who REALLY treats Sawyer like he hung the moon (and that's saying a lot when you consider what you're seeing in these photos already!)


One sweet little story: At one point during the party Sawyer went in the house and brought out a game (Don't Break the Ice!) that he'd played when he stayed with Ms. Harriet while Randy and I went to the Rangers' opening day game a couple of months ago. He set it up on a table outside and before you know it, nearly all the teens were lined up for a turn! Not all at once, of course, but it was cute to see how a decidedly un-HIP game could cause these teens to locate their inner child, and they were all eager for a chance to try their hand at a game that they all probably played themselves ten years ago!