red, white and blue

it's the 3rd of july.

how do you celebrate the 4th?

do you have traditions that are long standing?

 before we bought 

the lodge we stayed in chanhassen. chan has a fun celebration within

easy walking distance of our house that includes all kinds of yummy food

booths, carnival rides, an antique car show, a parade, street dance

and a pretty great fireworks show.

we haven't been there for any of that for the past three years because now we 

like to be at the cabin for every long weekend. now we choose a 

quieter holiday~ one that includes mowing lawn, maybe having some company

and floating down the crow river and if we're really lucky 

it even includes about 2 minutes of cheesy fireworks.

: )

it's all good~ the larsons aren't so much about crowds and

commotion. all of us will choose peace and quiet when given

a choice.

*************************

earlier this week i had a fun overnight at my friend maggies.

she and i and her 5 yr. old josie (josie cat to me) talked nonstop and

relaxed on their deck, ohhed and ahhed over her first

ever garden, shopped a little and went for a bike ride.

one of josie's favorite chores is to pick and eat the ripe strawberries

from a pot on their deck.

their tabletop herb garden~

maggie grilled yummy burgers for our dinner.

 the weather was absolute perfection that day. is there anything better 

than whiling away an afternoon in the sun gabbing with a friend?

maggie had this adorable little beach babe on the bathroom vanity.

while walking around their yard, we spotted this bush covered with

delightful red berries. of course we had to pick some for a vase inside.

anyone know what kind of shrub this is?

there was quite a bit of "auntie beth, wanna see me hoola hoop?"

"auntie beth, want to see me ride my bike"?

"auntie beth! want to see me drive my gator"?

*oh to be 5 again and have endless energy!

my friends were taking off thursday to camp, so brian got

everything ready to go after work.

*bailey their beloved yellow lab, stayed close by~nervous she may get left behind.

 bye bailey.

you're such a good dog!

have a great holiday friends~

how fortunate are we to live in the 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA????

*LET FREEDOM RING*

XO, beth