Happy 4th of July

Yesterday we started the day early, the whole family got up early so they could go to Fife Lake and cheer me on while I ran a 5K race. Annie even made up a special cheer just for the event. Something like:

Run tiger run, run tiger run, you can't catch him, he's the Daddy man! I love you.

It was about 50° when we got there for prerace registration and stayed comfortable through the run. I didn't set any records but I did accomplish both of my goals. The first one was to not have a stroke. The last time I ran 3 miles was my last PFT in the service and I got out in 1991. The second goal was to show my kids that you can still hold your head high even if you don't finish first. Just for the record though, I could still get a first class PFT (adjusted for my age of course).

We stayed in town for the parade, which was a slice of small town goodness. We visited with family, took in the local sights, played at the park and had a picnic to pass the time. Annie fell asleep riding back to the car on my shoulders after the parade, she turned that into a 45 minute nap on the way home. Just what the doctor ordered. We stayed at home for a couple hours, changing clothes, packing a beach bag etc. and headed back out for the beach. Most years we show up at the beach for the fireworks an hour or so before they start. That means you park several blocks away and walk to the beach to squeeze into a spot, after the fireworks, you follow the herd back to where you parked and spend the next 45 minutes in a traffic jam. This year we decided to try something new. We got to the beach several hours (5) before the fireworks. We parked right at the beach and unloaded chairs, blankets, snacks, toys and I think we even had a gasoline powered dog polisher just in case. The point is that the beach was relatively uncrowded (compared to what it was like around dusk). The kids played and we relaxed. It worked out well. The oompa loompa got restless and grouchy about the time the crowd got heavy but Tina took her for a 15 minute walk and she calmed right down. All she needed was a change of scenery and to burn off some energy. I would have super glued a quarter to her forehead. Tina has a better instinct for what the kids need most of the time. The fireworks were OK, you get a better show if you go to a weekend Beach Bums game. We did beat the crowd out of town and the kids were home and in bed by midnight. It was a long day but I felt like it was well spent. We all had a good time, nobody ended up with stitches, this is what it's supposed to be like.

Here are a few pictures from the day.

Just before the start of the 5K








Jon at the beach

Annie redefines uncomfortable






This needs no caption, or maybe I can't think of a caption that won't get me hit.