Bored on the 4th of July

It's one of those things that you have to do with your children.  No matter how much I hate crowds, mosquitoes, and heat, I have to take the kids to see the fireworks on the 4th of July.  Thankfully, this year was cool enough that we were in jeans and hoodies; this kept the skeeters away too.  Now, what to do about those crowds?

Thanks to my sister, we found an excellent spot that not only gave us an incredible view, it also gave us a quick escape route when the fireworks were over.  Last year, we spent at least an hour fighting traffic--that was just to get out of the parking lot.  This year, we were out of the lot and on the road in five minutes.  Fireworks can get boring after years of routine viewings and crowd fighting, but  with my new toy, I had more fun than I'd had in a long time.  It also helps that there were brownies, potato-skin chips, and Mountain Dew Voltage.

And, toys to keep the kids busy and/or happy.

Before the show started, Leah had to pee--badly.  I'm talking legs-crossed, crotch-holding, jumping-up-and-down bad.  There were no Johnny On The Spots where we were, so I hunted down a bathroom.  We were in the downtown bar area, so this was no easy feat.  I didn't really want to take her into a bar to pee, most places are 21 and up only, so I searched and searched.  Finally, we walked by a man sitting outside a bar and he said, "Excuse me sir, you have a little girl attached to you".

By this point, I was carrying Leah hoping to find a bathroom before that warm feeling came trickling down my side.  I told him our situation and he offered to let us use his bar.  "Thank goodness", I thought.  Leah did her business and then I gave the bar owner a little of my business; I ordered a coke.

Leah shimmied her way up  a bar stool to order.  Then I saw it--a giant mural of some naked chick just five feet in front of my innocent daughter.  She had just peed, now I almost shat myself.  The woman in the mural posed seductively, her two giant cannon-balls staring right at me.  I swear I could even hear the canons firing.  Turns out the fireworks had just started.  I grabbed our drink, covered the girl's eyes and ran outside for the show:

The fireworks display was amazing, but the shows around our house were even cooler.  We must have been the only family in a three-mile radius that didn't buy fireworks.  I snagged a few shots of our neighbor's disregard for the illegality of fireworks while I lounged in my rocking chair, sipping on an ice-cold beer with my shirt off.  'MERICA!!!

What 4th of July celebration would be complete without Sparklers?  It's interesting to me that the most boring firework on the market is also the most dangerous.  But, I wasn't about to let something that burns anywhere from 1800 to 3000 degrees Fahrenheit keep my kids from having fun.  That would be bad parenting.

This may just have been the Best Day Ever.