Busy Weekend - Fireworks

I love holidays. For me, it is family time and the Fourth of July is no exception. As my children were growing up we always had a huge celebration. It seemed to always include a large BBQ with a huge assortment of food shared with family and friends, followed by the grand finale... tons of fireworks. I would set-up a large banquet table outside where the fireworks would sit until after dark. It would soon turn into a neighborhood display that would last over 30 minutes. Today, our traditional celebration usually includes two separate events.

It begins on July 3rd. We have friends who have a house on Big Lake and every year the fire department sponsors a huge fireworks display on the lake, the day before the 4th. The kids spend the day swimming in the lake while the adults visit. Often times, we also cruise the lake in our friend's boat until BBQ time. When it begins to turn dark, everyone sits along the shoreline of the lake in anticipation of the firework show. In the meantime, we continue to visit while watching the individual fireworks.

This year I had to sit at a picnic table because of my ankle. But I was able to get some decent pictures to share with you:

The only downside to the day was my sunburn. When I say I am lobster red, I mean I am literally lobster red... my face, arms, back of my hands, shoulders, knees, back of my neck. Lobster Red! I've never been so sunburned in my life. It's going to take awhile for me to recover, but we all had fun. I'll just remember next year to remain covered, regardless of the heat.

My contribution to our BBQ was a fruit salad with a lemon cream cheese dip. I thought I'd share this recipe with you:

Fruit Salad with Lemon Cream Cheese Dip

3 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup lemon curd
1 honey dew melon, peeled and sliced
1 cantaloupe, peeled and sliced
4 kiwi fruit, peeled and sliced
2 cups strawberries, hulled
2 cups red grapes

In small bowl, wisk cream cheese and lemon curd until smooth. Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minutes. Arrange fruit on platter and serve with lemon cream cheese dip.

Our second event occurs on the 4th. We love going to the races and our favorite racetrack is Evergreen Speedway located at the Monroe Fairgrounds. They have figure eight races featuring cars and buses hauling boats that are hilarious. Most of the time the boats are larger than the car resulting in the boats controlling where the cars go during the race rather than the other way around. They also have races featuring school buses as well as a school bus jump. They set up several RVs, campers, and cars stretching several feet which a school bus attempts to jump over. The kid’s favorite part is when fire shoots up in the air during the jump. Prior to their massive fireworks display they hold a demolition derby which always entertains the crowd.

In my opinion, the fireworks display at Evergreen Raceway is the best in our area and I'm saddened that I was unable to get pictures of it. I had forgotten to recharge the battery for my digital camera. But we had lots of fun sharing the day with our grand kids.

These are memories I'm confident our grandchildren will remember them, always.