Skipping Town

Happy Fourth! Kind of ironic that today is meant to celebrate the independence of our country from a monarchy, etc etc etc etc, but onward! The day started off with a sighting of two big parent-turkeys in our yard, along with EIGHT turkey babies. They were so cute, hopping and trying to fly. A wildlife win. We went into Plainfield this morning for the annual festivities. Alas, there were no haunted dolls for sale this year, which was disappointing. However, at the rummage sale Lucia found a quiver of old arrows for $3, and there was a big metal box of old watches for $1 (Greta bought five, Lucia one); and across the street the girls found some great gnarled wooden walking sticks at an antiques store, where the owner chatted amiably with shoppers while a "side arm" hung brazenly at his side. (Never know when you'll need that!) So they definitely came away with some fun things. The parade is always fun to watch, though the girls are now clearly teenagers so hardly anyone th...

For the first time since 2019, we were able to celebrate the Fourth in our usual way. In the morning, we went to Plainfield, NH, for their parade and Fourth festivities: a rummage sale, homemade strawberry shortcake, a silent cake auction, and a BBQ put on by the local firemen. The local dairy passed out small bottles of chocolate milk like they'd always done. We didn't find anything at the rummage sale, but we did win a cake.  Later in the afternoon, we went to swim in our cousin's pool. The kids absolutely love this pool, playing elaborate games with the many floats.  We played Rummikub, had some reading and Duolingo time, and Andrew grilled hot dogs and hamburgers for dinner. Then they burned sticks in the firepit and ran around with sparklers. At night, we drove into another nearby town, Claremont, for fireworks. It was a lovely display. I'd brought all the random glow sticks we had lying around our house back home, and the girls used them up. It felt like a regular...

It wasn't the usual Fourth of July, but we Adapted to the Requirements of 2020 and shaped a lovely day for ourselves. The kids woke up late and snuggled with Farrah in our bed, reading, till 10:30. Farrah only wants to be with them, her pack. If they're playing outside, she wants to be outside. If they're reading in bed, she wants to be lying with them. It's adorable. Andrew and I spent some time inflating things for the pond, including two enormous floats I'd gotten on sale at Michael's last year--almost impossible to inflate, really, but we have a new air compressor and managed to do it. Most of the afternoon was spent at the pond. I floated in a raft for a long time, lazing around the pond. Andrew tried to get Farrah to swim by carrying her into the pond; she hightailed it out as fast as she could. The girls played on their floats and swam around. Greta refined her frog-catching technique and caught a lot of frogs today, hurrying over with her net each time...

Happy Fourth! L&G are wild about this holiday, and we love it too. Over the past few years we've established a whole little ritual that marks the day. We've been coming to NH for the Fourth for our entire married life--we could only think of one year when we couldn't be here, when we'd just moved to CA and were staying in a Hilton in downtown Sacramento, frantically trying to find a short-term rental during a holiday for a new job Andrew wasn't sure he'd be keeping. Good times. Today was genuinely good, from beginning to end. After breakfast we headed into Plainfield for the Fourth of July parade, a favorite of L&G. We got there a little early and browsed around a tag sale, where I found a brand-new pair of royal blue Birkenstocks in Lucia's size for $5. Greta chose a book. I spotted a wooden cobbler's bench that I knew I'd wind up going back for. We found a somewhat shady spot to watch the parade. L&G got lots of candy thrown to them...

Fourth of July at last! L&G were so excited about the holiday. Monday morning, as they played together in their room, they were singing patriotic songs ("This Land Is Your Land," etc) as they made Rainbow Loom bracelets. Finally, Tuesday, we were able to go into Plainfield, NH, for the Fourth of July festivities. This year brought a new event: a recitation of the Declaration of Independence by Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, who said he and his family spend many summers in Plainfield. Secret Service guys were staring out at the crowd as we watched Justice Breyer, and there was a drone overhead, ostensibly for security-related purposes. All very interesting and festive. Next was the parade, a highlight for L&G. They are so thrilled at having candy thrown at them. Greta is particularly fond of getting a small bottle of chocolate milk from a local dairy. They had their picture taken with Smoky the Bear. After the parade, we had lunch at the tent and heard a local...

The Fourth of July is a strange holiday for me to love, but love it I do. Maybe it's because for the past few years we've made a point of celebrating it in New Hampshire, and making our Fourth of July stay one of the longest of the summer. This is when we try to stay here for at least a week; sometimes, depending on when the holiday falls, we're lucky enough to stay even longer. That's this year: we're here for 10 days. We started off the Fourth with a parade in Plainfield, as we do every year. L&G get so excited about this parade--it's the only one we go to each year, and candy is thrown in abundance. They collected a huge haul that almost made up for the blazing hot sun we were standing in. My favorite part of the parade: small bottles of chocolate milk handed out by a local dairy farm. This is small town America, right here. After the parade, we had hot dogs and pulled pork sandwiches from the firemen's BBQ tent. In the afternoon, we went swimmi...