What are you doing for the 4th of July this year?

[mommyoffive]

Do you have plans for the 4th yet?

[Tess in the Burbs]

Nope.  We rarely plan on this day.  Dh is on call this year so we will be home.  He has to be able to access wifi if there is an issue.  The park nearby does fireworks, so we will walk up the hill to watch when it's time.  Ideally the weather will be perfect for a long nap in the hammock.  

[Spryte]

Peanut free baseball game! Woo hoo!

 

Then fighting traffic to get out of DC before the fireworks.

[ScoutTN]

School in the morning, pool festivities in the afternoon, local fireworks in the evening.

[Ethel Mertz]

Small town parade in the morning, fish on the grill for supper, fireworks on the beach...

[Loowit]

Parade in the morning (boys with the scouts and girl with her dance team), BBQ at my parent's house in the afternoon, and then fireworks at home when it gets dark.

[Pawz4me]

We've been invited to a cookout on the 3rd, but so far we haven't made any plans for the 4th.

[Pink and Green Mom]

We are usually home.  We have lived in FL the past 4 years and there is almost always thunder and lightning on that evening.  Add that in with the fireworks shot off in our neighborhood and the surrounding ones and our dog is such a wreck we can't leave him.  Sigh.

[frugalmamatx]

Small town parade in the morning, followed by picnic lunch at the park afterwards. Then home in the evening to watch all the neighbor's fireworks {we live a block away from the legal fireworks line, so we just sit on the drive & watch the show :) }

[bettyandbob]

Camping in the state park on the beach. Fireworks at a nearby resort beach.

[carriede]

Yes, visiting family 2 hours away, BBQing, fireworks, sleep, then back home.

[Guest]

I'll be unpacking moving boxes.

[Wheres Toto]

We are going camping near Cherry Springs State Park - one of the best places for star-gazing in the eastern US.    I've been wanting to go for a while (we live with a TON of light pollution, too close to NYC) and it turns out this 4th of July weekend will be a new moon, so excellent for star-gazing.  They are doing programs each evening so we will go to at least one of those.  I'm doing some tutorials to learn how to take good star photos with my camera (Canon Rebel T3i).

 

We are heading out there Friday the 1st and coming home Monday the 5th.  In addition to star-gazing, we're going to go kayaking, canoeing and possibly rafting on the Allegheny River, swimming, watch fireworks on the 4th, and just relax.  My mother is coming with us to get a break from all the crazy since my stepfather passed away.

[mellifera33]

I'll be sitting on the lawn with a hose, watering the roof to prevent fires from the illegal fireworks. I can't believe some of the things that our neighbors shoot off. At least the guys who used to shoot their guns in the air(!) have moved out. 

[knoxinsox]

Hoping that we aren't going to have neighbors setting off fireworks till all hours since we are now inside city limits.  

 

Our town has their festivities on Saturday---so we'll do a parade and fireworks then.  Hubby has to work a short shift in the afternoon, so possibly hot dogs and smores when he gets home.

[raptor_dad]

We'll march with our church in the neighborhood parade and then grill in the afternoon and the kids will be asleep before  whatever city fireworks are funded this year.

 

ETA: And of course our neighbors will set off illegal fireworks to all hours of the morning.

Edited June 20, 2016 by raptor_dad

[Jan in SC]

If we're home, we'll probably go to the lake for a few hours and then to a baseball game that has fireworks at the ball park afterwards. We might go to Florida to go to the beach, though.  

[MomtoCandJ]

Hmmmm parade, bounce house thingy and fireworks otherwise no idea

[candicane]

We never do, but we're going to watch 1776. That's it really.

[SparklyUnicorn]

No plans...

 

 

[skimomma]

Camping, swimming, boating, BBQing, parade decorating and marching, field games, watermelon, fireworks, s'mores, and playing instruments/singing around the fire until about 3am.  We camp annually for a full week with the same group of families.  The 4th is always our last night and if the kiddos aren't broken by then already, we break them all the way with back-to-back FUN.  Then we all go home and enjoy a full week of drama-free bedtimes because the kids are toast.

[Luckymama]

We'll be putting dd on a plane early from San Jose back to her summer study, then dh and I will spend the day with The Boy :party:

[medawyn]

No parades or fireworks; the 3 yo is afraid of sirens, drums, and "booms". The 4th is definitely not his holiday.

 

It's DH's birthday, so there will be cake or cupcakes, and probably a hike and family picnic.

[Guest]

Inhumanely steaming a bunch of crabs and then eating their leg muscles.

[MrsMommy]

I think I'm going to make "Thanksgiving dinner."

 

I wanted to do something different, and it doesn't get more American than that, right? :)

 

We usually watch Holiday Inn and Yankee Doodle Dandy during the day, and listen to a Boston Pops CD.

 

Our neighbors always put on a huge (illegal) fireworks show, so we'll watch that, and pray no one gets hurt. They do seem to know what they're doing, though, and they do an amazing job!

[SemiSweet]

Camping at Niagara Falls, I'm really hoping we can see the fireworks from the campground. I hate fireworks and prefer to be far away from them.

[alisoncooks]

We were going to hit a baseball game but belatedly realized that that is a popular option around here...and all the good seats are sold out.

So....we'll just head to the local university stadium in the evening and watch the free fireworks there.  

 

No plans for the rest of the day.

[TravelingChris]

WE are going to visit our dd and her husband at their house in MS.  We will be travelling home on the fourth, I think but will have had fireworks at a baseball game one of the nights before.  (Neither dh nor I like baseball but we do like fireworks).

[Donna]

Traveling across the county for dd to perform…plans include a 4th of July parade, orchestral performance, and fireworks. Looking forward to everything except the actual air travel part.

[FaithManor]

Will spend some of the morning with my dad. Then going for the evening to a dear friend's farm for a cookout. Dh was going to have a fireworks show - he has his pyrotechnics license - but it is dry as tinder here, and dear friends just lost a barn to a hay fire. It was an accident, but too raw emotionally to consider doing a fireworks show even if we do get a lot of rain between now and then.

 

We will probably kayak all day the day before, and possibly in the afternoon before the cookout. We won't hit the beach - Lake Huron - because it will be packed. However, friends have an above ground pool so WOOT!

[Tanaqui]

Going to the Alice Austen House for the day...? Haven't really thought this out too much yet.

[LucyStoner]

What we always do unless we are camping.  We have a relaxed day and then we go watch the town's fireworks from the hill above the park where they launch them.  We do not bother to park our picnic at the park and wait all day in the crowds for the celebration to start.  2 kids with autism, jam packed loud park.  We aren't stupid.  

[HRAAB]

We always spend the 4th with my dh's family.  It's a huge family reunion.  We start off with our own parade in fil's old, restored cars in memory of him.  We eat, talk, laugh, eat some more, and in the evening have our own firework show.  In 31 years of marriage, I've only missed one time, and that was because I was very pregnant and the temp was 100. It's always a good, full day.  So glad it only comes once a year.

[Spryte]

We never do, but we're going to watch 1776. That's it really.

Oh! That's tradition here, too. We'll do it on the 3rd though.

[lanalouwho]

Oh, I forgot about the 4th...probably beach and BBQ. We live on the beach, which means starting next week sometime there will be fireworks all night every night until after the holiday.

 

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[Guest]

My in-laws just let us know they are coming for the week. My MIL is not doing too well health-wise, so I'm actually kind of nervous with her being here in our really hot weather. Also, her and FIL are on very strict diets, so I'm kind of stressing out about cooking for the week. All that to say, I guess we aren't doing anything.

[gardenmom5]

We have friends who have a lot of people over, potluck, home made ice cream, BBQ of several varieties, and loads of fireworks.

[J-rap]

We'll probably get together with grandparents and whatever kids are around and have a picnic somewhere.  

[The Girls' Mom]

We'll be throwing our annual, ever-growing, July 4th party.  Last year we had 125+ in the rain.  I expect more this year, especially if it isn't raining.  No porta-potties ;) 

 

I've already started buying the food.  We've put out our porch bunting.  (Which kind of cracks me up now, because it seems to signal to our entire valley that party time is near!)  I've been trying to get my flower garden weeded, and trying to keep my plants looking nice during this little dry spell we've had.  

 

We will have ribs, pulled pork, BBQ chicken, brisket, and hot dogs.  Dh will make gobs of homemade ice cream.  Everyone that comes brings a dish to share, so I don't have to worry about sides.  

[Rachel]

10k race in the morning. Small town parade and fireworks in the afternoon and evening.

[Guest]

ds8 was still too young for The Declaration of Independence last year so it was still about fireworks and parades and picnics to him.

 

This year I'm reading him a book about George Washington. He's having typical little boy reactions to stories and myths about the face on the dollar bill but I, late life mother that I am, am coming to a deeper realization that this young man was a real human being with hopes and plans and dreams for the future just like everybody else and that the 1700s weren't very long ago.

 

We're both enjoying the story, just on completely different levels.

 

ds24 is preparing to deploy in a few months, so starting to let go of being a part of our nuclear family. Like all patriotic holidays, this one will be a personal celebration of his military service and the lives of all servicemen and their families.

 

I found a big bag of ds24's old "little green army men" in the back of a closet and handed them down to ds8, with the understanding that it squicks me out to see them treated disrespectfully and that somewhere a rich man in a suit is sitting in an office and feeling every bit as much compassion and respect for our loved ones as the average little boy feels for these inexpensive plastic representations of our beloved children.

 

So hooah, amurkkka eff yea, what about them niners huh, throw another burger on the grill, and all that other crap I'm supposed to say.

Edited June 21, 2016 by Guest

[brehon]

Working.

 

And hoping I can stay inside in the A/C and the good citizens stay sober and safe.

[lllll]

Probably driving home.

[SKL]

I think we'll be in Ukraine that day.

[gaillardia]

Some of you are kayaking and camping. That sounds fun and busy. I am sick of mosquitoes though.

 

I know there are lots of places I wish we could be.

We don't have any nailed down plans.

Being in Texas there are many places to check out the fireworks.

Dog might not want to be alone.

Always a birthday in our family. WOOT!!!!

:party:

We usually get invited to a certain family's place for lots of food, lots of mosquitoes, and fireworks. 

But I think we'll skip that this year.

Hopefully we'll be moving on from here by then and waiting for our next humble abode and the financial stuff to be settled.

God Bless America, please. :patriot:

 

Sparkly Unicorn! You haven't started a July 4th family tradition? We used to have a cook out, our favorite time-consuming-to-prepare side dishes and walk to the fireworks display afterwards. Inviting some other folks over is fun. 

I hope we get back to doing that next year.

 

 

[Debbi in Texas]

I will be hunkered down finishing up a summer class. DS will be working at the firework stand that is staffed by our church. I don't know yet if dh will be working or off. But I have this class-the last day is July 6. I have a 32 page book to write and illustrate. 15 poems to write. A paper to write every other day. Two online meetings per week. Eight books to read, plus other online readings. I will be glad to finish this class!!

[rebcoola]

Party at our friend house that includes a bbq and awesome fireworks.

[SeaConquest]

Anchoring the boat with some friends in Glorietta Bay/Coronado, so the kids can play on the beach, and then watching the Big Bay Boom fireworks show from the deck of the boat. I love how the whole thing is synchronized all over San Diego: http://www.bigbayboom.com/

[bibiche]

Eating tacos in Mexico. :)

[MooCow]

On the 3rd, the usual get together at our house and everyone will sit on our backyard and watch the city fireworks.

 

On the 4th, watch our neighbors set off illegal fireworks and secretly cry because yet again our son is in jail. Let sigh.