Celebrating the 4th

Our town has one of the larger celebrations in the Tampa Bay area. The morning parade meanders along the neighborhood golf course and makes its turn for the home stretch just slightly more than a block from the house. Aimee, Louisa, Scott and I (the latter two lamenting the late night departure from the Tiny Tap Bar) mindlessly watched seeminlgy every business, politician and church parade along with make shift floats and embellished cars and trucks. Louisa especially enjoyed the beads and candy tossed out by most floats to the huddled masses along the lightly crowded avenues.

Later in the evening we went to the first tee of the neighborhood golf course for the fireworks show. The fairway and streets were thick with picnicing families, many with golf carts, lounging and letting off their own explosives prior to the official show. Louisa was slightly taken back by the loud cracks and bangs of the fireworks, but she stayed tight in Aimee's lap and seemed to maintain a quiet balance of awe and confusion. The slow cadence of the bursts enticed her to sit back once the show had ended and tap her tiny hands together and ask for "mo, mo, mo." Her pronunciation of more.