Happy Independence Day

Our country is a great reason to celebrate, and so we do - every year! It is often easy to take the freedoms that we have for granted, but we should take every opportunity to show our gratitude for this "land of the free". How very fortunate we are to live in a land where we are free to make every single choice that pertains to our lives. Many cannot say that. I love America & I love the 4th of July!

Was this REALLY six years ago?
The Wallace grandchildren in 2001
back row L-R - Emma, Katie, Dakota, Clark, Shane; middle row L-R - Rebecca, Josie, Madi, Rachel, Jacob; front row - Jeffrey & Jaxon
(one interesting note, Katie would not cooperate and be in the picture unless Emma held her. This picture was one of many - the first few show Katie rolling on the ground or far away from the group - pouting or crying)

Some of my favorite July 4th pictures are from 2001 when the Wallace family was all together in Sandy, Utah & all the cousins wore matching Old Navy t-shirts. We had a wonderful time parade watching, hanging together, eating, and fireworking. Aunt Jill introduced the cherry bomb, which is now a traditional favorite. What is the cherry bomb? A really yummy ice cream treat, shaped like a circle, with a cherry in the middle & a red licorice "fuse". Take a look at Madi, Josie (Jill's daughter) & Katie - thoroughly loving their cherry bomb. Madi is in Woodland today to celebrate the 4th & rumor has it, she might get a cherry bomb, and she is very excited!


When I was a child, July 4th meant hours of endless work for my dad. He and his brother, Gerry, worked every summer holiday, well into the night at their ice company, Mr. Ice, while their families got together to celebrate the holiday. So, the 4th was hard work for dad & Gerry and a long and lonely night for my mom & Aunt Jody. For me & my cousins, it meant swimming and fun at Grandma Zobrist's pool. We were lonely without our dads, but still had fun. Every year our dads would say they would come join us later, and pretty much every year, they would actually come home long after we had gone to bed for the night. As a child, I always loved to go to bed on the 4th and drift off to sleep to the distant sound of firecrackers popping long into the night.

Here's my dad in his "Mr. Ice" uniform - his basic attire for much of my childhood

I do have a vivid memory of one July 4th when I got to spend one-on-one time with my dad. After he finished working, he came and took me to watch fireworks with him on the roof of the ice plant. I felt so privileged. My siblings were all younger & had to stay with mom, so you know I was feeling very BIG! I remember climbing the old cement steps of the loud & somewhat frightening ice plant building to get to the roof. We had to climb & climb & climb to get to the top floor & then climb a ladder to the roof. I sat there with my dad & other adults (probably ice plant employees) and we watched the downtown fireworks display. Sitting there in the dark summer night, watching fireworks with my dad, I hoped the display would go on forever. I truly felt like I was on top of the world. When the sky went dark and the fireworks were over, I reluctantly climbed down the ladder & back down the long flight of stairs & rode home with my dad to my mom & sleeping siblings. For years after that, I hoped for a similar experience, but for whatever reason, we didn't go back to the ice plant roof to watch fireworks. Maybe that made my one experience on the roof something I would never forget.

Here's to a memorable 2007 July 4th!