Happy 4th of July America

4th of July in England

Today is the 4th of July.  American Independence Day.  The day America told England to take a leap and leave it well alone!  I wonder why it’s not acknowledged in the UK??

This is my 5th Fourth of July in the UK and I still miss it terribly.  My English family are always lovely and remember to say “Happy 4th of July” but I’m not with my family and that’s hard.  You see, every Fourth of July there’s an amazing pontoon parade at our lake in Northern Wisconsin.  Every Fourth of July for the last 60 odd years my family has had an entry in the Pontoon Parade!  Even when we were the only ones in it (thank you for flying the flag Grandpa)!

This year my brother, his wife, son and stepson and a few assorted others were there to help my Dad and Stepmom put together another brilliant entry.  They won…again…without me.  I’m so happy for them but I do miss it.  I miss the barbecue afterwards and the campfire where we roast marshmallows.  I miss the fireworks that my stepbrothers used to orchestrate and the general great feeling that the whole country was celebrating.

It’s never the same here but still, we tried.  We went to a lovely Family Day in the village next to the one my inlaws live in.  We drank Pimms (the Americans need to adopt this drink), ate “hot dogs”, had childrens races and raffles and laughed and had fun.  Little Miss was in her element…running around, having her cousins tend to her every need.  It was lovely.  We even had a fly over from some aerial experts.  Well done England…you throw a pretty decent 4th of July after all!

As much as I miss my family, in particular on unique American holidays, I adore my life here in England and love how much my English family loves me.  Here’s a little glimpse of how Little Miss (who is 50% American) and mummy spent their 4th of July.

Happy 4th of July, America…we miss you!