Our Fourth In The Land of the Free

On the Fourth of July I had the privilege to attend the wedding ceremony of my childhood best friend, Sarah. She knew my parents were going to be there for the ceremony, but we decided to make my attendance a surprise. It was so exciting to see the look on her face when I arrived! Priceless! It was wonderful to see Sarah so happy on her day and see in her eyes the feelings of excitement and joy over the new beginnings in her life: her husband-to-be, Larry, a new dream job, a comfortable place to live ahead. I can't say how glad I am that I was able to be there to share in her special day. And seeing her parents, Linda and Bruce, and her brother Ryan, who were all once like a second family to me, was wonderful too.

It was a perfect, "backyard" wedding, surrounded by friends and family. She and her fiancee had done most of the work setting up. Friends and family had brought in food to potluck. Her grandmother-in-law made the cake. Music was performed by friends, including a special song sung and played on the piano by her brother. It was so relaxed and beautiful. As I watched my friend be married, I remembered building car cities on our desks, singing along with Simon and Garfunkel, breaking CD's we thought had "bad" lyrics after a church camp, forming the "V" Club, laughing about all the words we thought sounded weird like "neep," and so many more memories that comprised the days, hours, minutes, seconds of my youth spent with Sarah, or "Ah" as I called her. I admit it. I cried big fat tears. She is such a treasured part of my past.

Sarah and I were best friends from fourth grade through ninth grade when we drifted onto our different life paths. But for those years we were pretty inseparable. Peas and carrots, that's what we were, and what a pair! We were such a crazy duo, but we had so much fun in our little best friend world. It was hard for both of us when it was clear that we were making different choices in high school, but we've stayed in touch and through our lives' journeys we've kept that connection that only old, dear friends can have.
After a short stay at the reception we headed back to Lake Roesiger for our Fourth of July celebration. This year there were over 40 people at the cabin! That includes (here goes!): all six of the Conlin kids (Angie, Adam, Ryan, Alea, Ashley and Aaron), the three spouses (Mike, Me and Zach), the 8 grandkids (Kylie-who had to leave early in the day to fly back to AZ for girls' camp-and Steven, who belong to Angie; my five; and Alea's daughter Camden), all the married kids' in-laws were there too (Angie's-Skip and Jan, Mine-Stan and Candace, and Alea's (Rick and Barb, and also my Tutu), Ashley had her boyfriend Ryan there, and Aaron brought his girlfriend Bree, the Schweikarts were there (Chris, Shuree and Trina, they are Dan and Nicolle's close friends, minus the boys of the family who were working), also Adam and my close friends, the Shevitz (Jen, Dave, Hannah and Max) and of course, last but not least, our dear Auntie Sara. It was a huge, wonderful group!

We played in the cold, damp day at the best place on earth, the Lake Roesiger lake house. I say it every post about the cabin, but it's my favorite place to be in the whole world. Its not one thing about that place, it's many things: the memories I have of it, I've been going there with Adam since our high school dating days; the Washingtoniness of it, green, damp, scenic, fragrant, rich; the family life that's been lived there, we are so often all together when we're there; the memories I know will be created there in the future. It's got a special nook all of its own in my heart that's green and full of joy. What a perfect place to be on the 4th of July!

The day was spent playing various lawn games, hide-and-seek (Josh's spots were the best!), exploring the woods around the house and general running amok. The kids all went swimming even though it was one of Western Washington's occasional freezing Fourths. We did a lot of eating thanks to Dan and Nicolle's barbecue and all the sides everyone provided. After dinner, we had a big bonfire and stuffed ourselves silly with s'mores and all the other baked treats that Barb (Alea's mom-in-law) made...oh so good. The fire was also perfect as a warm up for our chilly swimmers.

The one thing I can say about nasty weather on the 4th is that it makes for a quieter lake. It's pretty small, earning itself the nickname "Lake Dizzy" and when it's nice out it gets busy, too busy, with boats. We don't even like going out on the lake when it's like that. But this year we took the boat for a couple of spins, pulling our little boys on the kneeboard, because there were so few boats out there! The kids all went out in the kayaks too without getting sloshed around the whole time by the big wakes.
But with all the pre-firework fun, the best was yet to come. SHOW TIME! Zach, Ben and Josh all got a chance to light some fireworks this year with Uncle Zach's help. Luke loved the Pop-Itz and the sparklers. Adam and I had some fun with the camera and the sparklers too. And MAN! It was quite a year for the who-can-put-on-the-coolest-firework-display contest held by many of the homes around the lake. We at the Conlin Cabin do our best, but we pale in comparison to most of the houses. But we don't mind taking close to last in the competition! From the lawn out on the lake we can see everyone else's shows...cheaper for us and they are spectacular! The three photos at the bottom of the post are taken of 1) the firework show to the right of our boat dock, 2) the show across the lake, and 3) the show to the left of the boat dock. Nice, right? Are you kidding me?! Waaaaay better than nice! It's the only show I've ever watched where I can honestly say by the end that I'm ready for it to be over and that I've had my fill of fireworks for the year.
I love this country. I love that I can live this life and have the freedoms I have in a country that is as diverse as it is beautiful and beautiful because of its diversity. What a miracle its founding was and what a rich history it has had in its short life! Many of the things I hold dearest to my heart would not be a part of my life if not for the U.S.A. I enjoyed, beyond measure, the celebration of the birth of our Nation with those that I love in a place that I treasure.