It didn’t quite feel like the 4th of July.  Do you ever wonder if you are more you today or if perhaps you were more you yesterday?  Some days I wonder if I was more me when I was younger, more care free and five parts more silly.  Or, is the me of today who I was always supposed to be?  This is all a little more than food + fireworks, yes?

I used to be 4th of July Trina.  You would like her.  She is anywhere between the ages of 12 and 22.  Most days she is happy and every day she is silly.  But come July 4 she is silly plus happy plus fun.  Really, there is nothing way over the top, as maybe you were expecting.  Well, except for that one time that I realized I wasn’t going to celebrate the way I usually did [tradition and I are pretty much BFF].  I was newly married and living in Georgia.  My mom was visiting and there were no good plans, at least as far as I was concerned, so I got dressed up a wee bit like a hillbilly and headed to Wal-Mart [put the kids in the back of the truck, lets go to Wal-Mart, type thing].  I put on my best accent and just acted like a crazy head for no good reason at all, all throughout the store [on a side note – Wal-Mart might as well be spelled s-t-r-e-s-s.  I avoid it at all costs.  But, if you must go then I suggest you play a little game that my friend Lori told me about this week.  It’s called Wolf Shirt.  Basically you count how many wolf shirts you see during your visit.  One time she reached an all time high of 6 wolf shirts in one visit- I kid you not.  Are you laughing?].

Ok, besides my crazy Wal-Mart antics [which if you knew me you might not be too surprised about.  At any given time, I’ve been known to break into a British accent or a Southern drawl. Whatever the mood requires.  And, even once, I went through the McDonald’s drive thru with a bath robe on, a towel wrapped around my head and a green face mask on, all while I was babysitting] the 4th was probably pretty much like yours and theirs.  I think really it was the excitement of this particular holiday that always just got a hold of me.

It was always:

*Cousins
*TOMP Network News
*Hash Brown Casserole + Mary’s Mini Cheesecakes
*Sparklers + Cigars [for the grown ups] *Fireworks shot up over the cornfields (knee high by the 4th of July)
*Swimming until you pretty much pass out

Today we had hash brown casserole, mini cheesecakes, sparklers and swimming.  But it didn’t quite feel like the 4th of July.  I’m hoping next year or the next, when the littlest la la’s are a wee bit bigger, that 4th of July Trina will be back in full swing because I’m quite certain the the older la la’s would pretty much want to be her best friend.

What is the 4th of July for you?  I hope it was  fireworks + all that.

BIG XO

p.s.  Here is the recipe for the Mini Cheesecakes

INGREDIENTS:
*12 Vanilla Wafers
*2 8oz. Cream cheese softened
*1/2 cup sugar
*1 tsp. Vanilla
*2 Eggs
*Cherry pie filling

DIRECTIONS:
*Put wafer in each liner
*Mix cream cheese, vanilla & sugar until blended.  Add eggs.
*Fill 2/3 full
*Bake at 325 degrees for 25 minutes
*Top with Cherry pie topping

For past recipes click here