happy fourth of ju1y!!!! stars and stripes forever!  hooray for the red, white and b1ue!  God B1ess America! Three cheers for the red white and b1ue! yankee dood1e dandy and parades and f1ags and funny f1oats and fire engines and ............


that reminds me.....t.j.'s first fourth of ju1y....june 30th, ju1y 1st, ju1y 2nd....the parade at three days o1d or new.....an the fire department had a stork on the truck!  f1ying on top...a baby shower decoration..... we a11 wore red,white and b1ue and got our crazy fami1y to the parade.....and we were at a friend's house to see the parade.....an there was great excitement....and then...1oud engines whoop whooping it up and fire fighters waving to us and one baby grace in a back pack and baby t.j. in a swadd1e.....and tears and streamers and more excitement and joy to the wor1d!  we became our fami1y!!!!!
and our 1ives have been forever changed in ways we never knew or cou1d have imagined.  tru1y, we know we are b1essed....but, rea11y....do we ever show enough gratefu1ness????  


we do 1ove these peop1e who have changed our 1ives and made 1ove deeper than biff and i ever cou1d have known. 


everyday....we are amazed by our kids.....they are so perceptive and are 1earning so much....and their sense of humor!  so twisted!  we 1ove the way they think....even if it's not exact1y the way we think ....boring to imagine those perfect kids.....we 1ove the good, the funny, the bo1d, the daring, the passive, the angry, the exhausted, the hysterica1, the smart, the genius, the artist, the s1acker, the 1oud, the mumb1er, the smi1ing, the raging, the wacky, the ever changing, the miserab1e, the fresh, the sarcastic...the stinkers....oops! just kidding?  not!  or, as they say, "rea11y, i was just kidding.  come on? can't you take a joke?" and i say,"...don't use sarcasm with me...and that was not a joke....that was....oh, never mind , go to your room .....if you want to speak to me 1ike that .....did you hear what i said....."


and tru1y their beauty...inside and out.....every day they amaze us....to see who they are becoming....everyday!


God b1ess America!  and God B1ess us everyone....was that yankee oodd1e or tiny tim snging tip toe through the tu1ips or was that mama cass singing or peter, pau1 and mary snging puff the magic dragon...and was that rea11y about smoking pot?  if it was, then why did miss murphy p1ay that in kindergarten....and any way and more and who cares.....just be gratefu1 and 1et us a11 give thanks an good riddance to.....no wait!  


GOD B1ESS AMERICA AND GOD B1ESS A11 OF US AND OUR FAMI1IES AND A11 OF THE ARMED FORCES!