Wednesday, July 3, 2019

Fourth of July Wednesday Medley

 
 From Westby, Wisconsin

Delicious cherry jam from Door County
I wish I still had some of that.




Join Terri and the Gang
for



She writes the questions;
we write the answers.
Plug them into your own blog
and join in at Terri's blog,

Of course, we will be honoring the USA's Independence Day
for the Wednesday Medley!!

Thank you for the Medley, Terri!


Everything below this line is from the line is from the National Calendar website.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

INDEPENDENCE DAY – July 4

Independence Day July 4

INDEPENDENCE DAY

Each year on July 4th, the United States celebrates Independence Day. This federal holiday commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain. 
Did we really think that was a good idea???
For nearly 250 years, the country has been celebrating a day in history that inspires us still today. On July 4th, speeches and ceremonies are held across the nation. Across the country, people crowd cities for parades and festivals. Streets are decked out in red, white and blue bunting and flags.
While families and friends gather for some of the most mouthwatering food – large picnics and barbecues, local fairs provide a taste of culture and mom’s home cooking, too. With so many converging on their hometowns, family and school reunions take place.
Fire Works
Before the day is over, many communities hold spectacular fireworks displays re-enact moments of victory. Patriotic music accompanies the performance while spectators view the show from blankets strewn along capital lawns or from boats floating in bays. Whether out National Anthem, “The Star-Spangled Banner” or “God Bless America,” many will sing along.  In some locations, music will be played by a live orchestra or band, while in other areas it’s pre-recorded. Some of the most popular on the playlist are “America the Beautiful,” “My Country, Tis of Thee,” “This Land Is Your Land,”  “Stars and Stripes Forever,”  “God Bless the U.S.A.,” “Yankee Doodle” and “Dixie.”
In some parts of the country, people will shoot their own fireworks. Children delight in the bright colors and sparklers. They roast marshmallows and make s’mores.
 ***
Questions are from Terri. My responses are in blue.


1.  Please share a favorite July 4th memory with us.
Nothing especially stands out, but thinking of childhood, sometimes we were at Silver Lake or Shell Lake here in Wisconsin, a couple of Wisconsin's 15,000 lakes! And as I was trying to dredge up some memory of a big Fourth of July celebration, it occurred to me that the reason I couldn't remember anything too specific was that we were farmers. It was haying season, and I'm sure that my dad and brothers were in the field baling hay and putting it up for the winter. It would have been after that, late evening, that we would head to the lake. And I remember my brothers shooting off firecrackers now and then.

When our kids were young, we would go to the fireworks display at Barron next to the high school, or to Rice Lake. We would put chairs in the back of the pickup and meet friends up there for a fun time of fireworks, Twizzlers, and popcorn.
 Grandkids playing in the pond garden stream
 This was July 7th, the closest I could find. The kids are pulling algae out of the stream. They know that to move the rocks would be to cause the water to overflow at places and then the pond level would lower. And they know that it would not make Grandma happy to have all the water gone from the pond.

2.  How do you plan to spend tomorrow?  If you are working, will you celebrate later?
We'll be in Wausau visiting our daughter and grandkids. Our other daughter is going to drive up from Madison to join us!  and later we'll be watching fireworks along the Wisconsin River. 
3.  Is there a favorite food always reserved for your 4th of July celebration?
 Strawberry shortcake, if made with GF flour, sounds good to me. My problem with anything like this is that nowadays (Is that a word?) I will end up eating it alone. Mr. C. will have a tiny piece and then go for the chips or popcorn. So if anything, I would make a tiny one-or-two serving shortcake. Most likely, this year it will be Air Head Bites for a treat.
Monday evening, 8:30 PM, from the porch

4.  In Florida, you can buy all kinds of fireworks, including some that fly high and burst into pretty cascades.  Are fireworks legal in your state/community and does anyone you know put on a display for your neighborhood?
In Wisconsin, every Walmart parking lot and other fireworks sales tents go up the end of June, so there are always fireworks being shot off in the neighborhood, usually starting July 3 or even earlier. The photos below are from 2015. The 'boys' would often shoot fireworks from the top of our hill. They have to stop by 10 PM, but that's because their mother makes them stop because it seems rude to the neighbors to be shooting off fireworks after that. The neighbors, on the other hand, seem to go on for all hours. That's because their mother isn't a killjoy. LOL

Doesn't this look like it's from a TV show?
the kind I don't watch? LOL
 From a few years ago. Evidently something more exciting than fireworks caught Lucy's eye.


5.  Do you have a favorite movie that you always watch sometime during the 4th of July?
No, but one of my favorites of all time is Enemy of the State with Gene Hackman and Will Smith, so if I were to watch any movie on the Fourth, that might be it. Again. It's just a great movie!
And when Mr. C. puts on his readers, he looks just like Gene Hackman. I tease him about it. LOL
6.  Share something from your week, please.
I shared this photo, taken Tuesday, on Instagram. It was a beautiful July day, typically warm and muggy, but bright blue skies (after the rain that seemed to go on forever). I hung the polyester double knit quilt my mom made from scraps leftover from outfits she made for me and for herself when I was in Junior High. That stuff was beastly hot, didn't breathe, but it also didn't have to be ironed, so Mom used it a lot in her sewing projects. It's nearly indestructible, so it makes a great picnic blanket (or blanket from which to watch the fireworks). I hated that quilt when Mom made it and pretty much right up until the time she died. After that, it kinda worked its way into my tiny heart of appreciation. And now, I love that I have that quilt that she made. It will live forever - and not just in my heart. I mean, that stuff lives FOREVER.
 ***
After 40 years in the contracting business, Mr. C. is actually going to officially retire the end of this month.  It's been coming slowly. It was going to be January, then it was going to be April, then it was going to be June.....
But retirement does not mean mornings at the coffee shop for this man. It means the start of work on the Wausau house and after that, work on the farmhouse to get it ready to sell. So he doesn't dare hang up his work clothes just yet.
 More of this kind of thing
with one of our sons
Maybe I'll let him have coffee and a donut now and then. ;-)

Have a wonderful Fourth, everyone!
Join me on Instagram @cranberrymorning

Judy

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24 comments:

Stacy said...

Oh, I like your quilt and the story that goes with it. I have a quilt, also heavy and hot, that my grandmother pieced from scraps of corduroy clothing she, my mom, and my aunts wore. I rescued the topper when we emptied Nana's house and last year my mom and one of my aunts put the backing on it.

Have a wonderful 4th with your family!

NanaDiana said...

It seems we were always haying on the 4th, too, Judy. Oh- that hot, itchy work and I wouldn't trade it now for any worldly treasure. Living in the mountains we sometimes drove up the neighboring hill and could see the high fireworks that were set off in town in the valley.

Love all your pictures and congrats on hubby's 'retirement'. I gave a one year notice-June 1st of next year I retire (2nd time)...lol

Have a great & happy, blessed 4th. xo Diana

songbird's crazy world said...

Congrats on the retirement.

I’ll have to check out the movie, I’ve never seen it and I love Will Smith

Elizabethd said...

How nice that the quilt has worked its way back into favour! I agree, there is nothing so hot and unforgiving as man made fabric, but the memories are so sweet.
And it doesnt need ironing!

MadSnapper said...

it is wonderful your Hackman lookalike will have plenty to keep him busy and also save a lot of money doing it himself. i love Hackman and Smith and also love that movie. maybe some one of our 700 channels we never watch will play it. i will check on that in a few minutes.. your views is so gorgeous and i would hate to be leaving that view..

Jodi said...

That strawberry shortcake looks soo good! I may have to run to the store and grab some strawberries to make some!! Have a great 4th!

Nonnie said...

Funny how things like that quilt find the way into the soft spot of our hearts. I love that photo of the grands pulling out algae. What a pretty pond. Now, is Silver Lake where one of the Little House books took place?

Mrs.T said...

Strawberry shortcake would be a great idea! I bought a lot of cherries today, though (they were 1.99/lb; a great deal!) and our dessert is likely to be cherries and no-bake cookies! It's outrageously hot here, though there is a decent breeze. The 4th is predicted to be very hot.

My hubby is planning to retire from full-time logging at the end of December. He will still have plenty to keep him busy, however!

Lori said...

I love your quilt! My Granie made me a quilt sort of like that. Those are the best quilts! Congratulations to Mr. C!!!! That is so awesome! Loved your answers! Have a Happy 4th of July!

https://lorisbusylife.blogspot.com/

Cheryl said...

Congratulations to Mr. Cranberry!! May his retirement be filled with work that brings him joy!!

I am smiling at your description of the "forever" quilt . . . and I am drooling over the cherry butter and the strawberry shortcake.

Heide at ApronHistory said...

We just went strawberry picking yesterday! There have only been a few times I remember picking around the 4th of July. But they sure are worth the wait!
My favorite 4th memory was driving home from my grandparents in the UP on 4th of July. No one was on the road! It was amazing driving through Milwaukee watching fireworks all around and not too many cars around. My absolutely favorite way to watch fireworks! No noise. The other half of that memory was eating cherries laying down in the backseat of the car the whole trip. If you come from a big family, you know what a luxury that was!

podso said...

That's a great quilt! We have some that won't die. I think quilts are a cut above other things because of the time put into them by someone's loving, and possibly aching, hands. That's a great picture, by the way.

So Mr. C is retiring? I've heard it said "retreading" not retiring. That's what we've experienced. Happily busy, but there is a small sense of not being in so much of a hurry. Except you guys have a big job ahead of you.

Have a happy 4th, fireworks reflected on the river!

Allstarme79 said...

That picture from the porch is gorgeous! I'd love a view like that.

Michelle said...

I do love that quilt. Rain is forecast for the 4th, here in KY. Not sure there will be much going on....

Carla from The River said...

Hi Judy,
Congratulations to Mr. C. I am sure he will enjoy working on the Wausau home and of course spending time with the grandkids. :-)

Enjoy the fireworks along the river bank.. sounds like fun.
Love, Carla

Chatty Crone said...

I have to laugh I remember that material and I hated it too - but nice for a quilt to sit on.
Love your photos.
Love that strawberry shortcake.
Sounds like you have had great memories about the 4th and more will come!

Susie said...

Judy, So good to see all the photos. Your Mr. C is a good man. He will probably always find some work to do. Men like him find it hard to sit still. I hope all is going smoothly in your moving arrangements. Blessings to all for a fun 4th. Be safe. xoxo, Susie

Terri D said...

Thanks for joining in on the Medley! I enjoyed your responses and love that quilt and the story behind it. Precious. Congrats to the Mister on his retirement even though it sounds like he might be working even harder for a few more months! I wish you all so many blessings with this move and his retirement. Looking forward to reading more about it all as it unfolds. Hugs!

Barbara said...

Such beautiful scenes from the northern Wisconsin countryside. You live in a beautiful part of the country, in spite of the mugginess. You made me chuckle about the polyester quit. All so true. Indestructible!

This will be our first 4th of July in a "+55 Active Adult Community" that is truly on the far outskirts of town. I am very curious if it will be a quieter celebration here than all of our years in regular city neighborhoods. I would like the quiet.

Becki said...

That shortcake looks delicious! I'd have a piece with you :) Congrats to Mr C on retirement!

Cindy said...

My mom used to crochet a lot and I have so many of her blankets. After she died they became even more precious! I hope you have a happy and safe Fourth!

Vee said...

“Are we sure that was a good idea.” Spoken like a true Anglophile.☺️ (Yes, I am beyond sure that it was one of the greatest, noblest ideas ever conceived in the heart of man in the history of the world.)

I can not get over the color of those skies. Sure hope that they have them like that in Wausau or we’ll have to add it to the list of things you will miss and I don’t want to add one more thing to that one.

Old contractors never retire, they just keep hammering away. They can’t help themselves...there is always something to be done!

A happy fourth with your daughters and grands watching the fireworks along the riverbank.💫 Sounds so lovely. And, goodness, enjoy the strawberry shortcake!

Lynne said...

Happy 4th of July . . .
Nice to have a worker man living in your household . . .
Almost retired, semi retired, retired . . . keep him in jobs!

I remember decorating my bike wheels with red, white, blue crepe paper for the downtown parade!

As a young school girl in the 40’s I was assigned, along with my classmates,
to memorize this part of the Declaration of Independence.
I remember this vividly and I remember our teacher,
Mrs McDonald, Lone Rock, Wisconsin.
My mother was also a teacher in this school,
my dad was the Supervising Principal.
***
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal,
that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights,
that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.—
That to secure these rights,
Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, —

That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends,
it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government,
laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form,
as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Judy, there's just something about a man in a tool belt! (Or chaps!) Love the sky in that photo of the eternal quilt (They should've named polyester double-knit something like iron cloth).

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