I started the morning with my first running of the Arbutus Firecracker 10K. Arbutus is the next town over and while life is great in 21228, we also say it is heaven in 21227. The firecracker is known for being a hilly but fun course. The neighbors put out sprinklers which is great because an 8 am start, even for a relatively cool July day, made for a sweaty 6.2 miles. I had a great race with a personal best time of 46:52 for the 10K and was able to share the morning with some great running friends!
After the race and swim practice, we got ready for the parties of the day. This year we actually didn't set up parade chairs with Bryan's messed up shoulder but we planned to join friends. First, it was off to a friend's house for some great food, drink, and fun.
It started raining and Noelle and Bryan decided they would rather play with friends than go to the parade so Kellen and I hiked up the road on our own to join others to watch the fire trucks, bands, cars, bikes, wagons, and floats go by. We stayed for about half of the fun and then took advantage of the rain stopping to head back to the party. The firetrucks and candy that are thrown (plus the yearly 21228 magnet!) are the main reasons we go anyways!
After the parade and party one, we went home to host party two, dinner and play time with friends. We couldn't hang outside, so the kids dressed up, attacked each other in the basement, and finally watched a movie while the moms and dads hung out upstairs away from the chaos. While we usually just act as a pit stop before fireworks, friends stayed until dark and we all ate, drank, and chatted the afternoon and evening away.
The Saxton's were back to their regular routine including 5:45 am wake up calls for the kids for daycare Tuesday the 5th so we skipped the make up firework show. Regardless, the 4th was special as always and keeps us loving 21228!
