My Little Firecracker

The Fourth of July turned out somewhat different than we had planned as my grandmother has been battling diverticulitis for some time now and was sent to the hospital for IV antibiotics and more tests the Friday night before the holiday.

My parents immediately headed out to Louisiana while Tay and I held down the fort with a houseguest - their dog, Gilbert. Davey was working that weekend as well so it was just the girls, a whole bunch of puppies and a camera - a clear recipe for entertainment!

See?

What - you thought Tay celebrated any holiday - minor or major - without a festive hat? Nope, not my child. It is rare, though, that she is willing to pose this long so I took complete advantage of her generous mood.

Saturday morning we were supposed to go to the parade in Belton (the largest 4th of July parade in Texas, I'll have you know) as it's a tradition Boppy started when Tay was just a babe. 

We had apparently entered the rainy season here in Central Texas, though, because it poured buckets for days. I clearly missed the memo about this type of season in JULY but that did not stop the skies from opening. Because Tay and I are only so adventurous, we decided to skip the parade and go pick Gilbert up instead.

He was most happy to see us, I think. Hard to tell because his expression always looks contemplative and a bit on the sad side. He is a lover, though, and I am also apparently allergic to his long, coarse hair. 

My grandmother was released early Saturday morning with new meds so that was a relief. We just hung out with the many pups and tried to decide what we were going to do on Sunday...after waffling three or 12 times, we were still a bit undecided and decided to let the fun come to us. :-)

We had a great church service and lunch at Mazzio's where an older lady kept staring holes in me and eventually came up to me and wanted to know who I was. I told her my name and she replied, "Nope, that's not it." Hilarious!

Then we headed home to chill before going to Fourth on the Brazos...until the phone rang. It was Aunt Anna, who was having her nieces over for a pool and slumber party. She lives right behind the park in Temple where they do holiday fireworks so the view from her backyard is fab. Guess who was super excited to find out she was on the guest list?

This fellow was not all that excited about Tay's departure, though. If you haven't guessed, this is Gilbert.

I took Tay down to Temple and visited for a while before heading back to hang with my man. Alone time. Yes, Lord!

We had dinner at Buzzard Billy's and then picked out a great spot to watch the fireworks; however, there was over an hour before they would actually light up the night so we did what any young and hip couple would do...headed home to watch the Boston Pops special (which includes fireworks) on television while piled in bed with four dogs.

We're cool like that...

Dave and I had a bunch more alone time on Monday because Tay didn't come home until early evening. I picked her up at my mom's house (aka the meeting spot) and headed home to this spread. 

Can we just pause and say "God bless America?"

The holiday was different but was awesome just the same - as I grow older, I'm more and more grateful for the freedoms we have in this country. Wouldn't trade it for anything except heaven. 

Unfortunately, my grandmother is back in the hospital as I type. The diverticulitis has still not resolved. The good news is they've found no abscess; however, they will be keeping her for IV antibiotics for a few days. If it does not clear up, they may have to do surgery. So if you would remember her (and my parents who will be heading out on Thursday, I believe) in your prayers, I would greatly appreciate it. :-)