On the 4th of July this year, despite the rain, we started the day by hanging the flag above our front door. The rain dampened not only the lawns we were to sit on to watch the parade but our spirits as well. No one likes a rainy 4th. However, by mid-day when all the festivities began, the sun was out, and everything had brightened and dried up quite a bit. We set off for the day's activities dressed in red, white and blue with family, houseguests, greek and pasta salads and lawn chairs in tow.
We started at Matt's house where a young, festive crowd was already assembled and celebrating our country's birthday! Matt had a huge plate of raw tuna and all the fixin's for some delicious sushi. He and Nick thoroughly enjoyed it...
Nicholas arrived from Newport just in time to join in the fun...
At the Carnuccio's, we also played Corn Hole, an outdoor bean bag type game that keeps everyone entertained. Matt, Nicholas, our house guest, Gianni, and my nephew, William, had a rousing game....
At our next stop, the Hendrens', we had more lunch. This time we had the more traditional 4th of July fare of hamburgers, hot dogs, potato salad. They also had a special 4th of July cake...
At two o'clock, the parade began it's journey down Washington Street. Somewhere along the way, I forgot to keep taking photos, so this year's take was pretty small...
After the parade, we returned home where our neighborhood was alive with celebration. Two side by side neighbors were having parties; one a lobster/clam bake and the other a southern BBQ with ribs and pulled pork. Starting at dusk, there were fireworks displays everywhere! The skies were beautifully lit all around. We just stood at the water's edge with a few friends in awe of the wonder of it all.
