Everyone loves a parade
Happy 4th of July to all! In Switzerland, of course, it's just another Monday, although I did wear my red capri pants in honor of the big day. As I write this post from Basel, I'm thinking of my friends and family celebrating the holiday in Three Lakes, Wisconsin (where our family's summer home is). I spent every 4th of July there until 1999, which was the year Kirk and I bought our house in Arlington. Our moving date happened to fall on 4th of July weekend, and I was heartbroken to think that I would actually have to be somewhere other than Three Lakes! Since then, it's become a bit more commonplace to be somewhere else, especially now that we're living in Switzerland. Nonetheless, I miss the big festivities. As much as the fireworks in Washington, DC are spectacular (I have seen them a couple times), I think small town America is the place to be on the 4th of July.
In Three Lakes, it starts with a parade, which consists of every type of vehicle from the town including fire trucks, ambulances, construction vehicles, horse drawn carriages, even boats (being pulled by cars/trucks, of course). Every business in town has it's own float, and they all throw candy to the crowd. Then there's your run-of-the-mill high school bands and other random clubs that walk as a group. My personal favorites are the dueling Packers-Bears fan clubs. Most people up there are huge fans of the Green Bay Packers, but you also have lots of Chicago visitors, so they have their own Chicago Bears fan club as well. They get boo'd as you can imagine.
After the parade, you can walk over to the park and enjoy a freshly grilled brat, some roasted corn on the cob, and a beer. Yum. I can almost taste it. This is at 10:00 AM, mind you, but it's never too early for a brat and a beer in Wisconsin. The highlight of the day is the big fireworks show at dusk. As a kid, my Dad would buy lots of little fireworks for us to set off at home, and this tradition lives on. Yesterday, my 9-year old niece told me in detail about all the fireworks they bought for the weekend.
Most of all, I miss being with friends and family celebrating in the northwoods. I have so many years of wonderful memories from there and am anxious to get up there during my visit to Wisconsin next month.
One more thing. I can usually guess when Kirk is going to attach a comment to a post, and I can imagine a number of things he'll want to add to fully describe his 4th of July experiences in Thres Lakes (he's been there a couple times). Either he'll tell you about how you'll need to wear a parka to the fireworks in order to keep warm or he'll make fun of all the trucks driving in the parade. Which is it?
In Three Lakes, it starts with a parade, which consists of every type of vehicle from the town including fire trucks, ambulances, construction vehicles, horse drawn carriages, even boats (being pulled by cars/trucks, of course). Every business in town has it's own float, and they all throw candy to the crowd. Then there's your run-of-the-mill high school bands and other random clubs that walk as a group. My personal favorites are the dueling Packers-Bears fan clubs. Most people up there are huge fans of the Green Bay Packers, but you also have lots of Chicago visitors, so they have their own Chicago Bears fan club as well. They get boo'd as you can imagine.
After the parade, you can walk over to the park and enjoy a freshly grilled brat, some roasted corn on the cob, and a beer. Yum. I can almost taste it. This is at 10:00 AM, mind you, but it's never too early for a brat and a beer in Wisconsin. The highlight of the day is the big fireworks show at dusk. As a kid, my Dad would buy lots of little fireworks for us to set off at home, and this tradition lives on. Yesterday, my 9-year old niece told me in detail about all the fireworks they bought for the weekend.
Most of all, I miss being with friends and family celebrating in the northwoods. I have so many years of wonderful memories from there and am anxious to get up there during my visit to Wisconsin next month.
One more thing. I can usually guess when Kirk is going to attach a comment to a post, and I can imagine a number of things he'll want to add to fully describe his 4th of July experiences in Thres Lakes (he's been there a couple times). Either he'll tell you about how you'll need to wear a parka to the fireworks in order to keep warm or he'll make fun of all the trucks driving in the parade. Which is it?
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