Nashville, TN., 9:12 p.m., C.D.T., July 5, 2013~

Dear Journal~

I sit here in my bedroom, waiting for Bill to come to bed.  He is busy getting the children bedded down for the night; then he will join me (and "Cajun Gold", my Pomeranian) in the master bedroom.  Tonight was his night to put the kids to bed.

We had a great time yesterday.  We went to our city's annual Fourth of July parade (in the morning), then went out to eat at Cracker Barrel, and went downtown, for the city's annual "Red, White, and BOOM!" Festival.  We did have to dodge some raindrops during the day (and get out of the weather; it was lightning and thundering on and off for a good part of the day), but the fireworks still went on.  They were nothing short of spectacular!

I took lots of pictures of the festivities and loaded them up onto my Facebook page and also at my YouTube account.  I took pictures of the parade, the kids (of course; what mama wouldn't?? I love my kids!), and the evening's patriotic program (Ronee' sang during the show; she sang prior to the fireworks and did a great job!), as well as the fireworks, the REAL star of the show!  I spent a good three-to-four hours just doing my video and pictures on the computer!! LOL  Poor Bill had to wrangle with the kids during the time I was tied up!

The kids all enjoyed themselves, but several got sunburnt (Johnny, for one; poor guy never tans, no matter HOW much sunscreen we slather on him!), and more than a few got bitten by bugs and mosquitoes.  Other than that (and a few scrapes from falls), my kids emerged intact.  LOL  Akihiko had a meltdown during the fireworks extravaganza; Bill had to take him to the van to calm him; I think the fireworks and the people proved to be too much for him.  I felt bad because I don't think he should be excluded, but when he has a meltdown, then what am I supposed to do?? Leave him home to be looked after by my aging parents??  I don't think so!! He's a kid; he deserves to have fun, just like any of the other members of my family!

We feasted on hot dogs, hamburgers (with or without cheese), baked beans, three bean salad, cole slaw, tacos, burritos, enchiladas, jalapenos, fried chicken, Cajun andouille sausage, crawfish, french fries, mashed potatoes, meatloaf, and for dessert, strawberry short cake with whipped cream, blueberry or cherry pie, ice cream, and brownies.   We ate like kings and queens; we were so stuffed we had to lie around like slugs for a few hours, so we could rest our bellies! LOL

I pray y'all had as much fun as we did!  Other than Akihiko's meltdown during the fireworks, we all had a most wonderful day!  It felt so good to celebrate our freedoms and our independence!  It's no wonder the Fourth of July remains one of my top favorite holidays of all time!  It just gets better year after year after year!

Well, Bill is here, so I'll shut this down and call it a night.  I will write in here again soon; until then, this is Louisiana Sandusky saying so long and good night; may God bless you always!

~Love, your friend in Tennessee, Louie May.  :)