Great Expectations

I don't know if it's because I watched too many sitcoms growing up or because I had a wonderful childhood or what, but I expect things (including holidays) to be a certain way. R jokes that my family is like the Cleavers. That said, I think I sometimes envision how we will be. For example, this 4th I would have liked to have gathered with my family and cooked out on Sat. and then gone with friends and kids to watch an awesome firework show that night---- just like last year.

Well, I made the boys their little shirts (the morning of, won't get to wear those again!) and set out to work on things for the day. R put on what I assumed was a pork butt/shoulder, but once taken out of the oven realized it was a pork sirloin? And was way overcooked. TRASH. My cute little star cookies that I made turned out dry and I decided I didn't like the icing on them. TRASH. My family all seemed to have other things going on, so no lunch. And, a storm was coming. It's sooo un-American for it to rain on the 4th of July!

In the end, I settled for some Capt. D's and fireworks from McDowell's. Luckily, some great friends came over, too, and I enjoyed the evening. In fact, I'd say that looking back years from now, my kids will probably remember how Dad would take them and buy fireworks at the local firework stand and we'd eat dinner together and then once it got dark, we'd go outside and sit around in camp chairs with friends and watch him shoot them (in the rain this year.) The small stuff. Isn't that what memories are really made of? The moral of today's story? Life is what you make it.