Happy Fourth of July!

We spent the Fourth of July at my grandmother's house in Ideal, Georgia. My mom's side of the family has always had a big barbecue to celebrate the Fourth, and this year was no different! We decided to go down a little early to help out with the cooking. We went down on Thursday night and camped out in the backyard. The kids had a great time. We heard lots of country sounds. One night I heard a pack of coyotes in the distance. Yikes!

Bright and early Friday morning, my uncles, Scott, and my cousin Brock put the hog on to cook.

I'll bet Tampa boy Scott never thought in his wildest dreams that he'd be carrying 1/4 of a hog to the pit, along with one of my 4 Uncle Larries. That's right. There have been 4 Uncle Larries in my life. I'll save that explanation for another post.

Mmmmmmm

Now it was time to wait on the meat to cook. People showed up throughout the day on Friday. The adults visited, and the kids played. And played. And played. This was my favorite part. When I was growing up, we went to MeMe and Pa's almost every Sunday. Every time we got together, my cousins and I would play for hours and hours outside. Most kids played house. But not us. We played Dukes of Hazzard. And we rode 4-wheelers. And we helped to feed the animals on the farm. And we rolled down the hill across the road from MeMe's house. That always seemed like the biggest hill. We would be so dizzy when we got to the bottom of the hill, not to mention filthy. Now that hill doesn't seem very big at all. Those times with my cousins are some of my most precious memories, and I'm grateful that my kids get to do at least some of the same things with their cousins.

Friday night, our generation was in charge of supper. There seemed to be more talking going on than grilling, but the guys did a good job. We had pork chops and ribs.

Saturday morning, we took some pictures of the kids, MeMe's Great-Grandchildren, in their red, white, and blue. They were so cute! There are 12 Great-Grandchildren, 6 boys and 6 girls, which includes 2 sets of twins. In case you're wondering why we stopped at 2 kids, they're the two cute little 2-year-olds sitting in the trailer, Hannah and Hillary. When my cousin Ken and his wife Shelia found out they were having twins, that pretty much sealed the deal for us. My cousin Lori and her husband Chris also have twin boys, Michael and Nicholas, who are standing on the right of the wagon. I might have tried for 3 kids, but the idea of 4 terrified me! We're so blessed with the 2 kids we do have, and they certainly keep us busy enough.

This picture was taken in MeMe's back yard, in front of what was at one time an outhouse. My Uncle Pete would hook that trailer to the back of his 4-wheeler and load it up with kids and feed. We'd go all around the farm feeding the animals. My cousins and I would help. Well, mostly, we'd ride along and play with the buckets of feed. Another memory I'll always cherish. Just like the hill across the road from MeMe's house, that trailer isn't nearly as big as it used to seem. Before we found the trailer, I was sure we could fit all 12 kids inside. Once we found it, only the smallest kids would fit. I guess our perspectives change as we age. We see some things differently. But MeMe's is still a happy, loving place, and it always will be. My children don't get to experience it as often as I did, but I think they get it. And next time, I'm teaching those kids how to roll down that hill!