the fourth

It hasn't been all that long since my best friend, Emily, and her family left Brooklyn for the greener pastures of New Jersey, but even so, since she moved we've both been counting the days to July 4th when we could gather at her new place for a real suburban barbeque. And that is exactly what we got: a charcoal grilled feast devoured over casual conversation followed by some relaxing in the yard while the kids played in the inflatable pool and ran through the sprinklers. It was perfect. And it couldn't have been spent with a better group of people: Adam, Emily, Elizabeth, and the triplets, Charlie, Eddie, and Lucy, as well as my brother Riley, sister-in-law Chelsea and my niece Chloe, who drove up from Georgia to spend the week with us.

We originally had grand plans to trek up to the Jersey side of the Hudson River to watch the Macy's fireworks, but after much consideration (along with an acceptance of the fact that between us we have too many small children to make such a feat enjoyable) we decided to bag that idea and save it for another time. So instead we said goodbye to our friends in the early evening and headed back to Brooklyn where we opted instead to watch the fireworks launched after the Brooklyn Cyclone's home game at Coney Island. The boardwalk was packed with people who made those of us wearing shorts and t-shirts feel incredibly overdressed, and it took a bit of effort to keep our group together. But in the end we found an ideal spot to park our crew and watch the fireworks show. It was no Macy's display, but Garrett and Caleb were still absolutely mesmerized, and even Matthew woke up briefly and watched with his big bug eyes.

Everyone crashed as soon as we got home, and rightfully so. It was a long but fulfilling day. And I'd do it again in a heartbeat.