It was a fun and fulfilling day. We had the boys favorite cold cereal while watching the sunrise over the lake. By mid-morning it became a day filled with extended family, and how cool is this? The unhappy SIL wasn’t there! There was waterskiing, tubing, knee boarding, swimming, splashing, talking, walking, watching a sixty something aunt decide to ride a pre-teens bike, washer tossing, horseshoes, dunk the uncles, playing with cousins, nieces, and nephews and visiting with aunts and uncles.
There was all the best country people picnic foods; baked beans, potato salad, pasta salad, fruit salad, roasted corn on the cob, burgers and franks cooked on the fire, pickles, lettuce, tomatoes, home baked cookies, scratch chocolate cake, pecan pie, and homemade lemonaid with crushed ice.
We were camping on our favorite lake which happens to be out of state a good 9 hours or so from our home. As night fell, the extended family (who all lived between 10 and 70 miles, from where we were) all headed to their homes. It had been quite hot that day and the homemade ice cream we had planned to serve took foreveeeeeerrrrr to freeze. There had been plenty of other homemade desserts, so no one really missed the ice cream except our boys who consider it tradition to have homemade ice cream on the 4th.
When night began to fall, the ice cream finally hardened and hubby tossed the ice bucket in the boat. I gathered the boys, some cups to serve the ice cream in, flashlights, insect repellent and patriot tape to accompany the fireworks. We loaded onto our little ski boat and puttered out into the middle of this huge lake with what seemed like hundreds of other boats for the fireworks viewing. The fireworks were going to be shot off over the lake from an island. The boats were all lit with red, green and white night safety lights and the lights from everyones boats were reflecting off the water. The boys in their ski jackets were sunkissed and smelled of sunshine, lake, sunscreen and insect repellant.
I went to dip up ice cream for everyone to enjoy while we watched the fireworks and discovered we’re in the middle of the lake with homemade ice cream and no spoons! I’m mortified and in a split second I think the day is ruined. I’m worried the boys are tired and going to be so upset they can’t have the ice cream that they’ll start whinning. The boys are looking at their cups of ice cream and looking at me, and then they look at their dad who slowly grins great big and dips his fingers in the cup and slurps the ice cream off his fingers like a heathen. The boys are delighted and giggling as the fireworks begin and they enjoy the ice cream off their fingers. When they are through with their ice cream and sticky all over, their dad takes them by the back of their ski jackets and the seat of their pswimsuits and dips them in the lake! This illicits delighted protestations and much splashing of parents.
When the fireworks were over we cautiously, and slowly, headed back to our campsite, because so many boats were on the lake and were rushing to get out and we had all the time in the world. On the way the boys fell asleep, littest one in my lap and older one with his red, white and blue flashlight clutched to his heart. As hubby carried the older one and I carried the little one up to tuck into their camping cots, I thought this was a once in a lifetime day. It was an amazingly romantic evening and I’m not talking about sexual intimacy. It was some other incredible intimacy that touched me deep within and I will never forget.
The most delightful moment in an unforgetable day; the instant the boys saw the wicked playful heathen look on their fathers face when he stuck his fingers in the ice cream cup and realized that eating messy was not only to be allowed that day, but encouraged and done with joy.
