family – Page 76 – Lemon Drop Pie

A couple of years ago, we discovered that our local grocery stores were no longer selling our favorite mac ‘n cheese. While this was a disappointment to the girls and me, someone was even more disappointed.

My husband, Ed.

He was the one who introduced me to this little box of happiness, after all. During his bachelor days, President’s Choice White Cheddar was a main staple of his diet.

When he discovered that our store wasn’t offering it any more, he requested some information and learned that the President’s Choice brand was only going to be sold in Canada. We tried to find substitutes. We found some good mac ‘n cheese, but none was quite as good.

So Ed planned a vacation to Canada for the sole purpose of buying President’s Choice Mac ‘n Cheese.

Really.

Just a couple of weeks ago, we traveled to Canada just to go grocery shopping. Ed was so happy to find plenty of boxes of mac ‘n cheese on the shelves, he just about cried.

Tears of joy!

He bought ten boxes, and we worried that might not be enough!

Oh, yes, we may have also seen Niagara Falls, too.

Disclosure: Ed really does love President’s Choice White Cheddar Mac ‘n Cheese. This is his own opinion, and we were not compensated in any way for this post. Not even with mac ‘n cheese; we paid for those boxes fair ‘n square and we don’t have to share!

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Flags displayed during the 4th of July parade

When thinking about tradition, many people think of those winter holidays such as Thanksgiving and Christmas. In our little family, Independence Day is steeped in tradition, just like the sun tea steeping on the hot cement driveway.

Many Chicago area suburbs have firework displays on July 3. So we start our Independence Day a little early and keep the girls up late. Lily was only two and a half when we took her to her first fireworks display, and she’s loved them from the start. Emmy is another story. She has never cried at the fireworks; she just holds on to me as tightly as she can and holds her hands over her ears, hardly looking at the fireworks. This year, she still sat in my lap and held her hands over her ears, but she looked up at the cascading lights in the sky with awe.

The next morning, bleary-eyed and sleepy from staying up late, we head to the 4th of July parade which begins at 9:00 sharp. Clowns, Corvettes, and even a camel…all part of the fun! Then it’s off to the park for balloons, hot dogs and games. The girls love the candy thrown from the parade floats and the games. I love the summer-ness of it all — the warmth from the sun, the loud celebrations — the red, white and blue.