.4TH OF JULY CRAFT AND RECIPE WEEK

I have many 4th of July memories from my childhood...

it was pretty much the highlight of the summer at our house...

it meant my parents coming home from the store with a big

watermelon...and we couldn't wait until we could have a nice

slice of it...I got excited about it every year even though I

never really liked watermelon too much...there was just something

so pretty and 'holiday' about it....

...and then there were the little round firecrackers that we threw

onto the sidewalk and they popped...I loved those things...when we

got older...I think around eleven or twelve we got to have the mini firecracker which I think were called Lady Fingers that you actually lit and tossed away from you...supposedly

...but I did have one blow up in my hand the first time I used them

...it wasn't serious because they were so tiny but

 it did make me respect them

enough to be careful from then on....

....the total highlight of the day was after dark when we got to use

sparklers...oh how I loved those things..I remember my dad lighting

them for me and my two brothers and he would always tell

them to watch out for my hair when swinging them around....it was

great fun for all of us...

....the only problem was...as I remember it...we always ended up with

storms on those nights...my parents would tell us that the fireworks

brought them on...I'm not sure if they were right but when I looked

at the sky and saw it lighting up all over from the big fireworks around

town I thought that sure was what caused them....

....so, with all of those memories and more of the 4th of July I wanted

to do a week of crafts and recipes that all of you can consider making...

I hope you will find something that you enjoy for this

fun holiday...and hope it's a great memory maker for you and your family!