July 4th

July 4th was the last "normal" day we had. The deployment had just hit 7 months and things were buzzing along. The weather had been getting progressively warmer and going on post for the Fourth of July festivities was like hanging out in a sauna. Oliver loved riding the "not quite safe for kids" rides and took his driving very seriously. We drank a beer but had to skip the hot dogs because the Italians were bum rushing the stands. They aren't the waiting-in-line kind of people. As we sat at the picnic tables, sweating profusely, a huge storm cloud covered the sky, the wind started blowing like crazy and the temperature dropped at least ten degrees. If I were psychic, I would have thought it some sort of ominous sign. Instead I just gathered the boys and left.

Here's the boys in their red white and blue outfits.