Americana

Today was all American day for us. Most of us followed the national dress code for the 4th of July featuring red, white, blue, or all three in our clothing selections. We started our day with French toast for breakfast. Now let’s talk about French toast for a minute. It’s not actually French in origin. The dish originated in ancient Rome; however, the name French toast was first applied to the dish in the Encyclopedia of American Food and Drink that was published in 1871. So that makes it American, right? 😉 And of course I upped the patriotic value by decorating it in with a good old US of A design. It was pretty darn tasty whatever its original nationality! 

Dinner followed the theme of the day as my family requested hamburgers, chips, and dip. We neglected the tri-colored drink this year though. It wasn’t intentional, it just didn’t occur to us. I can’t even remember the last time we didn’t have what has become our traditional libation on Independence Day. It honestly felt a little weird once I realized it had been overlooked. I guess that means I’d better get my act together next year.

We talked about French toast earlier, but now let’s switch gears and talk about cookie cake. That probably seems like a bit of an oxymoron. I mean, how can a cookie be a cake and vice versa? By simple definition they are two entirely different foods. So what exactly is a cookie cake? It is a giant cookie baked in a cake pan. Sounds delicious, right? When I started seeing recipes for cookie cakes, I was intrigued and knew I had to give it a try. Today seemed like a good time so I made a sugar cookie cake studded with red, white and blue sprinkles and topped with a tricolor buttercream swirl. It was like the thickest, chewiest sugar cookie ever with a crisp outside and a delicious, moist interior. The only downside was the fact that it rose so much when it baked that a giant crack developed all along one side as it cooled. But some decorative buttercream and strategic photography means you can’t even see it. 😂 Its cosmetic deformity didn’t affect the taste at all though and it gives me a fantastic excuse to try again, so I call that a win! And now that I’ve sampled the two-in-one delight, I highly suspect there will be more cookie cakes in our future.

We finished off our day with a few poppers, sparklers, and a couple other small fireworks. We didn’t go big for those this year, we just had a few on hand so we could end the day with a bit of flash. Matthew and Malia may say that they don’t care about things like sparklers anymore, but they do still enjoy it even if they won’t admit it!

As for Daniel and Nathan, they have a friend who works at a stable and has an open invitation to bring friends to ride, so they went horseback riding this afternoon and then watched fireworks with their cronies. So basically, they are enjoying their lives up in Logan.

With the slower pace our holidays take as our kids have gotten older, I’ve had plenty of time for introspection today. As the sun set and fireworks began to light the night sky, I was filled with an immense sense of gratitude for where I live and when I live. There are certainly challenges associated with living in the last days, but there are also unprecedented blessings. Sometimes it feels like there are challenges at every turn, but all I have to do is look at what is happening in other areas of the world to remember just how blessed we are. I hope I can be more mindful so that I never take it for granted.