Life: It Goes On - July 6

Happy Tuesday! Because Sunday was busy and Monday was headache day. Did you all have a good holiday weekend? We went to Lincoln twice to see family, both Saturday and Sunday and got to spend time with my sister and her husband and The Big Guy's brother and his wife, and, of course, my dad. BG's brother and his wife have a condo in a building in downtown Lincoln that has a communal deck on the 11th floor. From there we could see fireworks for miles across Lincoln; the sound was deafening. It might be my new favorite way to watch fireworks, in no small part because I don't have to worry about fire and limbs while I'm watching. We ate so much of the traditional Fourth of July faves that we only needed two meals and still went to bed feeling like we'd eaten too much!

Last Week I: 

Listened To: My dad give his 45th speech at the 45th annual neighborhood Fourth of July breakfast. This year the focus of his speech was on how the 84 words near the beginning of the Declaration of Independence made it so much more than a mere declaration and how they changed the world. I may be biased but I'm always so impressed about how he finds new ways to teach his neighbors (and family).  

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government..."

Watched: We went to a movie, we went to a movie! The first movie BG and I have been to in more than a year and a half. We went to see Lin-Manuel Miranda's In The Heights, which we both very highly recommend. The cinematography, choreography, and singing are all terrific and we had fun finding people in the cast that we recognized from other things. 

Read: I haven't done much reading this past week. I'm plugging away at Twelve Patients but I'm eager to pick up something less weighty. My dad just loaned me Dennis Lehane's latest and I'm looking forward to picking it up soon.

Made: The traditional egg casserole for the Fourth of July breakfast and traditional red velvet cake for Fourth of July dinner. 

Enjoyed: See above and also an evening on friends' deck, catching up and decompressing. 

This Week I’m:  

Planning: I'm trying to decide which project to tackle next. I need to do some room painting but I'm not sure I'm up to tackling that big a project just now so I may focus on some smaller things, like a mini-makeover in my dining room or re-decorating the shelves in my family room. 

Thinking About: I learned a couple of weeks ago that a long-time friend has been diagnosed with lung cancer and last week found out that it is Stage 4. She is in my thoughts constantly. Yet more proof that life is not fair. 

Feeling: Relaxed. I took an extra day off to give myself a four-day weekend and I'm headed off shortly to have my hair done (and you know how much I love those two hours!). 

Looking forward to: We're hoping to be able to catch our nephew from California who will be in Lincoln. 

Question of the week: I grew up loving musicals and love them to this day. How do you feel about plays/movies where the characters break into song and dance?