FIREWORKS!

My love of this particular Independence Day requires a little bit of background information before I can go on...

FIRST - I'm not a particularly patriotic person, BUT...for most of my life I have had an intense emotional reaction to fireworks. Living in Steamboat has been especially supportive of this love of mine as we have fireworks on New Year's Eve, for Winter Carnival, Valentine's Day, 4th of July, and I'm not sure but quite possibly Memorial/Labor Day. Somehow I have missed on all of these opportunities for about two years. Last year I was in Toronto, Canada for the 4th and it turns out Canada doesn't give a darn about our celebration of Independence..bummer. All of the other opportunities involve holidays or events that also involve other parties and activities so getting outside to see fireworks is often not the priority for most and I have been overruled.

ALSO - Still not intensely patriotic but my reaction to the Star Spangled Banner evokes similar feelings to those of fireworks. This feeling has not been lifelong but I think can be traced back to learning to sign the song in college. I am typically a lyrics person but hadn't given much thought to this anthem until I was representing it in sign. The visual is much more powerful in this case than the verbal rendition and my connection to performing it in front of 100,000 people is especially powerful.

Now, on to my evening. I had various invitations to events going on around town and was not particularly excited about any one of them and had a fear that being alone watching fireworks would be too painful. One option included a few good friends but was at a party of people I had just met the night before and not a familiar crowd. Another involved a somewhat uncomfortable situation with his friends, who I have tried to make my friends but I am realizing that for the most part I have been included via him and since it ended there is not much of a connection. A third invitation came on my way out the door by two great friends to a big party where I new no one.

I decided to stop by the random party to see my best girls, M and J and bring them s'mores cupcakes I made. The people were welcoming and entertaining and the girls were cheerful and full of smiles so I stuck around for a while. The party was at a house on the Hilltop with a brand new deck hanging over the valley and overlooking the fireworks viewpoint. M's husband and his band "Beetlekill" were playing on the deck and rocking the neighborhood while amateur fireworks were shot off behind them.

I wish I had some night pictures!

Since it turned out that the friends party was right next door I stopped by for a visit and brought them s'mores cupcakes for dessert. I hung out and chatted about jobs and life for a while and watched a gorgeous sunset while they cooked dinner. Once their dinner was ready and conversation got quiet I decided to scoot back to the neighbors house. I felt a little awkward and am just not sure how to be with my ex's two best friends without pouring out my feelings for him and them. I feel like I was gaining a new awesome group of friends and now the ties have been cut and I'm not sure how to make it work.

taken from KB because my phone didn't do it justice

Back at the rocking party the sun had set, fireworks were popping, kids were dancing and the countdown to fireworks had begun. When we saw the lights of the rodeo grounds go down the band stopped playing and we all moved to the stage/deck to watch. As the fireworks started, the worry of being alone suddenly didn't matter. I had M next to me along with 50+ other people and really just filled with love in a bubble of happy! The boom-booms were capped off when one of the guys picked up the electric guitar and blasted the Star Spangled Banner through the firey display. I couldn't have asked for a more perfect celebration of freedom and independence and am so happy that I found the right place to enjoy it all. The band cleared, a dj set up, and a dance party ensued. I headed home to the dogs and we snuggled up on the couch to end a perfect night.

The aforementioned S'mores cupcakes were one of my proudest achievements yet! What's more American than a S'more?

I should really spend more time making my pictures worth saving..or at least using a camera other than my phone!

It is a honey-cinnamon gluten free cupcake with a chocolate ganache dip and homemade marshmallow meringue topping. PERFECTION!

Lessons learned:

1. When the cupcakes were under the broiler to toast the marshmallow the ganache bubbled and melted (see bubbles in photo). I am considering this as a sign that I should now buy a torch for my kitchen - obviously!

2. The amount of honey I added thinned out the batter and made it bubbly, airy and chewy - completely giving it more of a graham cracker consistency on accident! GO ME!

3. The overuse of honey also caused the bubbling over cupcakes to form a flat rectangle on top, slightly resembling the graham cracker in a s'more. Man, I'm good!

4. Take time to take better pictures, ya lazy bum! (says to self)