Happy Birthday, Uncle Sam

After a particularly horrifying experience towing Sarah around in the bike trailer yesterday Brent vowed he would have no part in heading down to the Fourth of July parade today with her in strapped into the back. She's really not a fan of the thing. Thinks it's the devil, actually. I managed to persuade him to give it one more try since this seemed to be the only way to get our entire family there in one piece (I think it helped that I would be pulling her this time). Monument likes to tout it's celebration as the "Best Small Town Parade in America" so the traffic in and out of the festivities can be a real nightmare. The Santa Fe trail runs right through downtown so hopping on a mile or so up the road and riding in seemed like the best solution. The Shertzers managed to pack all four mountain bikes, bike trailer, carseat, and four adults into their car to get us to the trailhead (note to self: get a Subaru) so off we went. The Pibear wasn't crazy about the part when the trailer tipped over because a pin was inadvertantly left off of the post-Subaru packing assembly but other than that, today was a much more enjoyable ride!

She was a trooper during the parade and particularly enjoyed the free "God Bless America" toothbrush chunked off of a local dentist's float. That was fun chewing for a good 20+ minutes. After the parade we strolled around the downtown area to check out the local vendors, snacked on cheddar brats and funnel cake (can you say Y-U-M?!) and then headed back down the trail to load up. Sarah is currently going on hour 3 of her nap - she's definitely in festivities recovery mode. We're planning to watch the Academy fireworks from our backyard tonight. So Happy Birthday, Uncle Sam...we sure are enjoying your party!

Oooohhh...I forgot to mention my favorite float - there was a cloth diaper float! Can you believe it? I think I was the only one cheering for that one!