Fourth of July Weekend

We enjoyed a very nice holiday weekend. The 4th falling on a Thursday was great because it made for a four day weekend! It felt like Saturday for several days in a row and we loved it. Jeff and I woke up early on the morning of the 4th and headed to Provo for the third year running. Jeff did the Freedom 10k with his Runner's Corner team and Murphy and I hiked up Y mountain to watch the hot air balloons cover the skyline. Unfortunately the balloons never took off. We could see them inflated on the ground but no lift off. There were lots of people up there doing the same thing as us. Usually the sky is full of balloons and it would have been a great vantage point. We found out later that while the conditions seemed perfect on the ground, the wind at 100+ft was headed north which meant the balloons would not be able to return to their landing site. It was still a pretty hike and we made lots of friends along the way. Murphy has gotten very good at letting people know he is a friendly dog and that he welcomes petting. As soon as we see new friends he walks up to them and rolls onto his back, assuming the "belly scratching position".

Jeff had a great race and met us at home when he was finished. After a bit of yard work and relaxing, we met up with Jake and Rosie in Murray. We took Murphy to Tanner Park in Sugar House which was great fun. It's an off leash dog park with extensive trails and water pools at the end of the trails to play in. There were so many dogs! Very fun for Murph to meet so many different kinds of pups. After our walk we enjoyed some delicious cherries and engaged in a pit spitting competition. Always fun to catch up with good friends.

We left Jake and Rose to enjoy dinner with their parents and headed back home. We had intentions to BBQ something but it was later in the day than we planned and we were too hungry to cook up a feast. So we deviated from the typical American fare and ate dinner at Zao, a Vietnamese restaurant, haha. Conveniently, Crumbl Cookie is only a short drive from Zao, so of course we had to stop and grab a "freedom box" as Jeff affectionately deemed it. This consisted of one regular chocolate chip cookie, one Dirt Cup cookie, one Bluberry Crumble, and one Eggo Waffle cookie (a one-day-only special in honor of the Stranger Things season 3 debut). The two of us crushed all four giant cookies within 24 hours. We then went home and watched several episodes of Stranger Things. So good!

Around 9:30pm we drove back towards Provo to try and catch some of the firework show coming from Stadium of Fire at BYU. To our surprise there were big fireworks shooting off all across the valley. We parked near the Orem gun range on the hillside where we could see fireworks shooting off everywhere. Note for the future, claim a spot higher on the mountain much earlier in the day if you want unobstructed views. There was also a nice firework display going on at the church parking lot right at the end of our street when we got home. I love the fourth!

It's hard to fit all the patriotic activities into one day, so we continued the festivities into the weekend. On friday we went trail running at Big Springs in Provo Canyon. Always a great workout in a beautiful setting. A good reminder of how fortunate we are to live in this beautiful country. Later that day we grilled some hot dogs and made a delicious corn avocado salad. Thanks to Cassidy B. for sharing the recipe with us! I really wanted to get an apple pie when we were at Costco earlier in the day but of course all they had was a massive pie much too big for two people. So I was happy to find some individual enteman's pies of the apple and cherry variety in our freezer when we got home ( treat left by my mom last time she was in town). Thanks Ma! It made for a very nice American themed meal.

Re-reading one of my favorites.

Jeff has been training for a marathon that is coming up at the end of July, so on Saturday morning he went running again to reach his goal of 65 miles for the week. The Provo Freedom Festival ran from the 4th-6th this year so I took Murphy back into Provo to try to see the hot air balloons again. Unfortunately the wind was still taking affect so the balloons did not take off, again! There were also only a handful of balloons inflating given it was the last day of the festival, so it wasn't quite the same as in past years, but still a fun atmosphere. Jeff was pretty tired after capping his week with so many miles and I had done an exhausting P90X3 Eccentric Upper workout while waiting for him to get home that morning, so we pretty much just lounged for the remainder of the day. Murphy was excited to have a rest day too, haha. He has been losing his puppy teeth and getting his adult teeth in, and that combined with running him all over town made for one tired and extra snuggly pup.

Give me all the puppy snuggles! Little teddy bear.

All in all a pretty good Independence Day weekend. Very grateful for all the freedoms we enjoy and already looking forward to next year's celebrations!

Yankee Doodle Murphy