You have to love a nation that celebrates its independence every July 4, not with a parade of guns, tanks, and soldiers who file by the White House in a show of strength and muscle, but with family picnics where kids throw Frisbees, the potato salad gets iffy, and the flies die from happiness. You may think you have overeaten, but it is patriotism.
Erma Bombeck
4th of July is almost here and I’m also in the process of selling the family house where I have so many memories of July 4th picnics. This house is the last physical connection to my childhood.
When I was growing up, we lived in one house, with an empty lot next door. My Aunt and Uncle lived in the house on the other side of the house. (And before they lived there, it was my Grandmother’s house.)
4th of July picnics were a big family affair of sisters, brothers, Aunts, Uncles, nieces, nephews, and cousins. Lot’s of cousins. Every year. There would be tables of food, tables with cribbage boards, horseshoe pits, and badminton nets…and let’s not forget the keg in the garage!
The picnic was mainly at my Aunt’s house, since that was originally our grandparents house. The pool was at our house and in between would be the horseshoes and badminton. My brother in law would announce his entrance each year by throwing an M-80 in the sewer drain at the corner.
Eating, drinking, playing, laughing, and repeating. That was the name of the game. And then each night we would gather on my parents’ porch to watch the fireworks coming over the top of the trees. We had front row passes. Years later, the fireworks would move to another section of town and we’d have to jump in cars and drive over to a cousin’s house.
When I was a teenager, my cousin built his house in the empty lot next door, but the picnics continued. They continued until my Aunt and Uncle died. And then it all faded away. First, my Aunt and Uncle’s house sold. Then my cousin sold his house and moved to the other side of town. But my parents stayed.
My ex-husband and I tried to revive the picnics when we bought a house, but new traditions had already been built and while some joined, not everyone could make it. And again the picnics faded away.
My father died in 1999 and my mother at the beginning of this year. And now it’s time to sell the house. The last house left of what I affectionately referred to as the family compound.
In some ways it’s sad, and in other ways, it’s so appropriate that the closing will be just a few days after the 4th of July.
You can read What I Miss on 4th of July, a post I wrote in 2015.
Thank you for sharing your Fourth of July memories with us.
My grandmother and her siblings used to host huge get-togethers twice a year: once in December and once around the Fourth of July. The extended family was huge, so there were usually 100+ people in attendance. It was so much fun to see all those relatives.
Sorry to hear your family’s tradition ended. Ours did, too. I hope you cherish these memories always.
We had the Christmas and 4th of July traditions. Both were on the day of. Not before or after. Sadly, Christmas changed at the same time that 4th of July changed.
Our big family traditions were around Christmas, but they have faded away like your 4th of July picnic. I tried to create new ones, but nothing has really stuck. It’s sad, but at least there are good memories.
We had Christmas as well, at the same house. It was all started by my Grandparents so when they died and my Aunt bought the house, she continued the traditions. I guess they had a longer run than many other families. Our get-togethers in the same place lasted for over 40 years starting from the late 1940s into the 1980s. I guess I was just greedy…lol.
Oh, that is bittersweet! I just returned to my childhood home with my kids, recently–it’s owned by another couple now–and it’s not easy to not be able to just walk through the front door and to the back deck, where we ate dinner almost every evening in the summer. I miss those days and try to replicate some of it for my boys, but nothing’s quite the same away from your childhood home. We do have a nice Fourth of July parade in our little village, and so my husband and I will have friends over, Thurs., and watch our boys go by on bikes–along with floats of kids throwing candy! New memories are good too. Hope you enjoy your holiday!
That’s why I tried starting something at my house so that my son would enjoy that same kind of family fun and camaraderie. The cousins still try to get together at least once a year to catch up and laugh together.
Nothing surer than change. Starting new traditions can be just as much fun. Plus it is hard to replicate what happened when we were kids as it was a simpler time back then. A bit like reruns or new versions of old TV programs they are never the same as the old version. Happy 4th of July for tomorrow.
You are so right. I think when I was trying to do it at my house, I was trying to bring back that feeling of being a kid myself. But that never works when you’re doing all the work…lol!
Such bittersweet memories. Happy 4th of July to you… #MLSTL
Thank you for stopping by!
Wonderful memories, aren’t they? My big Italian family used to gather for every holiday, birthday and any other event we could think of. Those days are long past now and aside from my mom, the elders in the family are gone. But the memories will always be a part of who I have become. #MLSTL
It’s so interesting reading of your 4th July memories Jennifer. I hope all goes well for you. I’ve pinned this for #mlstl
Thanks for sharing some of your special memories as you looked back at past traditions. Our family traditions have changed over the years and it has been bittersweet. Time marches on doesn’t it?
Yes, it does march on. I cherish those memories of childhood get-togethers and miss those who are no longer here. But it’s also time to face forward and create new memories in our new home.
I can see your family in my imagination Jennifer – eating and laughing and sharing the celebration together. These type of family get togethers are certainly dying out and it’s a shame because it’s where memories are made.
Thanks for linking up with us at MLSTL and I’ve shared on my SM 🙂
I agree it’s where our memories are made. And it’s time to start making new memories in new places.
It truly is so much about family! Thank you for sharing your memories. Bittersweet the selling of the family compound, rich with treasured memories of family celebrations of the 4th of July.
Yes. Bittersweet. It is rich with treasured memories, but with the other two houses sold and not in the family anymore, it’s different and the right time to move on.
I loved your article. Lately I’ve been thinking about my grandma’s house & all the wonderful memories I have of being there. That is what your article brought back to me. Childhood memories and memories of me as an adult at my grandma’s house right before she got very ill with lymphoma and passed away shortly thereafter. I was visiting her as a married young woman with my 3 month old son Michael. Looking back the memories are right there. So vivid and welcoming I can smell the bacon cooking so early waking me up with the wonderful smells of bacon and percolator coffee. The best coffee in the world. I miss the safety I felt in my grandmother’s embrace. I just miss my grandma. Thank you for sharing your article.
Thank you for stopping by and sharing your story of your grandmother. She sounds wonderful…especially if she made you bacon!
Bittersweet memories for sure. I am pleased to hear that they were able to end on a positive note for you. And the cousins still getting together once a year is icing on the cake!