Happy Birthday America! I hope you enjoy your Tinkerbell candle.

~
Today's the Fourth of July.

It's my absolute favorite holiday (that doesn't involve presents, if we are being honest).

And as a history teacher, with her MA in Colonial America, this is one holiday that I really want to try to make special for my kids.

We normally go to a bbq, eat the required hamburgers, hot dogs, and potato salad, see the parade and go to the carnival, then head over to the family fireworks festival where we live. The kids get to stay up late and watch the fireworks and I tell them the (watered down) version of America's Independence and the story of Molly Pitcher (I leave out the part about Molly Pitcher being a drunk).

We don't get to do any of that this year because of the bedrest mandate. We are having a bbq at home, but there will be no fireworks, parade, or any other family traditions. To try to make up for this, I tried to put it into a different context for them: I told them that the Fourth of July is America's birthday.

My son immediately asked for cake.

This was an idea I could totally get behind.

I found a recipe for diabetic cake (um, yum, I guess) and pulled out all the ingredients. We were about to start a new family tradition - birthday cake for America's birthday.

Girlie threw a fit. "NO!" she declared, stomping her foot. "We DO NOT make cake for America. Her MOMMY makes her cake. And they have Tinkerbell candles and a Tinkerbell balloon."

Okaaaaaaaaay.... Great Britain? We would like a chocolate cake with pink frosting, please. And sprinkles. And a Tinkerbell candle. And a balloon.

Thanks.

Happy Independence Day, everyone!

"The United States is the only country with a known birthday."
- James G. Blaine