such a fun 4th of july!  we went to this outdoor amphitheater for what i thought was just fireworks and turned out to be fireworks + houston symphony performance!  for free!  miss claire was in heaven.

tracy's new cooler (full of beer and snacks) was defective.  the wheel fell of approximately 20 times (no exaggeration) between where we got dropped off and the amphitheater.  it was hilarious for the first 5 times and moderately hilarious for the following 15 times.

tracy had gone early to stake out GREAT lawn spots for us.  front and center.  yay!

we drank and snacked and made friends with the people around us, and then we listened to a VERY good symphony performance for over an hour.  i love patriotic music.  no battle hymn of the republic, but i survived.

and then there were fireworks!

people, i will be doing this every year from now until i no longer live in this city.  there were thousands of people there, such a multicultural audience, everyone so friendly, with free music and sing-a-longs (i need to learn when to clap during "deep in the heart of texas" PRONTO).  when they played the medley of hymns from each branch of the service, the conductor encouraged people who had served in each branch to stand for their hymn, and it was such an incredible reminder of how many veterans there are among us.  i am thankful for them and america and friends.

houston continues to treat me well.