What are your plans for the 4th of July? You don’t have to tell me if you don’t feel like it I was just asking to be polite. What am I doing? Well since you asked, we are going to the land of a lotta lakes (10,000 or so) to hang out at my sister and brother-in-laws house. Yes we were invited and yes they are going to be home. I think.

Amanda invited her siblings and parents some time ago but maybe she’s had second thoughts since extending the invite. When I say “some time ago” I really do mean some time ago. As in not much less than a year ago. That’s the way my sister rolls. She’s good at planning. That gene skipped me. I’ve been unplanned from the beginning.

I always say that if you have no plans then you’re never disappointed or at least you have no reason to be disappointed. Some of the best times I’ve had have managed to transpire out of nothing. Of course I’m easy to entertain and difficult to disappoint so my “good time” bar may be a bit lower than the lot of you.

I am thankful for people that like to plan and I am quite thankful that my sister invited all us yahoos to her home to share in some Independence Day festivities. What’s on tap for the Ellis-Undjhem family in Paul Bunyan land? You sure have a lot of questions but I’m glad you’re so interested in the goings on of my family.

Well let me tell you. The Yankees happen to be stopping off for a few games against the Twins so we’re all going to take in some major league baseball action at lovely Target Field. If you haven’t been to Target Field yet I highly recommend it. It’s a beautiful park and beats sitting under the big top at the Metrodome any day. Baseball was meant to be played out doors on real grass and Target Field is a great place to take in a ball game.

Other than that I’m not sure what’s on my sister’s itinerary. Maybe she told me but I didn’t hear much after the Yankees and baseball game part. I could really care less if we didn’t do anything but sit around and chit chat for a few days. We don’t get to do that much anymore.

Everybody gets so busy with their lives. Time spent sharing in each other lives is a hot commodity that we can’t squander when the opportunity presents itself. My sister has provided the opportunity and for that I am grateful.

What I am most looking forward to, even more than the baseball game, is sitting around a fire all hopped up on smores listening to my family tell stories and laugh. We’ve all heard the stories before, we all know how they end, but we’ll laugh like it’s the first time because they are our stories. Every family has stories. I hope you spend your 4th of July sharing stories with the people that helped write them.

Happy 4th of July my friends.