Liberation Day

We just got back from the commissary.
Our big purchase included milk, cereal, and frozen pot pies. I guess you can tell when Dad's not around by our shopping cart. He's enjoying the land of plenty - San Diego. Seriously, he went to a Padres game last night with 30ish OB Jennifer - and stayed for the whole thing! He never did that with us when WE lived there. PLUS, he bought a new shirt for the event. Granted, it's because he's freezing his fanny off there - but I only get t-shirts and uniforms! Nope, not jealous. Just pooped from having to deal with my unusually sick 10 year old and haven't had a moment to myself since my airplane ride home from Utah in April.

One good thing about Madi's being sick - it's kept us here to actually see Guam's Liberation Day.
*little history lesson here*
Guam celebrates the 21st of July - when the U.S. Marines arrived back on Guam to liberate the Chamorro people from the Japanese occupation. It's really been quite interesting and stirring to hear some of the survivors stories from the "occupation". The concentration camps, what the Japanese did to the people, POW's etc. The Japanese attacked Guam one hour after the Pearl Harbor attack (Guam was under the US Navy at the time). The Japanese held control in Guam from December 41 until July 21st, 1944. Guam is the only US owned land that has endured "occupation".

It's very similar to the 24th of July with pageants, a little carnival (no rodeo, but you can ride a carabao) and of course the big parade . . . .with families camping out along the parade route. The kids and I drove up and down the route the night before and I was telling them how it reminded me of the 24th when I was little. But one major difference . . .every single canopy (Guam, remember) had a BBQ going. And I'm not talking portable propane - we're talking drums with charcoal. (Propane is such a haole thing!) And each canopy had HUGE plastic banners across the front saying things like "Biba Guam! Gumataotao Family" You could smell the smoke all over the island.
My party poopers wouldn't even watch the parade on the t.v. - let alone go sit in the rain to watch. They wouldn't even entertain the thought of going to see the fireworks! Humpf!
I'm off to attack the trail of ants leading around the tub. The kids are hollering up a storm about it!