July 4th recap

Although we didn't go away or go to any wacky-wild parties, Kia and I enjoyed our long weekend, thankyouverymuch. Inexplicably, she had four (4) days off from Pier 1, which I don't think has ever happened in the history of retail. And certainly not over 4th of July weekend. So we felt like we should take advantage. But rather than go on one big trip, which inevitably requires doing something with the dogs and paying for a place to stay, we took a series of smaller trips. Some of the highlights:

-a hike with the dogs at Pere Marquette State Park in Illinois, where we got engaged in January. It's got lots of hiking trails and things and luckily for us, this time there was no snow.

-a trip to a dollar store. I made the requisite "So, how much does this cost?" comment.

-fireworks along the Mighty Mississip, at Fair St. Louis (aka REDNECK CENTRAL). No seriously, the fireworks were good, but we did not get to consume funnel cake. It cost 6 tickets!

-Shoe Carnival, which features a basketball hoop and two mini basketballs, like one of those shooting games from video game arcades. Something for guys to do while the ladies buy shoes. Smart store.

-a mini wine tour, to this winery and then to this one. Feel free to use the photos below as visual aids. Apparently, there are a number of wineries on said "wine tour," but we only managed to hit two of them.

-on the way back from said "mini wine tour," we stopped by what was claimed to be Daniel Boone's house. Dan wasn't home at the time, and it was closing momentarily, so we just observed the premises from the car. Nice place, nice place.