Happy Independence Day Weekend

We've been having fun at "Grandma and Grandpa's" all week. Bruce loves chasing the ducks around the yard. Those poor creatures handle it pretty well.
On Independence Day, a few of my siblings and their spouses and kids came to my parents' place. We had a barbecue complete with Boca burgers and then went to see the fireworks in Akron. It was the first time Bruce has seen fireworks. He hadn't stayed up that late in ages. He didn't like the noise, but he liked all the colors. He also didn't like all the debris that kept hitting us; we got front-row seats at the fireworks, and the wind carried all the cinders and junk right onto us. Gross.

My dad got a backhoe a few weeks ago. Why? Because he's always wanted one.
It was a fixer-upper. But my dad happens to be quite the handyman. He regularly coats his hands with GoJo and curses Ford vehicles.
Once fixed, the backhoe was put to work turning the compost pile and giving rides to all my nieces and nephews. Bruce was too scared to go; it was too loud for him, so he watched from afar.
Scott returned from the lab for the holiday weekend and got lots of Bruce-time.

This weekend there was a "heritage festival" in town. The celebration included a 5K, so my little bro ran it. He "won" the first hundred meters so he could look good for the picture, then went on to get fourth place. The guy in the orange won it; I went to school with him. I felt like an old foogie watching from the sidelines with my bum hip. I talked to my hip doctor this week who told me to "find another sport." So I think I'll find a new doctor.
Scott's sister, Lana, lives near my parents so she came to visit with her hubby and son. We all went to the festival and went for a train ride and checked out fire engines and such.
Here's Bruce on the train. It was a short train-ride but he loved it (except for the loud horn).

Lana's son nearly jumped out the window a few times.

Bruce is flexing his muscles by the firetrucks.

Oops. Yes here's a duplicate, but I can't seem to fix it.

That's Bruce in the driver's seat of the firetruck.

Bruce got a cool free hat, but had a sad moment when he snapped the elastic band on his neck. I can't help but laugh sometimes.

Bruce had lots of time to play with many of his cousins this week. Here he is with Lana's son with the train in the background.