Category: Holidays

There is no better sight in July than that of our sacred U.S. flag fluttering on the breeze.


This week, fly the flag!  Fly it wherever you are and do it with gratitude and pride.  Read more here to be certain you are also doing it with proper respect.  (It never hurts to get a brush-up course in proper flag etiquette.)  The entire U.S. Flag Code can also be found here .


While you’re flying it, why not add some of the following ideas?

– Organize a family flag ceremony.  Find a flag and flagpole you can use.  Plan something for every family member to do.
– Say the pledge of allegiance.
– Sing the National Anthem.  It really doesn’t take very long.  My daughter’s second grade class sang two verses  every morning.
– Play patriotic music.  Sing some of our nation’s great patriotic hymns.  Better yet, choose one to memorize as a family.
– Familiarize yourself with the stories of family members and ancestors who have served valiantly in America’s Armed Forces.
–  If you have young children, plan a bike parade.  Provide streamers, flags and tape for them to decorate with.  Teach them the basics of flag etiquette and let them parade up and down the street while you blast Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the USA”.  Have all the parents come and cheer.
– Have you ever wondered how our flag got the name “Old Glory”?  A great re-telling of the story is found here .  Share it with your family.


Jennifer

The 4th of July, my favorite holiday, is just around the corner.  At our house it’s a holiday that lasts at least a month, kind of how Christmas is celebrated for most of December.  The fun begins with Flag Day and continues to the end of July.  I love everything about it:  the colors, the festivity, the gatherings, the food, the fireworks (which make me cry because I think of how John Adams said the day would someday be celebrated with “bonfires and illuminations”) and most especially the history.

Really, that’s what I love about Independence Day.  I love the history.

I recently heard a brief report on a study that’s been done about patriotic themes in the media.  The study revealed that the American media talks about patriotic food and patriotic decorations far more than they talk about patriotic acts by citizens or by our troops.   The blurb I heard didn’t even mention patriotic history.  That piece of information has been gnawing at me.  Much as I love the food and the decorations, they are by no means the meaning of the day.

But if that’s all we talk about, then our children will have grown up in a world that’s forgotten the history, forgotten the meaning, and in so doing, forgotten how to be free.
I’ve thought long and hard about what that same study would reveal in our home.  I think it would be more balanced, but I’ve decided to consciously work at infusing much more history, much more meaning, much more principle into our 4th of July observance.

And so, tonight I’m announcing a week long “Celebrate the 4th” theme here at Hopeful Homemaker.  Yes, there will be some decorating and some food, but I think you’ll also find a few ideas that might help you remember why and what we celebrate.

So come back all week long for festive ideas and some inspiring stories as well.  There will be two or three posts a day so please check them out and see what interests you!

And since we’re already celebrating in my neck of the woods, Happy 4th of July to you!

Jennifer