It was a beautiful day. Hot. But I like hot. Hot is better than cold. Summer weather means patches of warm sunshine and children running around on God’s green carpet. The smell of grilled meats filled the air. Memorial day was a beautiful day.

I spent the day with my fiancé and his family. When I arrived and fixed my plate with a juicy burger, sausage and an assortment of chips and dip, two little girls had a place for me at the kids’ table. The kids’ table is under Jacob’s grandma’s carport and is quite tiny. Especially for a long-legged girl like me.

I told the girls I did not think I could fit at the table, but Paisley, Jacob’s daughter, replied, “I made a BIG space for you.”

Paisley, 4, was hanging off the edge of one of the plastic benches and I knew I would have to sit there. I placed my food on the plastic small-person dining set and sat with my legs outside of it. Paisley thought I needed to put my legs under the table, but I had to convince her that just would not work.

While eating at the cramped table with the little cousins, Kaitlyn, 6, planned out our afternoon. She explained the day’s itinerary, wearing a plastic jeweled crown on her head. There have been few times I’ve seen her without it. First we would play tag, you’re it; then, hide and go seek; after that, duck, duck goose; then, we would play “puppies.” “Puppies,” Kaitlyn said, was where she and Paisley act like puppies and I’m the owner. This was going to be interesting.

After lunch, we had to play all the games. In that order. We ran around and around the yard, playing each game. Note to self: do not wear slick cowgirl boots while running. During an encore game of tag, you’re it, my feet slid out from under me and I laid flat on the ground for a few minutes trying to recover. When you’re no longer 5, falling is a long way down.

“Puppies” was an adventure. Crowned Kaitlyn was the mama dog, who apparently, was pregnant with puppies. She named herself “Rosebud” and poor Paisley was dubbed “Butterball.”

After the girls and I got nice and sweaty and they were covered with dirt, we all decided to make a trip to Walmart in search of a swimsuit for Paisley. I wiped the girls down the best I could and we headed out. Poor Paisley always seems to get dirt all over her face. I think she secretly eats it.

There is never a dull moment with two little imaginative females. At Walmart, they wanted to play “sneak away” from Daddy, Grammy and Papaw.

“Come on, Jessica. Let’s sneak away,” they’d whisper, trying their best to tiptoe and keep quiet. Sneaking isn’t easy for little giggling girls.

The afternoon consisted of Paisley and Kaitlyn playing in the sprinkler and me napping. I had been “puppied” out.

Memorial Day was a good day. But it’s not about sprinklers and juicy burgers. Last Sunday, my church, Macedonia Baptist Church, held a program in honor of those who died for our country and veterans who served and are serving. Jacob and I listened with pride as the choir sang and a large United States flag rapidly unfurled above the singers for the grand finale. I don’t know about you, but I’m so thankful for the over one million men and women who have given their lives for our freedom. Our country may be struggling, but we still have freedoms that most people in the world could never even imagine.

The United States is the greatest nation on earth. Thank you men and women who have sacrificed and served to keep it that way.

Lifestyles Editor Jessica Boyd can be reached at The Daily Leader at 601-833-6961 ext. 134, by email at jessica.boyd@dailyleader.com or you can write to her at P.O. Box 551, Brookhaven, MS 39602.