America. This week we celebrated Independence Day! The 4th of July is one of our all - time favorite holidays, so forgive us if this post finds us a bit on the sentimental side.

As we talked about and planned for the holiday our topics were of pie, BBQ, family, friends, and of course fireworks. Ah, fireworks. As we perused social media it was full of concerned pet owners and the effects fireworks can have on them. We both have dogs, Jamison and Sadie and yes, just as many other pets, they don’t love the splendor of the fireworks. But we get it, Fireworks are part of the tradition of this holiday that celebrates this country that we love. So, we planned accordingly. We hope all your fur babies also had a safe 4th night!

Then there’s the pie! I don’t know about you, but for us, pie is definitely part of our traditions for the 4th of July. We made Alaskan Berry Pie. Don’t worry, there will be pictures! Posted to social media of course, so you’ll have to check back for the juicy details there. Ha! Like what we did there? “Juicy…” get it?!

There are many more traditions and we all celebrate in our own ways. Celebration and tradition can be personal, and they can be part of a community. We love our Country, Our State, Our Communities. You may not know this about Chris, but among his many talents is a love for wood working. He has made many American flags out of wood over the years. He displays one in his house and has given them as gifts. We’ll post a picture of him holding one on our site,  Chris – partner and one of “Those Guys!” If you didn’t already know, usually where there’s Chris, there is Derek! Derek is a partner and the other of “Those Guys!” He is a semi-pro at his meat smoker and has an eye for metal work. We also have a picture of him with a select metal piece of art he had commissioned, that of our great State of Arizona! Of course, we'll post that too!

We hope you and yours had a safe and happy 4th of July, we sure did!

We don’t want to get too long and too sappy, so we’ll sign off for now and we’ll pick back up another day with more to say!

Don’t forget to check out our pics on social media!

~Those Guys aka Chris and Derek