A Family Secret

I'm fairly certain that my dad (and even my mom) qualify pretty easily as Blue Angels groupies. Our family's allegiance to anything Navy has already been well established but I've been able to keep this obsession of my parents under wraps... until now.

So was it a coincidence that my parents wanted to come visit all of us on the same weekend as a Blue Angels' show? Hardly. And we were happy to be dragged along. Especially since one of the pilots is a family/high school friend.

Charlie may have been the most willing participant... especially once his Nana had presented him with his very own Blue Angel plane.

Outfitted in his personal set of noise-reducing ear muffs, Charlie flew his own plane right alongside the elite Blue Angels crew. Unfortunately, his plane deviated quite a bit from the otherwise perfect formation.

Nana was very proud of her little John Deere-wearing, Deac-visored, future pilot.

We were happy to witness Charlie's first experience with non-farm equipment.

No clue who that is in the background of this picture... she seemed to be enjoying the show, too, though!

Blue Angel groupie jokes aside... I couldn't have imagined a better way to spend a Memorial Day weekend. It was especially meaningful to pause and remember those who've paid the ultimate sacrifice in the middle of a military airshow. May each freedom we have remind us daily of those who've gone before us to afford us those luxuries.