Compared to the Fourth of July’s I experienced as a kid growing up in the States, the Swiss really don’t do a whole lot for their national holiday. There are very few organized firework shows put on by a city, no parades, and no craft/art fairs to visit. BUT you can buy tons of legal fireworks from roadside stands and stores, and light them with pretty much no restrictions. And a day off, is a day off, right?
We keep our celebrations pretty low key, as well. But we still have fun. Someday I would love to get a big neighborhood party together, like the ones I remember from my childhood. You know, when everyone in the cul-de-sac gathered for a potluck and we kids spent the afternoon and evening lighting sparklers, shooting our pop guns, and oohing and awing over the colored smoke snakes. Remember those? Unfortunately, everyone is often gone traveling for the short summer break, and there wouldn’t be much of a crowd. Still, it would be lots of fun.
For Christmas last year, all the kids received Swiss cross t-shirts. Naturally, they all wore them the whole day. Look at that well coordinated table of red and white!
Everyone was happy to have a reason to celebrate.
Sometimes we grill at the Badgers on this day, but we decided not to brave the “crowds” and stay home. Which meant we had to improvise when it came time for dessert. 
On a complete whim, I bought these giant marshmallows at the store. We had seen something similar when we were in the States last year, and thought they were hilarious. The kids were so excited when they saw the bag. The only problem is, they are so huge, you have to roast the outside, eat it away, and then roast the middle!
Finally it was dark enough we could go outside and make some noise. Isn’t that the best part?
Oh yes, Nick was there, too. 🙂
Our little neighbors came out to watch for a while, and I offered them some sparklers, but they declined. We also had some small fireworks that Chris set off for us. It was a lot of fun, and we think the kids are ready for some big fireworks next year. Maybe even for New Years…Oh, and don’t worry. We were good neighbors and cleaned up all our mess before we went inside.