As always, this most American of holidays will be marked by parades, fireworks and backyard barbecues across the country.

In July 1776, the number of people living in the colonies was about 2 1/2 million.
In July 2007, the population of the U.S. is almost 301,139,947 million.

HOT DOGS
150 million hot dogs (all varieties) are expected to be consumed by Americans on this holiday in 2006. (That’s one frankfurter for every two people.) There’s more than a 1-in-4 chance that the hot dogs made of pork originated in Iowa, as the Hawkeye State had a total inventory of 15.2 million market hogs and pigs on March 1, 2006. This represents more than one-fourth of the nation’s total. North Carolina (8.5 million) and Minnesota (5.8 million) were the runners-up.

BAKED BEANS AND CORN ON THE COB
The odds are better than 50-50 that the beans in your side dish of baked beans came from North Dakota, Michigan or Nebraska, which produced 60 percent of the nation’s dry, edible beans in 2005. Another popular July 4th side dish is corn on the cob. Florida, California and Georgia together accounted for 51 percent of the sweet corn produced nationally in 2005.

POTATO SALAD & POTATO CHIPS
Potato salad and potato chips are popular food items at July 4th barbecues. One-half of the nation’s spuds are produced in Idaho or Washington.

BEEF
Total production of cattle and calves in Texas in 2005 WAS 7.3 million pounds. Chances are good that the beef hot dogs, steaks and burgers on your backyard grill came from the Lone Star State, which accounted for over one-sixth of the nation’s total production. And if they did not come from Texas, they very well may have come from Nebraska (4.5 billion pounds) or Kansas (4 billion pounds).

Reference

Daisy Says: Sweet Liberty.

Here are some fun facts:

There are a number of places nationwide with “liberty” in their name. The most populous one is Liberty, Missouri (26,232). Iowa has more of these places than any other state: four (Libertyville, New Liberty, North Liberty and West Liberty).

Eleven places have “independence” in their name. The most populous of these is Independence, Missouri, with 113,288 residents.

Five places adopted the name “freedom.” Freedom, California, with 6,000 residents, has the largest population among these.

There is one place named “patriot” — Patriot, Indiana, with a population of 202.

And what could be more fitting than spending the day in a place called “America”? There are five such places in the country, with the most populous being American Fork, Utah, with 21,941 residents.

Here is a favorite quote of mine: “I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives. I like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him. ” ~Abraham Lincoln

http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/BasicFactsServlet

Daisy Says: Let the pride of your country be a song on your lips.

A superstar is a winner; one who masters a particular skill or quality. It does not matter what that activity, skill or trait may be. It is through persistent effort, practice, new disciplines and habits that a superstar is born.

A superstar stands out and rises to the pinnacle of achievement and excellence and will not settle for less than to be the best.

To be the best we must have a burning desire to seek perpetual growth.

Many have asked that question to themselves: “What do I need to do to make myself better?” “What can I do to make a difference?” “What do I need to do to make the world better?”

Growth is something that is constantly happening around us…the hardest growth to see is our
own. That is why a good way to track your progress is to write it down. Plan your journey and
make daily notes along the way and you will be surprised at the results because you will be able to track your progress and make necessary adjustments.

Keep moving forward because the world will not stop for you. Dare to stand still even for one moment and from the observers deck the world will be merciless and pass you by. For you to truly shine you must be the change you want to see in the world.

Daisy Says: Keep searching and growing.

If you have been around the block you most likely will agree that every situation that involves human beings has difficulties and problems. Once you have embraced this understanding…when it comes to relationship you wont fall into the idealism trap and find yourself wandering from one situation to another.

There are some situations that are better than others. If you accept and live with this perception, you can take any situation and shape it to your advantage. Wherever and whatever situation you find yourself in, make it work for you. Mold it so that you extract something positive from it.

You will come across people in your life that you just wonder if they are there to test your patience and character. It doesn’t matter if your intentions were good or not. Nobody is interested in your intentions. It is your actions that count. Results are what people look at, not intentions.

All relationships experience problems in one form or another – its part of sharing your life with another human being at whatever level. The difference between relationships that work, and those that don’t, is how well individuals deal with the challenges and problems they face in their life together.

Daisy Says: The sooner that you act on issues the easier they will be to resolve.

You don’t like what you see in the mirror? Change it. You don’t like the place you live? Change it. You don’t like the career or job you have? Change it.

When you were a child, you had no choice, where you lived, who would be your parents and what schools you would attend. Everybody else made those choices and decisions for you. The good news is, today, at this very moment, you do have a choice where you work and where you may want to live.

How many times have you thought about changing jobs or career? How many times have you thought about changing your zip code? Are the influences in your life strong enough to encourage you to take action? Or do you feel that events are out of your control and your just a ball that has been set into motion?

Either way ask yourself…
Is it time for you to make major changes in your life? If you are stuck in a job or a profession that doesn’t fulfill your future aspirations, how would a major change impact your life and your situation? If you have thought about making a significant move, what will you have to give up or lose altogether?

Making major decisions will put you in conflict over the possible losses and gains. Can you afford to give up something in order to get something else? Can you be strong enough to withstand the losses, (if there are any) when you decide to take that big step?

Remember you do have the right to pursue your happiness, and no great move can be accomplished successfully, without action.

Nothing stays the same and you will have to come up with new strategies for different circumstances and different periods of your life. Prepare yourself! Challenge is a given and everything changes.

Daisy Says: Be the Change you want to see in the world.