A cart decorated in red, white and blue (above), makes its way through downtown Tuesday morning as part of the parade celebrating Independence Day. Ziyah Martinez (below), 8 months, gets a high ride from her godfather, Ronnie Garcia, before the start of the Mr. and Ms. Firecracker Pageant at the Forrest Park Pavilion. Eugene and Priscilla Gaspar (right) had a flag waiving from their dune buggy as they joined hundreds of others to watch the fireworks display at the end of the day.