4th of July!

Whew! The 4th of July is CRA-ZAY!!! But, I love it. It's one of my favorite holidays! Actually, it IS my favorite holiday! I love the warm weather, the BBQs, the family, the fireworks, and the way we Americans celebrate FREEDOM!

My whole family came to stay for the weekend and we partied HARD!

The day everyone arrived we had a little BBQ outside on the deck at the cottage up in Sundance. It was de-lish and so nice to sit down with everyone and talk! The kids played and enjoyed the little goodie bags Parker and I made for them. I got to hold my new niece, Mikaela. She's the most precious thing on the planet and clearly took precedence over me taking pictures that evening. :-)

The next day we all went up to Salt Lake to visit Temple Square. We met up at the Lion House...

And then walked over to the visitors center. I was really touched when I saw my Dad talking quietly to Parker- bearing his testimony of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

That night Tanner, Parker, Emily, and I were lucky enough to sit on the field at the Stadium of Fire! Tanner's work was the core sponsor of the event and each employee scored 4 tickets! Woo hoo! It was amazing and we had a blast!

I love her.

It was super thrilling when the sky divers parachuted over our heads and landed right behind us! It was funny when the guy holding the flag plummeted into a camera guy. :-)

We LOVED David Archuleta but Brad Paisley was a little zzzzz, it would have been much more entertaining if we had known any of his songs.

We still enjoyed it, though. :-)

The fireworks were spectacular!!! All these years I've watched the fireworks from a distance- it was awesome to see them up front and personal!

Sunday we thew a little birthday party for Parker! We all met up at our house, had dinner at James and Carole's and then came back to our house for cake, ice cream, and FIREWORKS!

Parker scored on tons of Cars 2 toys!

Dinner in the backyard was delightful!

BFFs

My sister's friend Angela and her son Sky spent most of the weekend with us, too. They both have husbands serving in Afghanistan.

We devoured the cake and ice cream in the back yard

My mom brought the cake and it was like the sky was raining skittles! Parker was soooooo excited about his "Cars 2 Cake"! It was a HIT!

After we sang "Happy Birthday" and had ingested enough sweets to cause a decent sugar high we headed out front to do some fire works with the kids.

Ok, maybe the adults did a sparkler or 2...

The thing about the 4th of July is that you're staying up late and waking up early! Whew! It's like non stop fun! The next morning Tanner, Parker, Josi, Angela, Sky, and I all headed down to Provo to watch the parade with Jon, Laura, and the girls. We saw the jets fly over (from the car- to Tanner's dismay) and ate breakfast burritos as we watched the floats go by.

Parker shared his poppers with the kids around him and had a blast throwing them at the marching bands' feet. :-)

After the parade we headed up the canyon to the Bullock Family Reunion. It's always something I look forward to. There's just something really special about getting together with your extended family. You all have those 2 special people in common. We always eat fried chicken and we always throw rocks into the river.

Jon, Laura, and their 2 beautiful daughters. Remember when I went to California in April and Laura was a week over due? Yep, she had that baby right after I left so I had to wait 2 whole months to meet her! But she was totally worth the wait- she's an angel!

We spent most of the time life guarding the kids along the river as they attempted to skip rocks for hours. The water is REALLY high and we didn't want any accidents happening.

Angela, me, my sister Cami, and my sister Josi.

That evening we met back at our house for some R&R before a BIG firework show! The kids played and watched a movie until it got dark and we ate pizza and enjoyed the time spent together. When the sun went down we walked over to the church parking lot and had the most amazing fire works show this side of the Mississippi! Tanner and Cort really out did themselves! We had patriotic music playing and everything!

Jon, Mom, Josi, Dad, and lil Kim

The kids were in HEAVEN with the fantastic firework show! They even did more sparklers and thew flowers! They danced and played and wished the day would never end!

They each had their own very distinct "fire dance" that they were extremely proud of. Very impressive! :-)

It rained on and off but we still had fun. It got a little chilly as the night wore on so we bundled and cuddled. It was so sad saying good bye but the memories we made will last a life time. Parker LOVES being with his cousins. When he blew out the candles on his birthday cake my brother asked him to whisper in his ear what he wished for. He told me, with tears in his eyes, that Parker had wished for Tavian and Savannah (my sister's 2 kids that weren't able to make it) could be there. I can't wait to see my family in California soon! Nothing beats playing on the beach!

This 4th of July was "epic", as my brother would say. It was especially touching remembering those who fought and continue to fight for our freedom. We are so proud of you Matt, and pray every day for a speedy and safe return!

God bless America! Let Freedom Ring!