..the fourth..

the fourth of july has always been one of my favorite holidays. something about the red white & blue, hot dogs & hamburgers, fireworks and pure patriotism that is displayed all over the country on this one day is just magical to me. too bad we don't live in a small town - they seem to know how to celebrate this holiday best. the only tradition our family employs on this day is breakfast with our cousins, but hey, that's better than nothing, right?

every year on the fourth of july i wake up listen to the song "god bless the usa," by lee greenwood, over and over and over again until lance hits me with a pillow and tells me to stop! haha this year i got kind of emotional while listening to it. come to think of it, i get emotional every time i listen to that song. i don't know if it is because i have kids now, but i am just so grateful to live in this beautiful country, where we are free to choose for ourselves. it's no secret how i feel about our president and the direction he is leading this country. i am scared for my kids' futures, especially the way things are headed now. but on this day - america's birthday - i choose to set all those feelings aside and just focus on the greatness that is america.

we started our morning at breakfast with the osbornes, as always. we went to mimi's cafe and sat at the same exact table as last year. the same people were there even. i even had the same meal! ha after breakfast we went to seven peaks to have some fun in the sun. i knew it would probably be way too crowded, but lance had the day off and we wanted to do something besides sit at home. grandma came with, which made it easier - a water park with two small kids ain't easy! we also met some friends there - the nelsen's and laurel - so it was a grand ol' time, even if we couldn't move it was so crowded. ;)

that evening we picked the ferrell's up and drove to sugarhouse park to watch their firework show. it was a beautiful night - perfect firework weather. the show was great, and the company even better. we love the ferrell's. they are so laid back and easy to be around. not to mention mike is hilarious, and always has us rolling on the ground. finn didn't love the fireworks as much as he loved the ones lance lit off at our house last night. i think he probably got bored of them because they weren't as loud, thus not as exciting. sam liked these fireworks way better though! he was mesmerized - just stared at the sky as if in a trance. not traumatized at all, like he was last night. ;)

the kiddos were sure exhausted by the end of this long day. it was so fun though, and the best part was getting to spend it with my perfect little family. i love them so much, and i love this great place that we live.

god bless the usa!