Independence Day 2007

So I can't believe I am joining the world of bloggers. I love reading them from my friends and just decided that it would be much easier to share the pictures of my totally cute family this way instead of sending out periodic emails. Plus - if you don't want to look at the pictures it won't be bogging down your email account!! I certainly won't be all that whitty and this is mostly going to be about sharing our photos... but I think it will be fun. There are some blogs out there that I have read that are really high tech and hilarious! Please don't have that high of expectations from me!

We recently returned from our annual vacation to the mid-west... yes... some people do actually vacation in Indiana, Illinois and Michigan! My dad does a huge bash for the 4th of July and I haven't been there to see one before as I have lived in Utah for the past 10 years and we usually go back in the spring or fall when the weather is nicer. But this year we promised our 3 year old Dallin that he would see some fireworks for the 4th!

My dad starts the evening with a bon fire. He collects the branches, logs, boxes and whatnot for a year. It's a pretty big pile. Then of course he starts it with gasoline and a roman candle. Gotta do it right! Having lived in the desert for 10 years where everything goes up in flames if you even think a hot thought, I was extremely nervous. But my son thought it was really cool! I think my husband did too!



After the fire dies down - a lot - and dinner is done, of course there are s'mores to make. And some people just can't get enough of them. Like my brother, Jeremy.



Just in case you can't see very well.... we have a close up.



Jeremy is the source of much laughter in our family. Always thinking up the funniest things to do and say. You will see this again in a bit...

When the children have decided that they have had quite enough to eat they start to play. My dad has a very long driveway that isn't paved. So he has gravel brought in periodically to fill in the holes that appear. He didn't get ALL the holes filled by the time the party started so there was of course a mountain to climb! Here is my son, Dallin on the left with his cousins, Brayden, David and Rachel.



This year there were about 200 people who showed up to my dad's place for this annual event. It's a pretty big deal. Just to give you an idea... it took my step-mom, dad, husband and me over 6 hours to unwrap all of the fireworks. I didn't realize that any joe shmoe could buy the kind of fireworks that are at the ones you usually see downtown. But apparently you can. He starts the fireworks out with the roman candles and firecrackers. The kids have a pretty good time with them. Although I just don't understand the point of firecrackers except to give someone a nervous twitch. My dad had a roll of firecrackers. 26,000 of them if I remember correctly. It took something like 25 minutes for them to get done crackering. I was quite pleased when that part was over. But then it got dark and the fun began. Then there were the ones closer to the gound...



When those were done he started the ones in the air...



My brother and his kids were very excited ooo-ing and ahhh-ing... this is the first time my brother has actually seen the fireworks too. The little pyromaniac is usually out there lighting them off!



My boy thought it was just a little too noisy. He wanted to put in ear plugs... the little ones wouldn't fit in his ears and these are much more cool anyway...



Now my dad just can't do anything this fun for one night! So the next night we did some more!



Should I be concerned that my son will get hooked on fireworks? And of course he is "in his toes". The kid is a little Huck Finn. I can't keep shoes on him in the summertime!

We had a very fun 4th of July. I will post more fun vacation pictures later!