Happy 4th of July!

We had so much fun on James' first 4th of July! We were able to sleep in til 9am, then went up to my parent's neighborhood for their annual breakfast and pool games! James ate a whole pancake to himself.


The weather was perfect: warm, yet overcast so watching pool games was completely enjoyable. We watched relay races, diving for soda and money, belly flop contest, and the greased watermelon water polo. James had a blast screaming and cheering for everyone. He blended right in :)

James has a strong aversion to grass,
so Aunt September was kind enough
to let him sit on her towel.

Austin and my dad went for a loooong bike ride
while James took a nap.

That evening we went to the city parade. I think it is a brilliant idea to have a parade in the evening. We saw some cool floats and other things and collected a lot of taffy!

At one point a huge air force jet flew right over us.
I was not prepared, so I could only get a picture once
it flew off in the distance.

Next we walked around the different booths and eventually made our way down to the stage and spent the rest of the time listening to music until it was time for the fireworks.

James practicing his standing/balancing skills.

Dyer Highway from Delta is one of the bands that performed.
The guy is 18, the girl in the yellow is his 14 year old sister,
and the violin player is only 15 as well. Pretty talented for a group
so young. It will be interesting to follow them and see what the future brings.

James sure enjoyed singing and dancing to their music!



Vocal Point from BYU was another group that performed.


And of course, what is the 4th of July without fireworks?!

I'm so grateful to live in a country that allows me the freedom to live my life the way I choose. I have a deep respect for those who continue to fight our freedom on a daily basis. I loved spending this holiday with my family and hope we started some new traditions we can continue. We had a lot of fun!!!