4th of July!

This was the FUNNEST 4th of July EVER - OK - well, maybe not EVER - but it was a GOOD ONE! My sister in law Cindy did the BEST 4th post EVER......so I will just recap - Everyone in the entire family was there - except for Joel which was a TOTAL bummer! Cassie and I missed him A LOT but he just couldn't get time off from work - like he said - someone has to work so you guys can play - what a GREAT guy!! Anyway - we all got together at Mom and Dad's house for a BBQ.....YUM! We all got really festive with the doo dads and trinkets - from head bands with dingle stars, face tattoos, hats, all the fun stuff! The boys got their tanks ready for "TANK WARS". Which is always a big hit! Holli and her family were able to be there and her kids TOTALLY got into it! After the food and tank wars, the family had a very informal Flag Ceremony. Brian and I shared the Declaration Of Independence, and a patriotic poem, then the family sang the Star Spangled Banner and said the Pledge and then the real party began!! Sarah came up with the idea of a rousing game of Steal The Flag! We grew up playing.....so it was a BLAST!! 4 hours later, SEVERAL bumps and bruises - and a broken nose......Well the whole gang from the littlest ones to the biggest ones joined in and it was a BLAST! After the game it was time to head across the street to view the "Stadium Of Fire".....PERFECT seats thank you very much! And of course - to finish off the night we had the "Culdesac Of Fire". Everyone had purchased HUGE packs of fireworks from Costco so it was another 2 hours of firework fun! I just can't even tell you how much FUN it was to spend the 4th with EVERYONE! GREAT memories! Who knows how many chances we will have to all be together, but when we are blessed with the opportunity, I am SO glad we make it count!!