Happy 4th!

For some reason, the 4th of July has become one of Brooks' favorite holidays.  Maybe because it is kind of a holiday all by itself and there is plenty of time to get excited about it coming.  Brooks has a sort of love-hate relationship with fireworks.  He looks forward to them all year, but when they actually start shooting off, he gets really nervous if they are too close or loud.  He also has a fascination with the huge blow up gorillas some of the firework stands have outside their tents.  He has talked about them consistently throughout the year since he first saw them last 4th of July.  Oh the joy on his face the first time he saw them this year!  He was soooo excited! Keely was a little unsure of them, and after the first night we saw the purple one outside the tent in the Ace parking lot, we had to reassure her several times that he doesn't move.  Even the next morning when she woke up, the first thing she said was, "Gorilla. Stay. Ace."  Poor girl, I think she was genuinely afraid of him, but as we saw him again throughout the week, she liked him. 
Anyway, the weekend started off with the City of York's firework show on Thursday night.  We have started going to it every year, and Brooks really enjoys it since we watch them from the fairground parking lot, plenty of distance away from the loud booms.  Again this year, Cody had Katy's birthday party prior to the show, which was fun.  The kids could run around and play in the parking lot, eat cupcakes, popcorn, and candy, and anticipate the exciting firework show to end the evening.  I didn't get many pictures that night because it is just too much hassle to haul around our nice camera while I'm holding Barrett all the time, but I snapped this one quick with my phone of Keely eating her cupcake :)

 

On the actual 4th of July, we went to my parents' house for the day.  We played outside most of the day and enjoyed the beautiful weather.  I love it when we have 'cooler' weather for the 4th...it was only in the low 80s all day!  This is the first year we have bought snappers for the kids.  Keely and Brooks were a little unsure at first with the loud 'snap', but after they discovered how fun it was to throw and step on them, both kids loved them!  Brooks even shed a few tears when they were all gone.

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We also bought some black snakes.  It was a pretty windy day, so it was hard to get them started, but eventually Blake got a few going!

These two were so much fun this holiday.  They love being outside at the farm, and add Daddy not having to go to work, and a few fireworks, they were happy campers!

We even took a few 4-wheeler rides.  Keely loved the rides and had a hard time letting Brooks take his turn.  After Blake drove away with Brooks, she started fussing.  We told her she could go again once Daddy and Brooks were back.  She then proceed to say, "Orange One!' and pointed to another one still parked in the shed.  She's not dumb! She got Grandpa to start up the other one and take her for a spin.  Silly girl loves to drive...becomes a problem when she wants to sit in the front seat of the van all the time and pretend to drive...she might be trouble someday! 

Cody, Curtis, and their kids, along with my Grandparents, Uncle Dean and Loretta, Stacy, Tim and Scott, came over for supper that night and some fireworks.  The kids ate at their own table...Lane didn't want to eat and Katy didn't eat long, so just Brooks, Keely and Scarlett were left by the time I took a picture!

I think the kids just wanted to play instead of eat...they ran all over the place looking at the gardens and baby kitties and just having fun together.

Barrett was a pretty happy boy most of the day too...as long as someone was paying attention to him!

Shooting off a few fireworks for the kids...or maybe they were really for the enjoyment of Blake and Curtis? Hard to tell :)

And of course, enjoying some homemade ice cream before it got dark enough for fireworks.  Yum!

It's finally dark enough for fireworks! Brooks tried a sparkler this year.  He was pretty nervous about it, but we were so proud of him for at least trying it!  He however was not a fan of the bigger fireworks the guys shot off for us all to watch.  For him, we were too close and they were too loud.  He kept asking if they were done yet.  He just likes to enjoy them from a farther distance!

So that was our 4th of July holiday.  After a couple of really late nights, everyone was pretty tired, but it is just hard to avoid this time of year.  Our kids fell in love with this big silly purple gorilla, so we had to snap a picture before he was taken down.  Farewell until next year, purple gorilla, and Happy 4th of July!