Independence Day

The 4th was pretty epic this year.
We had a lot of sadness around us that particular week: I was down and missing the big boys, Jason's sister's family was in the middle of prepping for their huge move to Arizona so stress levels were through the roof, and our close friend Jenn was dealing with the unexpected death of a family member. 

The morning of the 4th I looked at Jason, who had just come home from a business trip and was super short on sleep, and basically said "I know we are both crabby but we have to pull it together and be the happy ones today!" We both accepted the challenge and made it great.

We took the kids to the Wasilla parade that morning, which the kids LOVE every year. 

Then we made a last minute store run for BBQ provisions, followed by a trip to Houston to pick up fireworks. 

What followed was tons of food, tons of water play, tons of laughter, fireworks from the front lawn, and fireworks at the park that night.

We basically lived it up until 1 am on the 5th. We never stay out late but we make an exception for the 4th of July!

 Newly potty trained Thayer at the parade haha