Fourth of July Weekend

Our Fourth of July weekend started off the best way possible: on a boat. Our friends came down for the day and invited us to the lake with them. The water was too choppy for us to get out behind the boat, but it was fun to just anchor and hang out.

That afternoon I insisted that we go to the carnival (for lack of a better word) downtown because I'd never been. There was a lot going on, but the only thing really picture-worthy was Anda's starting contest with this gentleman at the reptile show.

Dan's birthday was on Sunday. He spent the morning going to meetings for church (I don't think I've mentioned on here that he is the second counselor in a BYU singles ward), but when he got home we partied it up. We barbecued, opened presents, ate cake, and went for a walk in the canyon. Dan scored an Erector Set and a model rocket for his 31st birthday, so beat that.

On Monday we went to the parade. Dan's friend Kirk and his family had staked out a great spot, and they were nice enough to let us squeeze in with them. Kirk's mom and her boyfriend even mysteriously procured some extra chairs for us, which they were very secretive about for some reason.

Anda had a good time being out and about, even though sitting still while the fun comes to her isn't the way she usually likes to do business. The canon fire went over okay, but the fire engines honking their horns did not meet with her approval.

This Beautiful Baby Contest winner, however, met with my approval. How cool is this?

We finished things with a bang and did a little fireworks show that evening. They're a little anticlimactic when the sun doesn't go down until well after bed time, but when your audience is a one year old, you have to be flexible.

The sparklers were fun.

The loud firecrackers were not.

What a great weekend. Let's do it again next year.