Independence Day 2016 & 2015

The 4th of July is one of my all time favorite holidays. It never seems to disappoint and the fireworks at the end can't be beat. This year we missed our ward's neighborhood breakfast sadly, but I think we all needed the extra sleep. We won't be missing that again next year. We also decided to forgo the parade this year. It was SO hot last year. We're still on the fence about that. We much prefer the 24th parade that's right down the street from us. Now that I've looked through all of my photos I'm going to include 2015 as well. They're just too cute to leave out!

We went over the James and Melinda's for brunch and the girls have gone swimming in their back yard for the past 2 years and they've had a blast. This year, j.rue brought water balloons and the girls had so much fun. Melinda and I snuck out for Swig drinks and I think we'll need to make that a tradition every year as well.

J.rue wanted to make empanadas all summer and he was finally able to on the 4th. They were delicious and he was very proud of himself. We needed to make sure we were fueled up for the fireworks! We tried to get a cute group shot of all the kids, but the sun was in their eyes plus, they're them.

Then we headed off to the fireworks in Kaysville. They're our favorite. I definitely miss being able to walk to them from our old house, but we've figured out the parking over the last 2 years and it's not so bad. The girls had a blast running around around and their daddys took them over to the bouncy slides. We always make sure to have delicious snacks too. Once the fireworks finally started, I had visions of us snuggled up as a family to watch them, however Ellie had a different idea. She danced the whole time. It actually made it even better because I was able to watch her enjoy them. Her enthusiasm makes everything so much better.

We ended the evening with sleepy happy kids. We fought the crowds, drove home, and passed out. It was blissful and I can't wait for next year. Now for a quick recap of 2015: We started the night before with some sparklers at our house.

That next morning we woke up bright an early to head out to our neighborhood breakfast and then right over to the Centerville parade. It was a scorcher. Ellie didn't mind too much, but for this pregnant mama, I was more than happy for it to be over. Like I said, we're still on the fence for parades. J.rue and I just don't appreciate them like we maybe should.

Then we went for some brunch, the girls did some swimming, had some baths, and did some bubbles. We took Ellie home exhausted, right in time for her nap.

Then, we left for Kaysville for the fireworks! I will admit that I was a party pooper that year and we almost didn't go, which I would have totally regretted. I'm learning and it's almost always worth the effort to go to whatever I'm too tired to go an do. Kaysville had a little glitch in their show this year and couldn't get the grand finale to work. It was so sad. They never made an annoucement, so everyone kind of awkwardly started getting up and leaving. However, they did promise to deliver the next year and they surely did.