Lots going on

Well, first of all, we are 9 days away from closing on our new home. We are beside ourselves really. It's simply flown by. And we are (wait for it...) still friends with the Curtises!!! In fact, there are many things that we will truly miss once we move out. Now that's a strong relationship! Thanks Curtises. We love you guys!

So, in honor of 9 days, here's a picture of the almost finished outside of our home. The shutters and door will be painted this week - a dark burgandy-ish brown.

And on to the 4th of July. We had a blast. I would re-create it every year. First of all, we went over to the stake center for a fireside/potluck, where a couple spoke about their experience with him being over in Afghanistan. It made me truly appreciate the sacrifice it is for them and their families, and it humbled me to know that there are so many of them out there, giving all they have so that my family can enjoy what we have. It really put a face to the whole thing. Thank you, Brother Whose Name I Can't Remember, and your wonderful family.


After that, we went to the Curtis' ward party, which meets in South Carolina, where fireworks are completely legal. They put together a fund from donations from ward members (not intended to be an official ward function, mind you), and bought enough fireworks for about a 30 minute show. It was so awesome. One of the best fireworks shows outside of Stadium of Fire that I've seen. AND it was the girls' first fireworks show. They've always been too little to stay up that late, so this was the big one. Once the show got started, Leah said, "Oh, so that's what real fireworks are like!" Bekah clung to me for dear life for the first several, but once she realized that they weren't going to hurt her, she really enjoyed it. I tell you, fireworks will always be cool, but it's like Christmas. It's best when you're a kid, and again when you get to share it with your kids. Leah decided that it was the best day ever. And I tell you, one Mormon potluck after another... never having to cook all day... it was heaven!



They had a sprinkler out on the lawn at the church, and the kids, well, you can tell from the pictures that they loved it. And it was so warm that evening that by the time we got in the car, they'd completely dried off. But not so hot to be uncomfortable. And no bugs ate us. I mean, could it have been more perfect?!





Happy (belated) 4th everyone!