. . . scenes from the fourth . . .

. . . i sure enjoy this sight out my front door . . .

. . . and i'm thankful for the boy scouts 

who post the colors in our neighborhood 

on holidays throughout the year . . .

. . . hoping you all had 

as star spangled a day 

as we did . . .

. . . case in point . . .

. . . style icon cameron 

sporting goggles and euro trunks . . .

. . . nobody wears them better . . .

. . . all you can eat popsicles . . .

. . . and a beach towel to match . . .

. . . elliott . . .

. . . dude . . .

. . . sorry you got yourself stuck 

in that tube thingy . . .

. . . most of the kids were being photographed 

with their frozen treats . . .

. . . cam, on the other hand, 

preferred spending time alone . . .

. . . painting a spectacular popsicle masterpiece 

on the kitchen door . . .

. . . bless his heart . . .

. . . sticky is my favorite . . .

. . . the sunset was particularly fiery . . .

. . . and impossible to capture 

in an iphone photo . . .

. . . with the sun down . . .

. . . it was time for fireworks . . .

. . . which have only recently become legal 

within mesa city limits . . .

. . . elliott is still a little nervous around them . . .

{me too, bud, me too!}

. . . but he eventually warmed up a little . . .

. . . with bellies full of pool water, hot dogs, 

and maaaaaaany popsicles, 

most of the grandkids were content 

to first stand back 

and watch grandpa and chris 

put on a pyrotechnic show . . .

. . . a show that went on long enough 

that they eventually opted to sit down . . .

. . . it was getting late . . .

. . . but let's see . . . 

. . . someone's missing here . . .

. . . that would be cameron . . .

. . . poor little guy was worn out . . .

. . . he opted to sit in the car 

{windows down - don't worry} 

and just chill out to some itunes . . .

. . . instagrammed 

{and all looking extremely  festive}

  earlier in the day . . .  

. . . first, we have miss addi 

all ready to head to the movies . . .

. . . she and her cousins 

enjoyed despicable me 2 . . .

. . . as always, we missed 

hayden, jessalyn, and drew . . .

. . . they headed to the parade 

in downtown provo . . . 

. . . while amelia, tyler, and colby 

greeted us from cool del mar . . .

. . . america --- what a beautiful country . . .

. . . a country where we enjoy 

so many freedoms,

 opportunities, 

privileges, 

and beauty . . .

. . . i love this land . . .