I've loved reading all the posts about people's Independence Day adventures as of late. Though the day is now long past, I thought I would add my own. I love Independence Day. It has become my favorite holiday and I anxiously await its coming every year. I really can't think of any aspect of the 4th that doesn't appeal to me. The parades, the crowds, the fireworks, the patriotic songs, the family, the festivals, the food--I just really can't get enough of it.
It has also become an important time marker for Spencer and I. We met the last week of June and started seriously dating just in time for all the Provo Independence Day festivities. As cheesy as it seems, we fell in love amidst the craziness of fireworks and parades and because of that, this time of year will always be special to us. Though we married in December, I think we both consider the 4th of July period our true "anniversary."
Every year we were in Provo for the fourth, we were the official "parade spot keepers" for Spencer's family. Yes, we were part of the crazy crowd who would spend the night on the street to secure prime parade viewing enjoyment. I have so many good memories from that. When Spencer's family told us that they continued the tradition this year as well, and even scavenged the same spot, I felt a silly little glow of pride in my heart that Spencer and I had left our own little 4th of July legacy. :) It was hard for me to see pictures posted on blogs and facebook by friends and family of all the Provo activities without feeling a wave of nostalgia and homesickness. The Freedom Festival, the hot air balloons, the parade, the activities at Maceys, the Stadium of Fire and even the crazy crew of motorcyclers who cruise University Ave all night before the parade will always hold a place in my heart. But I digress...
I also love Independence Day because I am a covert American history buff. My dream when I first entered college was to become an American history professor. That dream got lost in my post-mission desire to save the world through social work, but still lives on in my heart. I am amazed by the founding of my country and marvel at the incredible odds the colonists overcame. Talk about the greatest underdog victory of all time--a ragtag band of primarily inexperienced military novices took on the strongest army in the world and triumphed. On paper, it just shouldn't have worked out. They fought amongst themselves, desertion rates were high and morale was usually quite low; but somehow, by the skin of their teeth, they did it. It is a direct testament of God's ability to utilize the weak and imperfect to bring about his great purposes.
And now onto the pictures! We spent the 4th of July holidays with Spencer's family--first in Nauvoo, and then in Wisconsin. It was really great to see so many of them. It was especially fun for me to watch Grace interact with her cousins. She LOVES them. While Grace is generally afraid of adults at first, she has almost none of the same reservations with children. After we got home, whenever she saw little kids, she would start flapping her arms and making excited noises--no doubt thinking they were her cousins about to come play with her. I loved it.
Well, the pictures are pretty out of order, but...here they are.
Grace at Pike Lake near Hartford, WI, on the 4th. She discovered the joys of pushing her stroller and walking with it. She did that for a good half hour or so.
April, Max, Spencer, Landon, Grace and Olivia at the Hartford parade. Not as great as the Provo Parade, but a parade nonetheless. :)
More Pike Lake.
We went to Milwaukee the night of the third for their big fireworks show. The fireworks shot out over Lake Michigan. The show was an hour long! Even for a fireworks buff, I was getting kind of restless at the end. Grace showed little to no interest in the fireworks. She found a squishy orange ball much more entertaining and spent the duration of the show chewing on it. A lot of the nieces and nephews fell asleep. Grace, however, was bright-eyed and bushy-tailed to very end, even though her regular bedtime is 7:30. She's always happy to stay up as late as possible. The next day, however, she's a cranky, whiny mess.
Grace and Calais.
Grace and Landon.
Cute Olivia.
I promise that Grace really did love her cousins, despite what this picture seems to indicate.
Grace, Sammy, and Landon: all born within a few months of each other!
It was surprisingly cold that night, hence the hoodies.
Milwaukee!
Jacob, Whitney, Landon and us on our walk to see Lake Michigan.
More Lake Michigan.
The fam waiting for the fireworks to start.
Esther and little sleeping Sammy.
Just before we went to Milwaukee, we stopped by a cute old town called Cedarburg to make a chocolate run. We kept Grace protectively in her stroller. This was also my first attempt at doing something with the little tuft of hair that Grace has on top. Little Gracie Lou Who. :)
On the 2nd, we went to a cathedral close to April's home in Hartford. We trekked up the 178 stairs to the top, with two babies in tow.
In the spires of the cathedral. Apparently, Grace found the climb quite tiring.
April and three of her kids: Adam, Benjamin and Calais.
View from the top.
The weekend before the fourth, we met up with Jacob and Whitney and April and her kids in Nauvoo. This is Grace and Landon in the...family living center, I think?
The Browning Gunsmith spiel.
Apparently, I wasn't doing a good job of keeping up with Grace's hunger. She had to turn to other sources for food.
Spencer, Sydney, and Brigham Young's well.
A genuine Nauvoo horse.
Chubby face Grace.
The whole crew.
Calais, Sydney, and the part of the muddy old Mississippi where the Pioneers crossed.
