The Fourth

I have decided that it is hard when a holiday falls in the middle of the week.  Especially a holiday such as the Fourth of July that brings friends and family together to do nothing more than celebrate!  It is about warm weather, festive red, white and blue decor, good food, cold beverages and relaxation!  There is nothing formal about the Fourth, there aren't presents, or big meals to prepare, it is casual BBQ's, picnics, music on the radio, pool parties and of course fireworks!  Just our style!

After a full day at work and 100 degree temperatures in Cedar Rapids we piled up the truck to have a picnic near Ellis Park where they host fireworks each year on the 3rd.  We met the Holub's and the Hahn's early in the evening so we could secure a prime spot to view the fireworks!

We passed the time with our picnic style dinner, fun activities, festive dress-up and sparklers!  The kids did such a nice job being patient for the fireworks show and at 9:30 it was time to watch as they lit up the sky!  Lila was a bit uncertain at first, she has always loved the fireworks, but this year the loud boom rattled her a bit, but before long she was settled in and enjoyed calling out the ones that had her favorite color scheme of pink and purple!

We headed home around 10:15 with a whipped little girl in the back.  Between the late night and the heat she was zonked out when we pulled in the driveway!  What a fun tradition this has become!

With the later evening last night, Lila woke up at 9:00 this morning!  It was nice for Mom and Dad to sleep in, too!!!  We had plans to head to Jason and Jen's to enjoy the sunshine by the pool, as it was be another hot one today!

We got to Jason and Jen's and Lila and Mike were immediately in the pool, ready to cool off!  With the temperatures the pool water was even in the high 80's!!

Everyone enjoyed a relaxing day and took dips in the pool on and off throughout the afternoon, only hopping out to grab a drink or something to eat!  Since we were able to enjoy the fireworks last night at Ellis we are happily sitting in the air conditioning at home and will be happy to watch the fireworks via the television tonight!!!  We hope you enjoyed your Fourth as much as we did!

Fun in the Sun!

IT.  IS.  HOT!  That is all I can say!  It has been around 100 degrees with the heat index for the past week and it doesn't show signs of stopping in the near future.  In order to beat the heat we headed to Guttenberg where our family cabin is for some good old fashioned fun in the sun!  I know I have shared this before, but Guttenberg is where I spent all of my summers with my family doing the same things that we now share with Lila.

We only made a day trip, so up and back in a jiffy, but we still had enough time to let the sun bake in and have a lot of laughs and smiles throughout the day!

All Aboard!

She LOVES to be on the boat!

Captain & Co-captain!



Love my Auntie Jen!



First up - Celia, Ruby, Carson & Annie

Soakin' up the rays!

Fearless Riders!

Sisters!

First tube ride!!!

Hop on Daddy!  I can't go without you!

Holding on tight w/ Dad!

Other than sitting in the house with the air conditioning cranked up, there really isn't a better way to beat the heat than to be on the water!  I am so thrilled that Lila will grow-up on the Mighty Mississippi with family (and her Grandpa Smith), just like I did!

Three Year Pictures

We got Lila's pictures taken the day after she turned three!  Our friends Heidi & Troy of Studio U Photography were able to capture some really beautiful images even though Lila was not in the mood to cooperate! 

A special thank you to Heidi & Troy for helping to capture the beautiful essence of this amazing little three year old girl!  To us she is the most beautiful thing in the world and the photographs help to soldify these precious moments in time!