Saturday, July 4, 2009

Happy Independence Day!

Happy 4th of July! I took over 100 pictures today. It wasn't easy to narrow it down to these 15 for the blog. We had an incredible day. For starters, it was sunny. In fact, it got up to 75 degrees this afternoon. That's like 95 in America. Then, our dog treed a black bear in our yard. The kids came in to tell me. I grabbed my camara, locked my dog in the car, then I made the kids stay on the deck while I took pictures. See awesome video below.

This 4th of July was extra special because it's Alaska's 50th anniversary joining the Union. That explains the 50's theme throughout the parade route. Celebrating the 4th in a small town can be a lot of fun. Everywhere you go, you run into friends. Kids can run around because everybody is looking out for them (my mom would correct me and say, No, SHE was looking out for them while I socialized). And you don't have to fight the crowds and traffic.

I've always loved the 4th of July. For me, it's a lot more fun and less stressful than the other holidays. You don't have to slave over a turkey and 6 side dishes all day long. You don't have to worry about giving or receiving gifts. I love everything about the fourth of July: barbecues, parades, watermelon and apple pie. The only thing I miss about the 4th of July in Alaska is fireworks. It doesn't get dark here until about midnight. So we have to save our fireworks for New Year's Eve.


In the car on our way to the carnival.

Tiger Wise loves the golfing game.

Riley and Bradley, a Bromance.


Chris dunked two big kids in the dunking booth. Then he decided to try getting in.



Unfortunately, Landon was next in line. He was on Riley's baseball team.


Chris has no idea how cold the water is!


Now he does!


Here's my favorite part: looking for coins in the sawdust pile!


Lining up for the parade: Lucille Ball.

Lots of cute doggies in the parade.

Bradley, Riley and Brenden rode in the pack of a truck in the parade with 8th graders raising money for their trip to Washington D.C.
Mary, Alana and I march in support of PFLAG.


A whole gang of Rosie the Riveters

Maya rides in a boat with friends of PFLAG waving at all her fans.

Here's the little black bear in our yard:

1 comment:

Carol said...

I love the parade pictures, it was the part of the celebration we missed. We knew we couldn't get the kids up and out of the hotel by 7 a.m. to make the trip to the parade by 10. Yes, the 4th of July is a great holiday!

Carol