THURSDAY (the 4th)-
In the morning was the ward breakfast picnic at the church. The primary and nursery kids did an adorable little parade of the 50 states. Talmage and Charlotte (and another girl dressed up in mardi gras attire) represented the best state of them all-LOUISIANA! If you haven't watched Swamp People, then first I am sorry... and second that's what T is dressed up as :) ha ha.
Charlotte was an LSU cheerleader. She rocked it!
Later that day, after lunch and naps for all 4 of us, we headed out to the riverfront carnival. It was perfect- not too crowded or hot and there were lots of kiddie rides. Talmage rode his first ever ride and the big grin on his face was priceless! After a few rides he got cranky and demanded to ride ALL the rides there- even the adult ones. That was our cue to go! lol.
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| not tall enough but they let him ride anyway. how nice! (I told Jonathan to hang onto him with his LIFE) |
Every carnival experience has to include prizes! He was totally spoiled that day.
After the carnival we went to our friends house for an awesome 4th of July party/dinner. It was like the party of all parties. They had rented out a Taco Truck that served delicious burritos, and in the backyard all the kids played on the playground and trampoline. One of my favorite things about it was the Italian cream soda bar. yummmm. And this year instead of making a flag cake I made cupcakes. So much more fun!
After about 15 minutes of this, Charlotte completely lost it. She had been sitting quite still during the fireworks and popping noises, but eventually she decided she had had enough. And then EVERY noise made her jump and scream. We quickly went home, bathed the kiddos, put them in their jammies and headed BACK downtown to the riverfront for fireworks with our friends the Richards and their three darling boys. whew! It was packed but we got a perfect spot, and though neither child ever went to sleep until we got home at 11 pm, they thoroughly enjoyed the fireworks (that were much quieter this time, thank goodness). And like always, I got goosebumps during the finale and started to cry. I am so thankful to love in this beautiful country of ours and have so many freedoms. It was truly a perfect day!
After a night's sleep of recovery from the fun day before, we decided that we didn't want to waste a beautiful weekend cooped up in our apartment. So as soon as J got home from work we ventured out into the mountains for an overnight campout :)
Camping has always been a mutual favorite pastime for Jonathan and I. This was our first time taking BOTH children and I was a little nervous. Then we got to the camping sites, and the only one available and big enough for us was sitting on the edge of a cliff. I'm not even joking. So I was a nervous wreck the entire time and even though I told Talmage not to go anywhere near the edge, he didn't listen and got kind of close once and tripped. He didn't slide down the side of the mountain but that was the only image replaying itself in my head. So by the time we got all snuggled in the tent I was relieved...and could finally relax. ha ha. Still, next time we won't be anywhere near a drop-off- you can count on that!
It still ended up being good fun though- we had cheddar brawts and smores and enjoyed sitting by the fire. That is until IT happened. Apparently WET wood, when burning in a fire, projectiles flaming hot pieces of ash. I had no clue this would happen until a few enormous ash chunks came flying at Charlotte and I. I freaked out and proceeded to move her away and then she began to scream. I knew she was in pain but I couldn't see what was causing it. Luckily Jonathan stepped in and found the ash burning a hole through her coat and without hesitation I grabbed it off of her with my hand. I burned my hand but Charlotte got it much worse. She had 3 burn blisters on her arm and it was flaming red the whole night. I flet terrible, just terrible that I couldn't keep my kids from the danger surrounding us. We sat in the tent then and said a prayer to ease our fears and give us comfort. It worked. We were much happier after that :] And surprisingly, we all slept SO GOOD in those tents...except Jonathan who couldn't sleep because he thought he heard animals crawling towards us :D
SATURDAY-
After breakfast we decided to head out, but first stop for a little hike by the lake. I cannot say it enough but Oregon wilderness is just beautiful. It made me proud to live in such an amazing country and have the freedom to explore these parts of it.
Several hours later, after lunch and naps for all of us we went blueberry picking. It was HOT but somehow we managed to stay out there two hours. Don't ask me how...but there were lots of bribes and songs involved. I got enough berries to freeze a few gallons, make jam, and have plenty left for snacking on!
In my mind, THIS is the Fourth of July Sunday..not the Sunday before that was actually still June. I noticed last week when we went to church that everyone was dressed in red and blue and we were singing patriotic hymns and there were talks on freedom. I was totally thrown off! haha. I mean it wasn't even JULY yet. But I decided that we would just dress up all patriotic the next Sunday, which was okay too :] Who coordinates these things anyway?
Anyway, I picked up some cute red and blue fabric about a month ago when it was on sale, and since I didn't buy a whole lot of it, I had just enough to make a few things for the kids to wear. I have to admit...its days like this when I think we have the most darling children ever. I know that every mom thinks this, and I am not above admitting it ;)
Even Jonathan wore a coordinating bow tie! aahaha...what a stud. I am glad he does these things for me, even if it is silly :)
We are all exhausted now and I'm gonna try my hardest not to do anything or go anywhere this week..just relax and enjoy the summertime at home! It's fun to get out and do stuff but I really love being home, too...with all my comforts :) Which for me this week is Bridezillas, cupcakes, and endless time with my darlings.
Happy 4th of July weekend!
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