4th of July

Jacey and one of her favorite girlfriends, Shayne. Can you tell how much she loves her?

Our exhausted family at the Coppell 4th of July parade

Striking a pose at the splash area
Kenzie, Jacey, Shayne, and Bradshaw
Jacey and Shayne
Broden's expression pretty much the whole night.
Still going strong at 11:00 p.m.....

I think 4th of July could very well be my favorite holiday celebrated in Texas. I love how patriotic Texans have turned it into a 2-day ordeal. Once again, we had a great time! We went to "Kaboomtown USA" in Addison on the 3rd. We spent most of the evening there. We enjoyed a picnic dinner (well... kind of. It was a little hot to actually enjoy the picnic with the Texas sun beating down on us!), watched the air show, played in the water/splash park, watched fireworks, and stayed for most of the "Movie at the Park" after fireworks while we waited for traffic to thin out. Jacey was thrilled when the live band that was performing up on the big centerstage invited all the kids up to dance onstage. Broden loved the water, and loved cheering for all of the fireworks. As always, it was great fun. We highly recommend Kaboomtown as a annual activity for any family who will be in the Dallas area for a few years. It was a late night, but well worth it. Our kids crashed in the car on the way home. Then mean Mom and Dad woke them up early the next morning (for the real 4th of July) to take them to the annual 4th of July parade in Coppell. Waking them up was a challenge, but I knew we would hear about it for the rest of the day if we missed the parade. After the parade we were all so exhausted we decided to play the rest of the day low key. We enjoyed a BBQ at the Marshall's home with some friends, then came home and relaxed. We debated going to see some more fireworks, but after the big show and huge crowds the night before, we couldn't bring ourselves to go out again. My ideal way to spend that evening would have been to stay home and light off fireworks in our backyard. Since we don't have a backyard (love apartment l iving... :), and since fireworks are illegal in Texas anyways (something about it being too hot and dry....go figure.) that option was pretty much out. We were delighted however, when both of our kids fell asleep EARLY (like, right after dinner) and Dan and I were able to sit in our bedroom, pull up the blinds, and watch the fireworks the city was lighting off while lying on our bed. It doesn't get much more relaxing then that! We are grateful for the opportunity we had to celebrate, and even more grateful for the freedoms that we enjoy and those people who make those freedoms possible.