We had a great 4th of July here in Ohio! Typical, but fun. We started out with a lazy and relaxing morning (we had friends over the night before for a game night that lasted until 1:30 am). Then it started to rain. This is why I describe it as typical - it rained last year on the 4th of July as well. Typical Ohio. Annie was so sad when she saw the rain saying, "Oh dear, now we won't be able to watch fireworks!" We wanted to get out of the house, so we went and walked around the mall for awhile. The girls fell asleep in the car on the way home and took a much needed nap while Dan and I made some food and got ready for the real partying to start!
The rain stopped just in time. We had a fun afternoon of BBQ hopping at friends' houses (we squeezed in 3), eating great food and talking and playing with friends. Our girls were troopers. Although they were definitely partied out by the end of the night. After the first BBQ, Annie said, "Now can we go to the fireworks?" "Just two more parties, Annie."
We ended the night with almost half the ward at a park to watch the city fireworks. We did sparklers while we waited for the fireworks to start. Annie had been waiting all day for this, and she was sooo excited. But once the sparklers were lit, there was no chance I was going to get her to hold one. I didn't think she would be so scared - she did it last year just fine. But she still had fun trying to blow them out and running around with her friends. She was also afraid of the fireworks. Poor girl. I thought she was going to love them. She warmed up about half way through, and finally uncovered her ears. The thing is, we weren't even that close. Leah did great and sat on her little camping chair for almost the whole show.
Before moving to Ohio, I think I've spent almost every 4th of July with my family. I definitely thought about them a few times throughout the day and of all the fun they were having together. And most of Dan's family has gathered together in Utah to celebrate the weekend. So, although we would have loved to be with our families for the 4th, we're really enjoying this time we have in Ohio, and we feel so blessed to have so many great friends to spend it with.
