Happy July 4th!

Happy Independence Day! 

 

We had a fabulous time celebrating the independence of our great nation this past weekend. Bryan had Friday and Monday off from work (they don't get holidays during busy season so they make them up during the summer) so we got A LOT of Daddy time! Friday turned out a little differently than we had originally planned...the entire day was spent car shopping. I am sad to say we now have a car payment. However, I am super happy to say that I am now a minivan momma. I'm the first to admit that a minivan was not my first choice of vehicle when we started talking about getting a new car. I didn't feel like we were quite at that stage in our lives yet. After several discussions I was persuaded to give vans a chance. Glad I did because I absolutely love it!

 The picture isn't the best, but I didn't really feel like going for a drive just for a picture. So I'm lazy. It's a 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan and we are so in love! The extra space is amazing. The fun features of a new car are just that...fun! We're going to have a great time putting miles on this baby.

Saturday we played in the pool and went for a short hike. We went up to Mount Baldy and can't wait to go again. There is apparently over 70 miles of trail to explore and we didn't even go 1 mile! We hiked until we found a fun place to stop along the river and play for a bit. We had a blast even though the river was freezing cold and we were being attacked by ladybugs! **One funny side note** - Zeb was a little ornery and didn't want to get dressed to play. He kept asking to go to church. Over and over. Sunday we finally made it to church. Zeb was so thrilled! He was such a good boy and loves going to class (nursery).

Monday was party time! We started the morning with a great patriotic celebration and pancake breakfast with our stake - complete with a live band playing patriotic music, a guest speaker, and fun with friends. We headed down south to spend the rest of the day with family. We had a great time at the pool! Zeb is beginning the transition to swimming without any floaties - slowly but surely we'll get there. He is being so brave. Abigail also loves the pool so it's always enjoyable. After the pool we had a super fun BBQ at Trevor and Melanie's home. Thanks for hosting us!!! 

 

 All the cousins had fun playing... 

(Zeb's latest "ta-da" pose)

 (Taking a break from playing to eat dessert)

...while the adults visited. Have we mentioned how much fun we had?! We even got to see the local fireworks show - from a distance. Next year we might try getting a little closer to get the music with the lights. All in all we had a wonderful weekend.