the 4th of july!

the 4th of july! one of my favorite holidays! one i look forward to all year with much anticipation... almost as much as christmas!

the festivities for the 4th start the day before for us as of the last couple of years. we go to a bbq at my friend's parents' home and then we trek up to the golf course for fireworks. it's become one of my favorite traditions! my girls were excited about it this, but loved it even more because my friend's mom (who is an excellent painter!) did face painting. you better believe they stood in line for that first thing!

they usually have bounce houses and slides and this year, this is the only picture we got of that. but the girls love that too! right along with the snow cones and endless cotton candy.

only a couple of us were able to make it this year which was a little sad, but we had a great time being able to visit with just 3 of us! i love these girls and we hope this tradition continues forever!!!

no picture of the fireworks but it should be noted that literally five minutes before the fireworks started kendall had to go to the bathroom. not just number one either... so i picked her up and literally ran down hill of the golf course (in 100 degree weather) and we barely made it to the porta potties by the time the fireworks started going off. she went quickly and then i carried her and ran back up the hill. i was exhausted by the time we got back to the group. adi was sad and tired so i tried comforting her until the fireworks were over. kendall then let us know she needed to go potty again! holy cow. what?! we told her she had to hold it, which she's very good at doing. well, apparently all the fresca she drank right before the fireworks was catching up to her very quickly and she wet her pants in the stroller. poor girl! she was so sad about it, but turned immediately happy as soon as i let her know we had a fresh pair of undies back at the van for her. she was thrilled! i was just flat out tired. next year, we'll be better prepared for that!

we had the kids in pjs and in their beds by 11pm and we were getting them up at 7am the next morning to head down to our neighborhood flag raising and breakfast. a new tradition to us and one that we fell hard for and plan on doing again and again! the girls loved it! the getting up early didn't phase them one bit. james and i loved starting the 4th out in such a patriotic way.

the home where the breakfast takes place is in the heart of bountiful and is like the perfect backdrop for something patriotic like this as well. the playlist in the background was a world war two station and it seriously felt like something straight out of a movie. charmingly quaint and beautiful! the pancakes and other food was delicious and we left full and ready for the next event on the docket.

brunch/swimming at our house mid day on the 4th has also become a tradition. it's so nice to be able to let the kids cool off and play in the water, eat some more good food, visit, and do it all without the crowds! we love it and definitely plan on sticking to this tradition. this year i did blueberry muffins and a stove top mac and cheese (from martha stewart, look it up! so good!). we had watermelon, drinks, licorice, and the like. the other plus to this activity is it wears the kids out early for a good nap, allows us adults to nap, and then everyone's ready and refreshed to stay up for fireworks.

so we parted ways, napped, showered, got all ready, chels and i made a swig run, and then we all met up at my in laws for a delicious bbq. 

we ended up with so much food we literally did a repeat meal the next meal. so yummy!

i bought my girls' coordinating dresses clear back in february and i was so excited to finally get them all dressed up in them! adalyn's is my personal favorite!

after dinner was cleaned up we caravan-ed up to kaysville for what we think are the best fireworks of the summer. the kids get to go play in bounce houses with their daddies, while us mommies watch the babies and eat all the treats we bring.

as it starts to get dark, we pull out all the glow in the dark stuff and snuggle up for the fireworks. this year, brooklyn and kendall couldn't help but get up and dance for the first little bit. james has cute video of this but i can't get it to load. by the end, everyone was snuggled up together and it was seriously just the best! it's all so magical for me, and i'm the mom, and also 31 years old. i hope i'm creating magical memories for my girls too. these summer nights spent together watching fireworks, sweating to death, and then tiredly making our way back to the van are really some of my most treasured memories. i think about them all winter long and get teary eyed! not even kidding.

we had the best 4th and i'm so glad we did. it's such a great day to celebrate and remember how great this country is that we live. i know i'm proud to be an american and i want my girls to feel the same. i say it every year, and i'll say it again, i don't know if next year's 4th can top this one. but i'd love to see it try!

december so far...

this really is the most wonderful time of the year! we're only a week into december and it has already been filled with the magic of Christmas. having kids definitely amps that up for me. just watching their eyes light up as they opened their Christmas jammies to wear all month could be IT for me. we don't need santa or any more lights, just that was amazing to them.

kendall could hardly contain herself. she loves herself a good soft pair of jammies.

they really thought it was the best thing ever. luckily, brooklyn is still in the stage where anything and everything is exciting. i'll be so sad when she grows out of it.

our elf, dandy, is back in town and boy have the girls loved that! he doesn't do anything amazingly crafty or fun, he just sits somewhere new every morning, or not. first thing in the morning, they grab hands and set off to find him. i love laying in bed waiting to hear the squeals of excitement when they've spotted him. he has brought a few cheap gifts, like this elf on the shelf bath set that has been a total winner. but that's all he does. he's here to keep the peace!

this past sunday, brooklyn gave her first time in primary. she's given the scripture before, but this was a first for a talk. we practiced and practiced and by sunday morning she had it memorized. my parents came down for it and she was thrilled about that. she was even more excited when two of my sisters, brother in law, and nephew showed up during sacrament meeting to support her. she literally had a crowd in the back of the primary room. she did such a good job too. i only helped her a few times when there was a pause. i was so proud of her!

afterwards, we fed everyone a nice hearty lunch of crockpot potatoes, sausage, cheese, and corn. rolls on the side, and sparkling pear drink to sip on. i've said this a million times, but i love having a table full of people i love!

last week at story time brooklyn got to make her very own elf, which she named snowflake. she isn't much into taking her time in the coloring department, but boy has she had some adventures with that elf. her imagination is wild!

and this little miss cheeser loves to do anything her big sister is doing. she thinks she's four too. i'm afraid she'll grow up too fast trying to keep up with brooklyn. we sure love having her around. her personality barely fits in that little body of hers. she keeps me on my toes and is always surprising us with what she comes up with.

the biggest event so far this month was our ward christmas party. james and i were both on the planning committee and it was a lot of work. luckily we got to work with great people and it turned out to be such a huge success! i mean it looked like a christmas wedding!

and this lovely spread of food was the highlight! our ward family got to choose between turkey or roast beef, mashed potatoes with turkey or brown gravy, tons of sides brought by ward members, lion house rolls (with honey butter AAAND raspberry butter), and a whole table of desserts (also brought by ward members). all thanks to our bishop who has an awesome hook-up in the food department. 

we had volunteers bring nativities to display and we even had santa! he wore a suit that's been in james' family for years and handed out candy canes. it was fun for the kids! brooklyn's picture was blurry darn it, and this was the best one of kendall james got. 

i wish james had gotten a better close up of the tables because they were beautiful. there was pine all down the center that made the whole gym smell like christmas, and we had salad on everyone's plate (225 plates!) that added to the decor with red and green leaves. it really was beautiful.

our christmas shopping is mostly done and that is so nice! it's one of the stresses i like out of the way so that i can just enjoy the whole month. i can't wait to see the girls' reactions to their gifts. they really are good at making us feel good about purchases we make. thank goodness. i got all the last of my christmas cards sent out last week and that might even be a bigger relief! i love doing them, but boy, it gets stressful. i'm not the only one who feels that way right?

we also took the time one evening to watch the church's new christmas video. both girls sat and watched. afterward, because it was so short, james pulled up a few more and it was so nice to teach them the real meaning of this season. they've been playing with their little people nativity and kendall is obsessed with baby jesus. in fact, she took that little piece to bed with her tonight. i think it's so sweet.

we have a few other activities we want to do, but really don't want to plan too much. we really just like sitting as a family, by the christmas tree, reading christmas stories in the evening. way better than fighting crowds and being cold. so as long as we can get away with a relatively simple december, we'll stick to that.