Ellie riding the kids train with a couple of her little boyfriends, B and M.
We kicked it off with our good old neighborhood block party, very possibly our favorite 4th of July event. This was our fourth year at the party and it just gets better every time! This year's celebration involved the usual potluck, barbecue, kid's train, water balloon toss (we even got Mayor Curtis in on it this year!), fireworks, and dancing in the streets, but we also had a rock climbing wall, multiple bouncy houses, glow sticks, and Rock Band on the Wii. We ate too much, then proceeded to play and dance it all off. Ellie made it until 10 PM this year, which wasn't as late as last year's record, but still pretty impressive.
Us at the block party. Photo bomb courtesy of Troy.
The next morning, we were up bright and early for the hot air balloon launch. Ellie liked them last year, but she loved them this year! Her favorite was the piggy, my favorite was the Darth Vader from Europe. Nerdy, but oh so cool. After we peeled her away from the balloons, we headed to Guru's for breakfast, which I highly recommend! We can vouch for the Cowboy Benny, Huevos Rancheros, and Blue Pancakes, all of which were fantastic!
Ellie lovin' on Dada at breakfast.
Can't tell they like being together, can you?
We hit up the Freedom Festival downtown next for some vendor-browsing, snow cones, cotton candy, and free entertainment. The best part? Walking the block home when we all had to pee instead of using the dreaded Honey Buckets.
That evening, Scott's wonderful parents came over to watch Ellie for us so we could go to the Stadium of Fire. Both of us have lived here our entire lives and have never been to the Stadium of Fire! I won tickets this year and we were excited to finally go. And it did not disappoint! Sky divers, F-16s, choirs, dancers, David Archuleta, Brad Paisley, and some crazy awesome fireworks. It was fantastic. I left feeling even more American than when we'd arrived. Scott and I made a smart decision to walk instead of drive (the Stadium is only two and a half miles from our house), and that was definitely the right choice! Yay for walking together on a beautiful summer evening instead of fighting the angry hoards of traffic!
At the Stadium of FIRE!
Sunday morning we headed straight for good old Logan, Utah for the Stewart Family Reunion. Our actual time with the extended family was brief, but lovely. After a potluck dinner, we got to watch an old home video of a family reunion we had at my Grandparent's cabin for their 40th anniversary 18 years ago! Complete with footage of hot dog roasts and family talent show. It was awesome. My big regret is that we forgot our cameras! When you only see people for a couple of hours every 3 years, it should definitely be recorded.
We hurried back to Utah County so that I could be up bright and early to dance in the Pre-Parade with our Zumba ladies. Our fabulous friends, the Becars, helped us out with a 4-wheeler and sound system for the occasion, and we danced the entire 2.5 mile parade route! It was lots of fun, and hopefully drummed up some new business. My favorite were the cheers, "Go white girl!" LOL. I still stand out just a little...
Thanks Cinthia for taking pictures!
Dance white girl, dance!
The whole gang.
After dancing, I joined everyone else to watch the actual parade. Ellie cheered and waved her flag and danced. She seemed to approve. :) And Scott got the photo of the year with Darth Maul.
And seriously hon, you were surprised when the guy gave you his personal "business" card and told you that you should totally join?
That night was the block party with the Tessems in Lindon. It's become another essential part of our celebration. Potluck, patriotic program, root beer floats, fireworks. It was a fabulous way to top off our weekend of celebration.
7 comments:
How funny, I saw the Zumba ladies pass by in the pre-parade and I totally thought of you and wondered if you were there. I glanced up and only saw brown skin so I figured you weren't there. I should have looked a little harder!
Thanks for the awesome parade seats! We had a blast - it's always fun to hang with you guys! p.s. I'm trying to see a good time to have a BBQ with the group. I'm thinking August but I'll let you know!
Very nice! And you are looking very sleek my dear Jessica! Gotta be the Zumba skills ;) Love you guys!
WOW! I am exhausted just reading it all. It sounded like a lot of fun. The "Go White Girl" had me giggling outloud!
You guys DO know how to party!
You did have a busy weekend! Just reading about it makes me want to take a nap. Sound like a good time though. We definitely need to party. When I get back.
I love, Love, LOVE the way you love food! You guys make me so happy. And you in a parade?! I would have been there in a second if I'd known! Go white girl!
Sounds totally fun. And the pictures of you doing Zumba totally made me laugh. You show them, white girl!!
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