4th of July

We had such a fantastic 4th of July this year!  In a break from tradition, we joined Callie, Phil, Mira and Maylee at Phil's parent's home on American Lake in Lakewood.  Phil's mom, Jean, throws a fabulous party each year - one that I actually attended many many years ago back when Callie and Phil were just dating (or perhaps shortly before or after they got married.  I knew that Ben would have such a blast hanging with his BFF's - and we did, too!

Due to the extreme heat we are having around here, the party started earlier than normal so we could hit the water for a few extra hours.  We were SO grateful to have a place to cool off!  The water was so warm, yet refreshing.  We got to take a boat tour around the lake followed by floating around the dock for a long time.  It was heaven.

At 4:30, Jean called us up for their annual parade around the block!  She had a table with tons of American "swag" so we could deck ourselves out and show our pride :)

Ben and Maylee!

 

Following the parade all of the kids went on a scavenger hunt (adorable) complete with prizes for each of them (which Jean reported back that when she gave Ben his, he said "THANK YOU for all of my stuff!!!" - gotta love that)!

After a delicious dinner and just a little more cooling off in the lake, we decided our skin needed a little break from the sunshine.  Ben crashed almost immediately on the drive home - it was a very full and fun day!