I always love the 4th of July weekend. Dressing all in red, white and blue, talking with the kids about why we celebrate Independence Day and our freedoms, parades, family, fireworks, and of course, good food. We had a great time this year, starting off with a BBQ at my parents’ place on Friday night.
Grandpa Russ is the grillmaster. His marinated flank steak=crazy delicious.
Annie was a big helper getting the table all ready.
A few little details here and there…
Annie was actually giving me some good smiles that night! I love this picture of her!
We all loved dinner. Ty and Lisa fresh from their Maui honeymoon. Awwww, how cute!
My mom (aka Grandma Wendy) and my grandma (aka Grandma Yoo-Hoo) being super cute:
And my dad (aka “Crampa” Russ) and his crazy face. 
After dinner came the swimming! It was a toasty day. A nice change from all the rainy days of June.
Haylie got too cold so she decided she’d rather snuggle with Daddy and observe the craziness.
Even Uncle Ty got on in the fun and they all had a blast! What an awesome uncle.
Haylie warmed up a little bit in her own little pool, still watching the craziness of her big brother and sister, and Uncle Ty too!
After drying off, out came dessert….remember this beaut?? We wanted to make an exciting presentation, so we decided to add sparklers to the cake!
Woo hoo! Still dreaming of how yummy that cake was…..
Of course, Annie thought the cake was scrumptious too.
Haylie was being patient, waiting for her first taste…
and Brandon was entertained by the bubble machine! Many times he’d rather play than eat.
and Brandon was entertained by the bubble machine!
Many times he’d rather play than eat.
Once it got darker, we played with sparklers and sidewalk chalk. The pics might be blurry but I like them anyway!
I finally whipped out my external flash once it got way too dark….and I LOVE this pic of Brandon! He was the master sparkler man.
Our grand finale!!
Whew! Such a fun night. And a late night, as you can probably tell by the glazed look in Annie and Haylie’s eyes. Time for bed! Happy 4th of July!!!!
I finally whipped out my external flash once it got way too dark….and I LOVE this pic of Brandon! He was the master sparkler man.
Our grand finale!!
Whew! Such a fun night. And a late night, as you can probably tell by the glazed look in Annie and Haylie’s eyes.
Time for bed! Happy 4th of July!!!!
4th of July Weekend Part 2 coming soon: Park City and neighborhood BBQ/fireworks!
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
I was going to say how cute I thought Haylie's swimsuit was but then I got distracted my Annie's "crazy" eyes in that last picture. LOVE IT! And I still just want you to follow us around and take pictures of us. Maybe then I could get a cute one of my kids all together.
Brooke, it looks like tons of fun! I love the picture of Haylie waiting for cake…too cute!
Love the recap! I'm such a sucker for holidays, too! And I'm in the middle of making your beautiful cake… we'll see if mine looks as good!
Brooke–you guys are the cutest. How I wish we were neighbors now! You are so real, refreshing and darling!
What a BBQ! Looks so fun. I love that picture of Haylie waiting in her high chair…so cute. And your family picture at the top is lovely. Can't wait to hear about the rest of the weekend.
I love the swimming pics, especially the one with all three kids in the tiny, tiny pool!
Such great pictures. Miss you too. I will call you soon (or you call me…hee hee).
Looks like you guys had a great holiday weekend. I also just finally checked out all of the awesome pictures you posted of your dating/wedding. That was so fun to look at. Maybe I'll have to do that one of these days cause I really enjoyed looking at all of your pictures. Congrats on your anniversary. You two are incredible people and deserve each. We feel blessed to have you as friends.