4th of July weekend was nice and long and filled with activity...
Perhaps a little too much activity.
That's the problem with summer: there's so much we want to do when the kids are off school and the weather is beautiful that we tend to cram too much into one day. In fact, there were a couple of things we never got around to this weekend and I think we're better for it! Sheesh! Sometimes I think we forget the definition of "lazy days of summer".
So this post will cover the holiday weekend from start to finish, beginning Wednesday evening, July 3rd.
After work, we changed clothes and headed over to Perrysburg for dinner at Swig and to watch fireworks over the river with the Rethmans & Pearsons.
Craig took a bunch of pictures of me and the kids downtown.
We ate outside at Swig - a first for our family - and it was really nice! They had live music right near our table and all the little cousins had fun dancing and being silly.
Will & Cora
Mya
Stella
Lincoln
Sophia
The food was really good as usual. I LOVE their sweet potato fries!
Uncle Jim brought out ice cream for all the kiddies to cool down after all that dancing.
There was lots of trading...
...and lots of sharing.
Oh, and lots of silliness.
Taylor and Lindsey surprised us and showed up with a couple of friends.
After dinner, we grabbed our blankets and bug spray and walked down to the river to stake a claim on a firework viewing area.
We got settled in...
...and the kids caught some lightning bugs.
Then just our little family walked back into town quickly for an ice cream treat at the new Apricoto's (sp?) - the kids' 2nd ice cream of the evening. They split one.
Walking back, we made it in time for the show and everyone ooh'd and ahh'd.
On Thursday the 4th, we celebrated with my family at Dan & Lori's house. A cook out, a little swimming, a little billiards, some tattooing, a little coloring, some crafting, some pop its and sparklers and lots of yummy food.
The Rethman brood were looking mighty festive this day.
A quick flashback to July 4th, 2009 with Mya & Stella just over a month old.
And look at them now! I love flashbacks.
Our little family.
Mya helped Nana put a new tattoo on her foot.
Will found a new friend to play games on Aunt Lori's iPad with.
My daughter - all tatted up.
Seriously, guys? That's the best you can do? That is not a smile, Sophie.
Tootsie Pops from Nana.
And then a patriotic Tootsie Pop photo shoot. Sorry... there are a lot of these.
This one's my fave.
We tried a picture with Nana and her grandkids, but it just wasn't happening.
Molly brought some craft supplies and the kids got to work making foam door knob hangers with tons of foam stickers.
Then outside to the driveway for pop its and sparklers.
Hahaha!! I crack up at this face every time I see it. She just wasn't too sure about these things for awhile.
All of the great grandbabies of Larry & Carol Skees. So wish they were here to meet them! July 4th was Grandpa Skees's birthday. He only got to meet Will and Grandma didn't even get to see any of us get married. :( Miss them so much!
Friday, July 5th. Craig and I took the kids to Maumee Bay to play at the beach on this beautiful afternoon.
Haha! It looks like I'm dragging the kids around in the water in these pictures, but we were spinning and splashing and running in a circle holding hands and they would fall and I'd keep spinning them. They loved it.
Then there's daddy's way of spinning...
A little Frisbee and a little catch with a football and then we headed home.
I showered and cleaned up quickly and then I went out for a girls night with our kids' babysitter and all the moms that come to her. A super fun night at Fat Fish Blue for dinner and a comedy show and then drinks after at Bar Louie.
On Saturday morning, we managed to squeeze right in between the scattered showers to meet up with my old co-worker, Megan, and her daughter, Grace, at the zoo. It's far too scarce that we get to see each other with them living about an hour away, but we love our annual zoo trip and we're hoping to plan another get together soon in Ann Arbor closer to them.
Grace and Sophie were born just four months apart so Megan and I got to be pregnant, nursing, pumping at work and raising little girls at nearly the same time for awhile. I miss her soooo much!
The two girls are fast friends whenever they meet up and they walked around holding hands for most of the trip this day.
Will ALWAYS picks the giraffe on the carousel. Always.
It was a great morning with our friends and we can't wait to see them again!
In the late afternoon on Saturday, we invited our friends, the Bachmayers, over for dinner with plans of going to see the Woodville fireworks later on like we do every year with them. But the storms all evening put a wrench in those plans and we ended up just playing all evening at home when the fireworks were cancelled. Boo. It was still a fun night though. I didn't take many pictures, but our food was delicious and the long game of I Spy at the dinner table as we all sat together was actually very entertaining. :) Later on, the kids entertained themselves with climbing the inside of the door frame between our dining room and the kids bedroom hallway.
Stinkin' adorable Alec is four and a half now.
Katelyn the cheerleader gymnast will be turning nine this November. She was born just after Craig and I were married.
And that girl is so strong! She was doing pull ups here. Haha!
We made today a "stay home day" to recover from all our activity. We did some deep cleaning, which the kids helped with, and then everyone got some R&R.
Hope you all enjoyed a happy 4th with your friends and family!
