happy 4th!

we were thrilled that this 4th of july weekend arrived with much better weather than last year! our tradition is for the big kids to sleep over with karina at nana & pappy's house on the 3rd so that they can walk down the street to the parade on the morning of the 4th.

(parade pictures courtesy of aunt kristie...)


yeah, there was no getting amelia to look at the camera.

parade= candy, candy, candy, oh and flavor-pops!





the kids are usually all patriotically hyped up on sugar by the time we arrive... with more sugar! (and some fruit and veggies to balance things out.)


i experimented and made some patriotic birthday cake popcorn. white chocolate, cake mix, sprinkles, and popcorn. how can you go wrong?


i also went a little pinterest happy and thought these red, white, and blue rice krispie treats would be fun. and then i caught some cuties who thought the same thing!



we cooked out but ate in cause it's (blazing hot) florida!!

everything tastes better on a flag plate!!


isn't that right, amelia?! (yessssss, she looked at the camera!)


the guys found a spot out of the sun for a little cornhole...


and before we knew it, we were loading up for the fireworks! uncle jeff got us the major hookup this year. he and kristie have some friends who live on the water, right next to where the fireworks are set up. we were excited to have front row seats!!! uncle safety slowly drove the kids in the back of the truck (with 2 moms in back, too) while pappy safety stressed out for the entire 3 block ride as we drove behind them. :) it was incredibly entertaining!!


oh look! more candy!


moon! moon moon moon moon moon moooooooon!


love these cousin twins :)


we hurried to get a family picture before it got too too dark. so blessed to live in america and to be free to raise our children with a biblical worldview. we cannot take this for granted today!


this is the point on 4th of july when i no longer have camera privileges. brian gets in his zone setting up the tripod and getting the camera on juuuuust the right settings for fireworks pics. meanwhile, the kids are continuing to run and squeal and make memories that will never be documented because i don't have my camera plastered to my face!!!! and he always tells me, "as soon as i get a few good ones, i'll give the camera back to you." mmmmhmmm....

the sun went down...


and the lights came out! we usually do this with sparklers but tried light sticks this year. the kids were standing in just the right spot where The Fireworks Camera could snap this one.


here are "a few good ones" that brian snapped. i guess i'll stop complaining now. 'cause these are pretty cool.







little miss hallie did not care for the fireworks at first. she spend the first half of the show shaking in my lap like a dog during a thunderstorm. she buried her head in my face and refused to watch them as she said, "no!" over and over. then she suddenly just turned around, relaxed, and enjoyed the rest of the show! and she spent the rest of the night saying, "boom, boom!" i was so glad she ended up liking them.


this is us pretending to watch fireworks, since i couldn't take something like this during the show. haha. yes, i realize this is ridiculous.


nana and pappy are totally humoring me here-- that is one bright flash in the dark!!


after the fireworks show, we went back to nana & pappy's for the encore... pop-its! my kiddos love these things.


sibling fun. also known as the one where hallie eats a pop it.


caroline figured out that if you throw a bunch down, it makes a pretty loud noise. thus began the dumping of the pop-its!


and that was our 4th of july! i pray my children will one day truly understand the significance of our independence day celebration. they do know the history behind it, and we strive to stress the blessings surrounding the beginning of our great nation. but i am sure as children, in their minds, this holiday is about fireworks and candy and sleepovers at nanas. many men and women sacrificed their comforts for my children to innocently dance in the dark, waving sticks of every color. many soldiers gave up their lives so that the only "boom boom" that causes my toddler to shake is the noise of a celebratory explosion in the sky. as we celebrate america and all that our founders stood for, we praise God and ask Him to revive our land.

birthday potion #9!

birthday + friends (cake + experiments)= a whole lot of science fun! ethan's 9th birthday party was a blast! our dining room quickly morphed into a science laboratory, complete with test tubes, flasks, and plenty of scientific books to keep those inquisitive minds sharp.


here's a closer look:


test tubes with "potential energy pellets" for party favors:


colored potions ready for mixing:


every good scientist needs to eat!


gram created another fantastic and delicious cake! love the different sized bubbles!


a mad scientist raided the lab and labeled all the foods...





einstein cookies!


that mad scientist went crazy with the drinks, too!




as the scientists arrived, they created their own atoms with toothpicks and marshmallows.



some just ate marshmallows :)




i loved seeing what everyone created!


um, i guess somebody thought i said "adams".


i really hated to throw away gillian's awesome creation!!


once everybody arrived, dr. daddy began the experiments! it was nice to hand over the party reigns for a change! :) for the first experiment, we used baking soda and vinegar to inflate a balloon. an oldie but goodie!





i did step in every so often to help set up the next experiment. wow, it looks like we're mad at each other!! nope, just really focusing! ha!


the next experiment used milk, dish soap, and food coloring to create awesome swirls!




next came the screaming balloons. a hex nut inside a balloon makes a screeching noise when you spin it around!



did somebody say balloons and noise?!

the last experiment was pretty awesome. adding yeast and dish soap to super strong hydrogen peroxide creates a fountain of foam! it just keeps going and going!









my favorite part of the party was the colored drinks experiment!



these scientists were thirsty!


after the party, amelia told me she didn't get to mix any colors. look at her sad face in the above picture! :(





ethan and mackie were having a serious discussion about color theory.


i'm so thankful for friends like gretchen who love my little ones!


i only caught the tail end of the test tube filling... those kids were fast!


i was intending to snap some pictures of madelyn filling her test tubes with candy when i spied a impish grin in the background. hallie was surely up to no good.


she snuck the flask of lemon heads and was enjoying her secret treat.


who knows how many she had in her mouth!


glad i caught madelyn with her candy!


then it was time for cake! i love this birthday boy!


the obligatory family shot-- hallie is obviously still psyched about her lemonheads!


brian is sporting a little geeky star wars humor!


ethan was blessed to have his grandparents (and 1 of his great-grandmothers) there to celebrate him!




ethan was so excited to open each and every present. so thankful for a thankful kiddo. :)







our party guests took home their funnel, screaming balloon, test tube candy, and this little experiment book.


what a great group of scientists! ethan is blessed with such sweet, sweet friends! (and i love their mamas!) God has truly provided.


most everyone left, and there was still one experiment that we didn't do because we ran out of time. it happened to be the one that dr. daddy was looking forward to the most...so he whipped out the rocket balloons, and the fun continued!






and the fun just kept going and going and going....cake and kool-aid for breakfast the next morning! cue bill cosby... "mom is great! give us the chocolate cake!"






after breakfast, hallie concocted a little experiment of her own... kool-aid and chocolate cake. mmmmmm yummmo.




look. at. that. face.


ok jump in the time machine and fast forward a week or so to ethan's actual birthday, july 2. the sisters were ready to sing to the big 9 year old!




what a big grin from the birthday boy! he really does need to stop this growing up stuff.




i had ethan's presents all set up and ready to go the night before as usual. when i walked by the table the next morning, i noticed caroline's little purse sitting there beside his stack of presents. when i asked her about it, she smiled and told me that she was giving ethan $2 of her money for his birthday. i was so thankful for her willingness to part with her hard-earned chore money! her generosity blessed ethan as well.


a few little things for our history/music/star wars lover... no legos from us this year. it was very very strange, but all lego-appropriated funds went toward something else.



"a 1000 piece photo mosaic puzzle!? are y'all crazy?!" yeah, apparently we are nuts. this puzzle is nothing short of impossible.



and the big surprise was.... definitely a surprise!


a sweet friend at church gifted ethan with a kindle last year when she saw how much he loved to read. well, within 6 months, it was broken. he was devastated. he went several months without one, and i think he had pretty much given up on getting another one. another friend gave us a great deal on his kindle fire, and we hope the case we found does a better job than the last one! i loved surprising ethan with this gift!! he really couldn't believe his eyes!



as much as it breaks my heart to watch ethan grow up before my very eyes, it's such a joy to see him maturing in the Lord. he has a tall order ahead of him as the oldest brother to 3 sisters, and it just blesses me every day to be his momma! his jokes are getting funnier, and he is a huge help to me around the house. he loves doing anything and everything with his daddy, and i hope that never changes. happy birthday, ethan! we love you!!