It was a long, fun day for us! While we were on our adventure with my mom yesterday, she mentioned that she had always wanted to take the kids to the local 4th of July parade. I immediately agreed to go - if something that simple makes my mama happy, by golly, I will do it!
So this morning we decked our kids out in their best red, white, and blue (or rather, scrambled to find something for them to wear in those colors) and headed to the parade route.
Daisy wore a two-sizes-too-small tank top and a pair of Caleb's outgrown shorts. She loved her outfit. I loved the pigtails.
This handsome boy was delighted that his old American flag muscle shirt still fit.
Oh my goodness. Don't the pigtails kill you? And the glasses? I'm dying. It's too funny and cute!
Eli didn't care what he wore. He's cool like that.
We got there early, so we had plenty of time to get situated before the parade arrived. We were just across the street from my friend Jill and her family, so we had a little time to visit with her.
Finally, the parade! I love how Lily is snuggled close to my mom. She sure loves her Grandma!
These two were totally stoked about the prospect of candy. See Max in the background? He didn't really care so much.
Almost parade time!
The kids were quite impressed by the motorcycle police officer who cleared the road as the parade approached.
But the noise of the motorcycle and firetruck sirens was too much for Eli, so I popped him in the ring sling.
Emily and her family were there, too, and Mom was so happy to have all of her lovies in one place. Isn't Jace's shirt awesome?
I think Lily was a little overwhelmed by the parade; she spent a lot of time snuggling people. (And pilfering candy. Girl is sneaky.)
During a pause in the parade, I tried to take a picture of Mom with all of her grandbabies.
I snapped this one as I was checking my settings, and I love the way she is smiling at Max. She clearly loves being with all of the little ones, and she was so happy to have them all in one place!
Chaotic but happy. That pretty well sums it up!
After the parade, we headed home for lunch and naps all around. After I got Eli down, I snuck out of the room to find this:
They were sound asleep.
I sighed at the sweetness of it, snapped a picture, and then tiptoed back to crawl into bed with Eli for a nap of my own.
After naps, we headed to our friends Jessica and Travis' house for their annual fireworks-watching party. They live right by the river, in a prime position for watching fireworks. Last year, we left at 8:30, before the fireworks began, and watched them from the car on the way home. This year, we decided to stick it out and see how the kids did.
Travis and Jessica had delicious fried chicken, and our kids wouldn't eat it. They are so weird. But our little friend Cadence thinks they're pretty cool kids, so that's something.
Travis and Jessica host our church community group, and in the past six months, our group of six families has welcomed four babies. Three of them were due in mid-March, but Eli decided to break things up a bit. This was the first time all four babies were together in one place, so we had to take a picture.
They are arranged in birth order: Eli, Campbell, Winston, and Margot. Happy first Independence Day, babies!
Then, it was time for the annual Kids-on-the-Front-Steps picture.
Look at all those babies! Do you remember last year?
Caleb and Daisy were totally kissing in the back row. Awkward. At least they didn't do that this year!
Just for fun, here's a rundown of previous Fourth of Julys:
And here's the reality of our sweet family in 2015. Definitely not perfect, and not always cheerful, but full of love!
We made it through the evening, all the way to the fireworks. Caleb was so brave, and he didn't mind the noise at all. Daisy borrowed a pair of shooting range headphones to dull the noise, and Lily watched the show from the Ergo on Chris' back. And Eli?
It's blurry, but this was after the fireworks were over. Kid slept the whole time, wrapped securely on my chest. It was lovely.
The traffic heading home was not lovely, and Eli screamed for thirty solid minutes while we sat, idling, in gridlock. As soon as we started moving, he was happy. Poor baby. I felt the same way. But the big kids were sound asleep, and all in all, it was a great day.
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