4th of July

Like my sister-in-law Marcy, I too held high hopes for the week-end. How many times do we get an awesome true 3 days to celebrate? It didn't quite turn out like I had planned, but we made our own fun.
First it was off to our Ward's Annual Pancake Breakfast. This is a really fun event held in the beautiful back-yard of one of our neighbors. It is a nice chance to chat and let your kid run wild on someone else's property. Afterwards, the kids all participate in the Big "it's a parade, not a race" bike parade. We rode one year on our Harley (which we no longer have, sob). Lonny was helping to clean up after the breakfast so I was going to walk along side Connor in the big parade. It was one of the first times we got Connor back on his big boy bike after he tipped over one day. I figured he would want to go pretty slow, with me holding the handle bars, which is how we practiced in the driveway.
Lining up for the Big Parade:

And he's off!
Unfortunately he took off really fast and I could not keep up. I could only watch helplessly as....
Suddenly, disaster struck:
Connor got his first real skinned knee (I know what you are thinking....his FIRST skinned knee? At age 4? Yes, it's true. Heretofor, he has been, THE BOY IN THE PLASTIC BUBBLE - and I have liked it that way just fine). Although we were afraid an amputation would be in order, he was able to keep his leg, be carried to the end of the race by Brother Marlor and have a popsicle. And his owie is pretty much all better. Say it with me now kids "It's a parade, not a race!" In all honesty, I don't know who cried harder, Connor or his mom, once the shock wore off.
Of course, we had a BBQ. Here's the king with his fancy schmany BBQ set he got for Father's Day from Williams Sonoma. I am afraid he thinks it's too Nancy, but I don't care:


Backyard Fireworks show:


What's the 4th of July without a little hammock time (even though it was COLD!)

Connor subscribes to the safety first rule of fireworks and hoses down the area:

We decided to take Connor to his first movie theater movie, Toy Story 3. He decided he wanted to dress like Woody:

He did so great, he was just adorable and we are super proud of him for making it through the whole movie (though like any good cowboy, he covered his face with his hat during the scary parts) All in all, it was great to spend time with just the 3 of us. Life is what happens when you are busy making plans, after all! I love my guys and had a great time being with them and thinking about how grateful I am for them and live here in such a beautiful place in the most awesome country in the world!