4th of July

We got back in town just in time to celebrate the 4th of July.  We had a nice slow start to the morning and then rode our bikes to our friends' house for a little BBQ.

3 boys!

Our beautiful hosts!  LOVE these ladies!

From there, we walked to the Downers Grove parade.

Now that we're moving, I steal every opportunity to snag a picture with dear friends like Sara!

The parade was significantly less HOT than the last couple years.  And the police and fire sirens didn't seem to last quite as long. 

And man, were those Soelbergs were prepared.  Everything from chairs...

 to tents...to water bottles and wagon to pull it all in.  They were on top of it.  Joe even hurried over early in the morning to save a great spot! 

  Everything was awesome, until a policeman scolded me for allowing my littlest to get "dangerously close" to the parade.  He's a hard one to keep under control, that's for sure!  But he's so darn cute!

 Afterward we headed back for a festive piñata -- wait, this is America we're celebrating, right?!  Not sure how this tradition got started...Sara?

 The kids had a blast!  I LOVE Wesley's face in this one!

 I love everyone else's face in this one -- Dillon must have had a great hit!

 After the piñata had exploded, Aaron found a variety of unusual uses for it.

 We biked home and had mandatory naps while Aaron and I tried to get a little packing done.  Then off to Ty Warner to see the fireworks.

 I LOVE SUMMER NIGHTS!!!!!!!!

 And I love that our ward always gets together for the fireworks.  I'm not sure who started the tradition, but it stuck and we love it!  We had quite the turnout.

 At last it was time for the show.  I LOVE fireworks.  I really do feel patriotic as I watch them.  There's just nothing like sitting out on the grass in the perfect weather watching the sky.  It's even better when I have all 4 of my boys with me - this was a first.  Caleb has always been home asleep for fireworks, but we finally decided to keep him up for the excitement.

I love how much my husband loves fireworks.  He seriously turns into a little kid and giggles when the loud ones go off.  I love it!  And I love him!  A lot!  Lots to be grateful for.  It was a wonderful Independence Day!