America the Beautiful

In an attempt to catch up on my blogging, I'm finally posting pictures from the Fourth.
I'm not a fan of this hand-held photo taking because it just makes my face look huge. Either way, I've got some skills considering this was the only attempt, and I caught Brady smiling. I don't know what expression you'd call that on Cory's face.
These waffles with berry sauce could easily become a Fourth of July breakfast tradition. Unless we go to the local fireman's breakfast. Otherwise, these are not only tasty but also patriotic in color.

As promised, here are Megan and Brady enjoying growling at each other. They seem to have their own little language.

We started the day at the Roseville parade, which has a small-town feel, and they throw candy and pass out water bottles. The weather was perfect with a nice breeze. Next we stopped at the nearby park to check out the booths. We decided to save ourselves the $4 they were charging for a hotdog, and went home for lunch. During Brady's nap I made two cookie recipes - Oatmeal S'more Cookies and Lemon Shortbread Cookies. I prefer the S'mores but I was craving lemon at the time. We went to Joel's and Melanie's for dinner and headed to the Roseville fairgrounds from there. The kids had fun playing on the toys and grass at the neighboring elementary school. Other than the ten minutes it took me to find an acceptable place to dispose of a diaper, it was a great night with an impressive fireworks display. Since Cory lovingly posted that video of me singing, I couldn't get "You're a Grand Ole Flag" out of my head. I quietly sang it to Brady as he calmly watched the fireworks. I am thankful to have a day dedicated to honoring and appreciating our freedom.

Melanie bought the kids their own glow sticks, which they all loved. In fact, it was the glow stick that managed to keep Brady awake on the 15-minute ride home. Even after he was fast asleep in his crib, he still had that glow stick clutched in his little fist.