5 Reasons I Love the 4th of July

Hi Everyone!
It's Kate here for our first post. It's also the week of the 4th of July.

Emma and Bailey are out here visiting for the weekend, and so is the rest of their family. For the Fourth of July barbeque we made Red Velvet Fudge (recipe from the fantastic blog Vittles and Bits), Red Velvet Cupcakes from a mix (are you sensing a theme here?), sugar cookies (to be topped with strawberries and blueberries later), my dad smoked some pork ribs and made his infamous baked beans (maybe someday I'll do a tutorial!). We also had watermelon, chips, corn on the cob, and lots of other delicious sides made by other relatives and friends.

By the time this barbeque was full swing, we had sixteen kids- seventeen if you count the Emma and Bailey's little brother due in November- ranging from 2-3 months to 16 years old.

On the agenda for the party we had a water balloon war- because with 14, 11, and 4 year old boys, it won't just be a fight- a sprinkler, a kiddie pool, a homemade life-sized board game (designed by Julia). And, of course, fireworks, sparklers, and pop-its to end a long, fun night.

So here's 5 reasons I love the 4th of July.

 1. Everyone matches!
A shallow reason at best, but it's always so fun to see everyone matching and competing to see who is THE MOST patriotic and decked out person at the party. When I was young- probably between 6 and 9 years old- I would dress is red, white, and blue for the whole week of the 4th.  But the crème de la crème of my outfits would be saved for the real event.

 2. Parades
The neighborhood parade was the perfect beginning to the 4th as a kid.
I would get up, have a good breakfast- usually coffee cake made by my dad- and once everyone was ready, we'd go outside and decorate our bikes with streamers, balloons, stars, and sometimes glitter. And then we'd head off to 'Town Center' and meet up with most of the families in the neighborhood to follow slowly behind a fire truck for a few block circuit in a parade.  Afterwards, the fire truck would shoot water out the hose for us to play in, and there'd be free face painting, a park to play at, once or twice there was a petting zoo, and a concessions stand. Finally, around lunch time, the party would wind down and my family would go home to prepare for the barbeque in a few hours.

3. Parties and barbeques.
The music, the food, the 30 neighborhood kids, the water fights, the games, the mosquito bites, and the fireworks. It was- and still is- the life.
The 4th of July barbeque was always the highlight of my summer when I was younger. Ever single one of my friends would show up- I'd estimate anywhere between 15 and 40 kids would be running wild in our backyard and sometimes the yards around it. From afternoon until it was pitch black outside we'd play game upon game upon game. Sometimes they would be games of our own invention, and we had what seemed like endless fun


4. The Food
Everything from hotdogs to hamburgers, to chili, to fruit, to deserts.
My dad makes his infamous baked beans maybe 6 times a year, and they are fantastic- definitely one of my favorite parts of the 4th. I also look forward to stuffing my face with too many chips and deserts, and hoping that my occasionally sensitive stomach would be able to handle it. Oh food, glorious food.

5. The Fireworks
They always seem to put me in a Disney mood. :)
There was, and still is, something magical about fireworks- something that makes you afraid to blink because you might miss something awesome.
When I was younger, a few of the dads would get fireworks and set them off- and all of the kids would sit on the porch railings and laugh as the dads scrambled away from the fireworks before they went off. One year, just as we ran out of fireworks, a stranger pulled over in front of our house and asked if we wanted some free fireworks. Our answer was yes, of course, and that man was forever dubbed the 'fireworks angel'. We still bring him up from time to time and laugh.

The Fourth of July is the highlight of every child's summer, and I, for one, will cherish them always.

What is your favorite thing about the 4th? Let us know in the comments!


Kate <3