Another Fun 4th!

The 4th of July in our little tiny town is one of my favorite days of the year.  People come from miles around to walk around the flea market, enjoy the parade and watch the fireworks at the end of the day.  This year was a blast, as always, and it makes me so appreciative of this tight-knit community that we live in. 

One thing that was extra special this year was the benefit tag sale that a whole bunch of folks at Proctor organized to help raise money for my Dad and Gary (just as the breakfast and dinner had earlier this spring).  I can't even express how much the time, energy, hard work and generosity means to me and my family.  Both the Proctor community and the greater Andover community have just showered us with kindness over the last 3.5 months and it has truly lifted our spirits, given us hope and continually shown us how much we have to be thankful for during this very difficult time. They had a really successful day and we are just so thankful for this great community that we are so blessed to be a part of.  Here is the sign in front of the sale...

 There was a free jumpy house on the green this year.  The boys loved playing in it, of course.

 Barnyard Bingo is a staple on the 4th...

 Camden and Jordan had a blast watching the parade together.  They were so excited!

One float every year always has people dressed up in Revolutionary War costumes and they light a cannon and shoot it off - it is SO loud and they always manage to do it about three times near us.  Camden and Micah weren't big fans of that. 

 We wheeled my Dad across the street to watch the parade and he had a great time being outside and seeing all the excitement.

 Micah was a little scared.  I got some extra snuggles with him!

 Leapin' Lena!  Camden has been talking about seeing this car again for months now.  I remember seeing it when I was a child too.  We love Leapin' Lena!

 Camden and Jordan cheering on their friend Delaney who rode her horse in the parade!

 So loud!

 That evening we had a great cookout at my parents' house with the family.  My Dad was pretty comfortable in his big green chair until we had to rush inside when the thunder storm arrived!

 Camden and Micah love Emmaline.  She is my cousin's daughter.

 Micah was pretty excited about the day!  :)

 Story time with Ami before heading home for bed. 

 The boys fell asleep long before the fireworks began.  Camden had asked us if we could wake him up and Scott ran up to his room as soon as they began.  Camden crawled out of bed, took one look out the window and said, "That's nice, Daddy.  I think I'm going to go back to bed now."  He crawled back under the covers and miraculously fell back to sleep.  Scott and I stood in the middle of our little dead end road with our neighbor slapping bugs, hovering under umbrellas to avoid the drizzle and oooohhhing and agggghhhing at the beautiful fireworks that are set off just down the road from our house.

 Blurry - but they are so cute with their umbrellas!

 Thankful for another fun 4th!

Sisters and Brothers

We had such a great time last week when Brian and Sarah visited on Thursday and then Caren, Dave and Clara arrived for Thursday night - Sunday!  We had so much fun swimming in all the beautiful lakes around us, eating good food, and just being together as a family.


On Thursday we brought Brian and Sarah to Elbow Pond...one of my favorite places on earth.  The boys LOVE their Uncle Brian and Aunt Sarah and we feel so blessed to live just a couple of hours away and to be able to see them as often as we do! 

 Happy boy with his Daddy...

 Micah swimming with Aunt Sarah...

 When did he become such a big boy??

This is the same little boy who is terrified to participate in the swim lesson we signed him up for.  Apparently, he has no fear when he's jumping to his Daddy! 

Sisters.

Ice cream at the new/only ice cream place in town.  We now have a pizza shop and an ice cream store...we're turning into a metropolis! 

 That evening we headed down to my parents to say hi to them and to Caren and Dave who had just arrived and then Brian and Sarah headed back to Maine.  Here's Camden showing off his two-wheeler skills to his aunts and uncles.

 My Mom and Dad bought a balance bike as a (really) early birthday present for Micah!  He's pretty cute on it!

 Clara was happy to see her cousins!

 After we said goodbye to Brian and Sarah the rest of the group headed up the street past our house to Bradley for an evening swim.  We are so spoiled. 

 On Friday we went up to Elkins for a swim with the kids.  We brought my Dad and wheeled him out on the grass so he could watch his grandchildren play.  It was so great to have him there with all of us!

Daddy and his girls...

Camden and Clara were in their own little world all weekend.  They had a game going where they were looking on maps to find a secret key and running all over the place giggling and whispering to each other.  I don't think they had a moment of frustration with each other (which is a first)!  So cute! (thanks for the pic, Mom!)

 Caren took some pretty cute pictures using Instagram on her fancy iPhone.  I'm jealous of her awesome technology, but some of her pictures are too cute not to share!
Micah waiting for a little snack of blueberries after riding his bike!

  My cousin, Carmen, who just gave birth to that little baby in her belly (!!) used to babysit Clara so they have a special bond!  It was so great that she was able to stop by while we were all together.  And now Camden and Micah have a new little "cousin" as Connor is now a big brother to Lucey!  :)  Congratulations, Carmen and Jeremy!!!

 My Mom with her grandsons at Elbow...

 Caren, my Mom and I enjoyed a girls' night out and had a delicious dinner at PC's together (our favorite restaurant of all time).  We were laughing SOOO hard I was crying.  :)

 And then they were gone.  :(  The Swanson clan headed back to Durham, NC, but they'll be back for a week in August!  Can't wait!  We'll see Brian and Sarah later this week when we (or at least Scott) heads up to Portland to help them move into their beautiful new home they just bought!  So exciting!  I'm pretty lucky to have such a wonderful family!