Independence Day!!!

So, this is one of my favorite holidays ever.  I just love holidays in general, and they are the best spent with Cory and Jaden! Fireworks were cancelled this year at Ft. Bragg due to sequestration, so we just had a good ol' family Fourth of July...and to me, it was perfect!

We woke up to Jaden saying "Mom, it's the 4th of Julyyyyy." He was so excited!  We have been doing a Unit Study for our Summer Homeschool, which included studying all about the 4th and other patriotic elements throughout this week.  And I was so surprised at how much he absorbed!  He remembered so much, and I was so proud of him.  He said, "Mom, can we just do Unit Studies instead of regular school?"  So, I guess I'll have to do more of these come next school year :).
Here is him by half of our Fourth of July Unit Study wall..I couldn't get it all in there, and he wanted to get his flag in there that he and Cory made.  So here it is!

And here was our breakfast!

We pretty much stayed home all day, just enjoying each other.  Jaden kept saying he didn't want to go anywhere, and well, that was okay with us!  Sometimes a day at home is needed :).

Cory and Jaden colored patriotic pictures and watched videos on YouTube of Bald Eagles (one of the things we learned about this week) and played with an American flag beach ball outside while I cooked some stuff up for dinner!  Oh and played with Max, too, of course!

After we cleaned up, we grabbed the fireworks that we bought and headed over to a friend's house, who was out of town, and we used their backyard for a little firework celebration!

Throwing smoke bombs!  He had fun with these...light, throw, run away, and repeat! :)

He is definitely our favorite little firecracker! He lights up our life, like nobody's business!

The big finale!

Taking a rest while Dad prepares to light 'er up!

What are fireworks without watching them on your Dad's shoulders?

Well, it sounded really cool!!  And I'm sure it would have looked a lot more spectacular if it were dark, but with it being Summer and Jaden having a fairly early bedtime, the daylight kind of sticks around a bit longer :). It was still so pretty (even though the camera couldn't capture it completely!), and I love the sounds and smell of fireworks on the 4th!

We had such a memorable day, and I am so grateful for my family, for the Church, for the men in my life (Dad and Cory) who have and do serve this absolutely incredible country, and for all of the freedoms and safety that we are so blessed to have here in the US.