The 4th

For the 4th, we found ourselves in Underwood, IA.  A quaint little town about 20 min. from here.  They had a fun little parade and fireworks show that we enjoyed.  We were looking for somewhere small and we found the perfect place.  We parked our seats in the perfect spot.  A little sun at the beginning of the parade, but in full shade the rest of the time.  Karen and her boys even joined us for the fun parade.  

Before the parade, one of their clubs came out handing out water.  It was dang hot!

The parade was filled with big rigs, tractors, and tow trucks.  Dex was in heaven!

A storm trooper was also there.  Whomever was in there had to be drenched in sweat.  It was hot!

Ash and JJ

JJ and I

Me and my kiddlets

Some tractors

Dex made out like a bandit with a bag full of goodies.  Otter pops, candy, lots of beef jerky.  It took a little bit of coaxing and convincing but, he finally got the hang of running for candy.  To the left of us though, we had quite the tough crew of mothers.  It was hard to beat them to it!

After the parade, we headed home and got lunch and let the kiddos nap/play while we made food.  For dinner we headed over to our friends, the Nordbys for a bbq.  It was fun to be at a house with a backyard and a sprinkler.  The kids had fun playing in the water.  

JJ loved the clover flowers and the sprinkler

After the other family left, we hung out a little bit longer.  Dex finally began to enjoy the sprinkler, too.

For the fireworks show, we made our way back to Underwood and sat in the middle school parking lot.  Both kids were sound asleep and I tried to wake Dex, and when I aroused him, he said he didn't want to see them and fell back asleep.

sleeping kids

At the first loud bang, JJ woke up for a few minutes.  She did pretty well with the fireworks.  She stayed up for maybe 10 minutes and then fell back asleep

Ash took pictures of the fireworks with his Dad's camera.  Some turned out really well.  He enjoys doing photography, and hasn't done it for a long time.  I think he really enjoyed himself.

We had  a great 4th, with a minor mishap involving Dexter, my foundation makeup, my makeup brush, JJ's bows and the bathroom wall.  Ya, not a pretty site/combination.