Happy Independence Day!

I am so grateful for this great country that we live in and for the many freedoms that we enjoy. I remember having these same feelings as a child too. I'm not sure when Aaron's love for our country began, but I know that it must have started early too because he has an enormous amount of American pride and always says his favorite colors are red, white, and blue. So to celebrate one of our favorite holidays, we had some friends and family (the Andrews, the Odells, and Amy and Jaime) over for hot dogs and homemade ice cream tonight. We had a great time visiting while the kids played--except for Sarah. She spent most of her time holding Jackson instead of playing with the kids. I think she thinks he is her baby. Ever since the Andrews were over two weeks ago when she held him and got him to sleep that night, she asks everyday if we can get the Andrews over so she can "hold the tired little baby."

The highlight of the evening was when Aaron lit some firecrackers just as one of Sulphur's finest drove past our house. He immediately stopped, backed up, and pulled into our yard. Kristie had just asked Aaron if we could do fireworks because we are in the city limits. His response, "Of course, we can! We're American!" The policeman looked very upset as he got out of his car and I have to admit I was a little worried. Sarah (this was one of the few times she had handed Jackson off to me so she could hold a sparkler) immediately ran over to Aunt Amy and buried her head in her shoulder. Aaron went over and shook his hand and asked how much trouble he was in. He told him he wasn't in trouble, but the noise had frightened him and he politely reminded Aaron that we ARE NOT supposed to set off fireworks in the city limits. He did unofficially, of course, tell him it was okay to do sparklers. So that was what the kids did for the rest of the evening, along with some of the snaps that you throw on the ground. It was a fun night, despite the police drama.

Check out our All-American Beauties! I made their hairbows this week. Don't look too close though, because it was my first attempt at bows, so they have several flaws, but hopefully I'll get better with the next attempt.