4th of July

For the 4th of July we had a fun picnic at the church (that I took no pictures of) and then a barbecue at the Maughan's house that evening.  It was a gorgeous day and we had a fun time celebrating our great nation's independence surrounded by so many wonderful friends.

 Dan and Scarlett Stone and Ava

 Halle Nye had just caught a firefly and was so excited!

 KaSandra Hope helping Grace Bednar with her sparkler

 Drew is a pyro.  That's a given.  So it goes without saying that he LOVES fireworks.  He was totally in his element and had a great time lighting off many a flaming spectacle.  

 Ava wasn't quite sure what to think of all the fireworks, but as you can see from this picture, she couldn't take her eyes off of them!

 Bradford Olivier, Scarlett Stone, Grace Bednar and Liam Noonan all lined up watching the show

The Hope family with Grace Bednar and Ava

As cheesy as it sounds, every 4th of July I am reminded of how wonderful our nation really is.  We are free to go about our lives any way that we want to with more freedom than most.  I am grateful for the chance to enjoy this beautiful country every day and hope that I can somehow contribute to making it an even greater place for future generations.