What a fun weekend! I sure did have a good time…and let me show you why:
That’s my big brother Brad. That foxy lady next to him is Legs McCrackin…aka Tara (my gorgeous six foot tall sister in law). They came to visit my family for the fourth. Basically Brad is the funniest person I have ever met. I have literally spouted, slurped, and spewed food out of all sorts of holes because of this guy. He is a danger to orifices everywhere.
And his two kids, Braden (7) and Clara (3) are more awesome than TBS reruns (Can I get a round of applause for Friends and Sienfield please?) . First of all – these children only have one volume level. And it is not dull roar. Therefore nothing is boring. And secondly – they are both first borns. Don’t ask me me how that happened. Nobody has a clue. And lastly – they are huge. And I do not ever exagerate about hugeness.
Clara is only 3 but she is bigger than her cousin Cole (my sister’s almost five year old). No kidding. Huge. And she is uber-girly. She has mastered walking around in four inch heels, talks about her future wedding dress, and showed me her purse which has more sparkles and fur than a drag queen parade.
Of course, I whipped the children into submission for a quick photo op. You can tell that Cole constantly has a camera in his face…he totally mastered the ‘pensive glare’. He is still working on the ‘Blue Steel’…it is almost ready for it’s grand reveal 🙂
Clara makes me melt. I am a ball of goo in that three year old’s hands. Right next to the other ball of goo.
And what would Fourth of July be without gorging ourselves? I mean seriously…I elect independence from thinness please. Thank you George Washington.
The standard – deviled eggs. I made 36. They were gone.
My sister was a genius pulling out this watermelon-lemonade fountain…yum! And don’t judge us for the meat. We like it. Alot. Sure there were only 8 adults and 3 children eating…but if we ran out of food, the world would surely stop spinning on it’s axis. Calamity would ensue.
And my mom made these fun veggie-bobs. The funny flag cake was the kid’s doing. I love the grapes instead of blueberries…that’s why it’s funny. Not pictured is enough food to feed a small army.
We wrapped up the night with sparklers. No fireworks here. The big boom scares the kiddos. Which is crazy because they are much louder than the fireworks ever could be. But I was fine with it.
In the end, it was such a fun weekend…not too much, not too little. Perfect. Perfect being with family. Perfect being with kids. Perfect being free. I am so thankful for that. Just think, if we were in China, Clara wouldn’t be here. How sad! And how crazy would it be if the freedom of speech didn’t exist…no blog post…poof!
Sure, my family is loud and we tend to overeat and spend money on frivilous things like sparklers…but let me tell ya, I could never be more proud to be called an American. We have the freedom to celebrate our freedom. We have strong soldiers to protect us. We have great teachers in our schools and doctors in our hospitals. And we have the freedom to steal a sparkler out of a child’s hand to draw your last name in the sky. God Bless America.
OK…HOW did you write with the sparklers?? That’s AWESOME!
Looks like a fun time was had by all. And look at you, miss sassy adorable!
ahh!! your 4th looks like a great time!
HOW did you do that last pic of “BOWER” in sparklers? THAT’S SO COOL!
Oh you guys – I will have to do a whole post on sparkler writing! It was soooo super fun. I think that the adults were having WAY too much fun with that 🙂
XO – Katie
Your pictures are so fabulous and the layout of them makes me want to switch to wordpress. Fabulous. Just like you.
Oh.my.awesomeness. That sparkler-show is fabulous!
And amen. So grateful for this wonderful country and the freedom we enjoy!
I love your pictures. They are gorgeous. And your name in sparklers. wow. I have only made circles.
watermelon lemonade fountain?? oh please do tell more!!
Put me down for needing to know more about this sparkler business…I’ve got about 6 leftover boxes and will happily re-do the 4th next weekend if I can master your techniques…
These pics are gorgeous, darn it why are you so good at everything!!
Mandy – more to come, I promise 🙂
XO – Katie
Awww how fun! You had me at deviled eggs. I could make a meal out of those. If you ever need an honorary Bower Power family member, have your people call my people.
First of all-woot woot for Friends! (sorry, never been a fan of Seinfield) Secondly, I can’t wait to try the sparkler picture! When you are done with your name, could you just hide the sparkler behind your back until the picture is done? Lastly, you are a very good photographer! What kind of camera do you use? I especially like the pic of Clara with the sun peeking through the trees!
Thanks Karen. And funny you should say that about Seinfield…it wasn’t love at first sight for me either. But now I can’t get enough of reruns 🙂 Beware of moving the sparkler at all after you finish the spelling…the camera will pick up each and every little movement of light. And you might catch your clothes on fire. It is better in my book to just adjust the shutter speed to the right setting and when you are finished, you could always do a low underline like I did with ‘Bower’…really it is up to you though. Experiment to find the best personal fit 🙂
As for my camera, I use a Canon Rebel XSi…no special shmancy lenses yet but maybe one day 🙂
XO – Katie
Please tell how to make a watermelon fountain?
Your pictures are amazing and I absolutely love your blog!! What kind of camera do you use and where did you get your photography skills?
haha, okay, disregard comment about camera. Didn’t read the rest of the comments:-) But do you typically use manual or automatic? Seriously, your pictures are amazing, especially of the kids. Can you do a photography blog of how to capture kids and what settings? Especially inside pictures?
Nice work! great blog