it's independence day!

Ever since our departure from the Midwest, we've made the pilgrimage back to Minnesota to spend the week of July 4th with my parents. Every year it is a lot of fun, but I think with Little Miss J being a bit older this year has been the best so far. Little Miss J had so much fun swimming, playing with cousins, and getting spoiled by Grandma and Papa.

One of the highlights was the 4th of July festivities in good old Tower, Minnesota. The population of this town seems to more than triple on this holiday. Folks line their chairs up along the Main Street the night before to claim their parade watching spot. For the past several years, Grandma Amy has put together either kiddie floats for the little ones or bigger floats for the entire family that require participation from the whole family. This year was no exception, and our Little Miss J's float won "Simply the Best" for the kiddie parade. I had to ask Gus if it was because it was really the best float or if Little Miss J was just the cutest kid, but he said it really was the best looking float. I am certain, however, that the little cutie dressed in a sailor costume didn't hurt the cause any.

By the time the actual parade rolled around, Little Miss J was tired of the hat and didn't want to walk. Gus pushed her in the stroller and she painstakingly threw out one piece of candy about every three feet as she went down Main Street. Dave was relegated to pulling the wagon.

With the invaluable help of her big cousin, Lilly, and a few other nice strangers, Little Miss J collected a bag full of candy. Thankfully, since then she hasn't even asked about the parade candy so Gus and I have been eating our way through it.

After the parade, it was time for the sawdust scramble, which for those of you that have never experienced one - it's a big pile of sawdust that they hide coins in and the kids dig for money. My boss looked at me funny when I explained it to him this morning, and Gus had never heard of it until he met me so perhaps it's a Minnesota thing. This is the first year Little Miss J has been awake and friendly enough to participate. Of course, being the little princess that she is, she wasn't all that interested in getting messy.

She also participated in the races for the first time, running with the 2 and 3 year olds.

Then we headed back to the lake for a much needed swim!

Papa Roger had gone back several hours earlier to start prepping his annual fireworks display. Little Miss J didn't really like the loud noise this year. She preferred the ones that stayed on the ground.

someone couldn't wait until dark

 

 

Happy 4th of July from the Chunglunds!