Our 4th

Our fourth of July was full of sun, family, and food, just the way it should be.  Connor and Alaina are constantly asking for ways to make money, but since they get bored with chores quickly and I'm not about to shell out dough for a job that's half-heartedly done, we've been at a stalemate.  They asked to do a lemonade stand, but since our neighborhood is so quiet, I didn't think it would be very profitable.  We knew we were going to the lake on the fourth, so we brainstormed and came up with selling Capri Suns (on sale and more logical since they're in a closed container).  We made a sign, and I told the kids to take it across the street to see if I could read it.  As soon as they ran out, a neighbor pulled up and wanted four!  We told him we didn't have any cold ones, and that we were just practicing, but he insisted on pre-paying.  C&A were elated with their newfound riches!




The next day, at the beach, I wasn't going to push it on them, and just let them play in the sand if that's the way they wanted to enjoy their holiday.  Alaina wanted to make some money, though, and she was so excited when I agreed to set up shop with her.  Unfortunately, we were shut down almost immediately by a teenage Parks and Rec worker, saying that,  "We have vendors who pay a lot of money to be here!"  I wanted to tell her that I wasn't trying to make any money, just teach my kids a life-lesson, but I guess playing by the rules is a life-lesson, too.  We did manage to sell 5 under the table, though.  Life-lesson #3: The Man can only keep you down so long.




Colorado is a beautiful state, but I don't remember it EVER being windy like this in Castle Rock or Aurora!  I had to snap a pic of this umbrella, because it's so indicative of the weather.  Like Utah, though, wait 20 minutes and it'll change!




We've been to this lake multiple times, and never have we experienced an algae bloom!  It grossed me out so much that I couldn't even put my toes in the water.  When I got too hot, I'd just go shower off in the bathroom!




Happily, though they were hesitant to swim in the water (who can blame them?), the kids were entertained mostly by the sand.




We headed back home in the evening, showered off whatever nasty organisms we had picked up at the lake, and then went over to Ryan's for a barbeque.  We introduced the children to Pop-Its, and since they were a little startled at first, I couldn't resist documenting these faces as they threw them!










Then Ryan lit the first round of firecrackers, and the true blend of fear/excitement of fireworks was revealed.




Snakes!  The girls loved them, Connor was extremely perturbed that I wouldn't hand over the lighter (you'll see who won that battle by the end of this post).




Stink bombs!




We decided to ditch our plans of seeing the big fireworks at City Park, and instead opted to spend the evening lighting off flowers, fountains, and sparklers.  These are the moments that make parenting fun!  A face like this makes all of the effort worth it.




Much like ink-blot tests, sparkler trails can tell you a lot about a person's mind. :)
Alaina:




Connor:




In his constant quest for control, Connor figured out that he could light the fireworks by using his sparkler as a punk.  He was skilled and responsible, so we let him get his kicks.  His energy wained and he enjoyed watching the end of the show, while Alaina, the adrenaline junkie, handed me fireworks one-by-one until they were all gone.