Well folks, this is it, I am finally blogging about the 4th of JULY!
I always try to wake up early on the 4th
so I can see the amazing hot air balloons.
They rise quite early, and if I'm not careful I will sleep through them.
This time, I nailed it. I spotted ten.
We hustled to get the nine Joneson children fed, bathed, and
dressed so we could meet the family up the canyon for our annual bike ride.
No crashes or mishaps (well except for the occasional complaint
from the serious bikers dressed like Lance Armstrong who hate
kids and lots of slow bikes on the trail).
(Awesome gold headband from Bando)
(Lottie in her cute Flor de Luz top and freshly picked 'born in the USA' moccs)
After the bike ride we picked up my favorite lunch- Cafe Rio,
and headed to Pockas house
("Pocka" is grandpa in Lottie language).
The backyard was filled with children.
It was a perfect American gathering if I ever saw one.
Cokes, a slip-n-slide, plastic water toys, and sunscreen galore!
Then we celebrated Pocka (remember, that's my dad) 70th birthday.
Each of his children "roasted" him with a favorite
funny or serious or sweet story.
Of course I cried when I expressed my love for this amazing father of mine.
Back at Fox Hill, we listened to country music
(because nothing says American than country music)
while I roasted hot dogs (another USA favorite) Linds made
this amazing watermelon cake.
She also danced around the kitchen. (see below:)
Later that evening, more family came up to Fox Hill
(or Baghdad as I we call it, because
of the abundance of the rocks, dirt, sand and dust- and no landscaping).
Then when it got dark outside, I threw in the pool about 50 glow sticks.
It sure made for some pretty sweet swimming, I must say.
At one point I had to run inside to refill Pockas coke
(it was after all, his birthday)
and snapped a quick photo inside the dark house just as a huge set
of fireworks blasted out my window and in the stadium below.
The end.
This one was one of my favorite 4th of July's in history!
