4th of July Weekend

Catching up:
Fourth of July weekend was a fun-filled long weekend for the Bruns Girls! Hard to believe it was over two weeks ago already. A recap for those of you who didn't (and did) get to share it with us.

Housewarming:
Saturday morning found Libby and I surfing the web while we waited for it to heat up enough so we could go swimming. When we came across a picture of Channing helping unpack boxes at his new house, Libby excitedly proclaimed "Me go see Channin' der!"
And so, very much on a whim, we packed up in the car, made a quick stop for a housewarming gift, and headed south through the city for an impromptu visit. Like, we didn't even let them know we were coming. A bit out of my norm, but I knew the Flynn clan wouldn't mind too terribly.
The new house is big and gorgeous and red, as Holly is so proud to point out. We visited while Channing napped, then stuck around a little longer than planned so Libby could show Channing how to use his new hop scotch sprinkler. You know...the one I mentioned here. It's an excellent way to spend a hot July midafternoon...just ask these two kids.

Family BBQ:
One text message and a phone call later, we were headed up to Elk River for a little family time with the Elk River Bocks. The 'men' had gone tube fishing down the Mississippi River that morning, but not before Uncle Rick had thrown some ribs in the crock pot for a nice family BBQ. We enjoyed a nice little dinner out on the deck with entertainment courtesy of Libby. I like to think a good time was had by all, especially during the telling and retelling (and retelling) of Mark/Ted's near death experience on the river (fishermen have a way of making a simple story outrageously funny) and during our attempt to teach Libby how to roll down a hill. Apparently it isn't as simple as it looks. Libby never did quite figure it out, but she did enjoy watching everyone else show her how to do it: mama, Nicole, LoLo, Uncle Jonah, Andy, and Poppy. The best part of having a kid is their ability to turn you back into a kid. Libby even managed to talk Uncle Rick into a couple of rounds of Ring Around the Rosie. (That girl could charm a rock!)

Smores:
Despite the hill rolling, rosie ringing, tall tail telling, catching up with family fun we had up in Elk River the best part had to be teaching Libby how to make a real smore. Auntie LoLo took the lead (which is good because that girl is the ULTIMATE marshmallow roaster) and taught Libby the fine art of combining warm gooey marshmallows, chocolate, and graham crackers into heaven on Earth.

Lake Rebecca:
My goal for the weekend: spend some time at the lake. The beauty of living in Minneapolis is that there are so many nearby. Thanks to this website we found a new one and I'm betting we're going to be back.

It took an hour or two, but before you knew it we'd planned and packed a picnic lunch and our swimming toys, talked Grammy, Poppy, Andy, and Uncle Jonah into dropping their various projects for the day, and headed a little ways west to Lake Rebecca Park Reserve. And boy did we have fun!

We had a picnic...

We swam...

We tanned...

We played in the sand...

We pushed each other in the water...

Down goes Libby...

Down goes mama...

We got spa treatments...

Poppy getting a sand exfoliation treatment
courtesy of Libby.

We were goofy...

...like really goofy.

We went fishing...

....and caught our very first fish on our pink fishing rod! 

She looks a little scared of it, doesn't she?

Mama caught a fish too!

It was the biggest one of the day.

We explored the playground...

Way, way too much fun!

Fireworks:

Libby has always amazed me with her acceptance of fireworks. Her first 4th of July fireworks show was in St. Paul following a day at the Taste of Minnesota...she was entranced. Last year we "oohed" and "aahed" over them. This year she had a front row seat for the Red, White, and Boom fireworks show downtown with Grammy and Poppy since mama had to work. Despite her balcony view, I was told she sat inside, hidden under 'Blue' until they were over. They were "too noisy"...so noisy she wouldn't even look at them. Hmm...I wonder what happened there.

Wow...looking back I can't believe we crammed all of that goodness into one weekend. Amazing what you can do when you're having that much fun!

love always, Kendra