Independence in Provo

I've become a firm believer that there is no better place to celebrate the Fourth of July than in Provo, Utah. It's about as patriotic as they come! (Well D.C. is pretty cool too. Paul and I met there just a week and a half before the Fourth of July, and by that fateful night, I already knew that he was the one. I remember laying out on the steps of the Jefferson Memorial, and boldly resting my head on his shoulder so I could watch the fireworks more comfortably. :) Luckily I didn't scare him off!) 

To kick the day off, we met up with my brother, Nathan for the early morning hot air balloons. Incidentally, this was probably the only day of the trip the kids wanted to sleep in past 6:30. But we dragged them out of bed anyways, and chased this "pink" one down.

 It was a beautiful morning, with the sun just beginning to peek over Squaw Peak. 

 The man driving this balloon was kind enough to let the kids all hop in, and since there was a small enough crowd around it, Benjamin and Peter were among the first in line. Nora was a little spooked by the flame to come too close.

 It was fun to see my brother, and we had a great time catching up. Not pictured is the parade that we also went to together right afterwards. Paul's Mom had staked out a nice big spot for us, which was perfect for watching all the floats and bands and balloons go by. We said goodbye to Nathan so he could get to our Dad's quartet performance up near Salt Lake.

 

The day heated up quickly, and so we eventually gave up our parade spot to come back to Grandma's for the afternoon. We all got swimming suits on, and played in the back yard...

...and made our way down to the river back there for what has become known as the "Annual River Run."

 Josephine was really brave, riding downstream with her dad.

 And Adrian was too, although I thought this picture of him was hilarious. It looks like Anne is torturing him. He really did love it. :)

Peter riding down with Paul. 

 

 And Benjamin having his turn.

It was pretty cold water, but it really wasn't so bad once I got in. I had to ride down twice, just because.

 Nora was not having any of it. She wanted to be attached to me at all times, unless I was getting wet.

 The River Run commenced in a silly string fight.

And some more swinging. Don't Josephine and Nora look perfectly patriotic together? We had Cafe Rio for dinner, which is on my list of must-eats while we're in Utah. So good!

Once the two youngest were down for the night, the rest of us had our own little firework show. Paul's parents had gone to the Stadium of Fire to watch the Beach Boys.

 Peter was mesmerized by the sparklers this year. He was having fun casting Harry Potter spells on everyone. Later that night, Paul took the boys over to watch the Stadium of Fire fireworks from a distance, thus avoiding traffic and crowds. They watched for a few minutes, then wanted to go to bed. It was a long, but fun-filled day!