Happy Fourth of July!

While Bella was at scout camp and Benjamin was in Chile, we celebrated a relaxed fourth of July.

Peter continued to practice riding his pedal bike - he's gotten so good!  Kelly worked on projects around the house, and Christian and I played board games.  Then we had our traditional BBQ and sparklers which absolutely thrilled Peter.  I love four year olds!  He was over the moon excited about juice with dinner and sparklers.  It made his whole day.

When I originally told him about the 4th of July and told him the story of English oppression and American revolution, he declared, "That's not as cool as Christmas."  So I explained how had it not been for the 4th of July, we wouldn't know all we know about Christ because Joseph Smith couldn't have done what he did under British rule and we might not be as free to worship Christ as we do.  He acquiesced a bit but remained unconvinced.  That's when I hit him with the "Well, do you know that on the 4th, we BBQ hotdogs, burgers, and ribs?  And do you know that I bought juice to go with it?  And do you further know that I also bought sparklers?!?"  That did it.  He could hardly contain his excitement.  All day long he asked when it was going to be time for sparklers.  They did not disappoint.

I'm going to blow this kid's mind when he's a little older and I buy actual fireworks.

Happy 18th Birthday, Benjamin!!

We have an adult son!! Crazy.  His birthday was quite relaxed and informal.  He didn't want anything special.  He requested brownies for his cake and he went to a party at the beach that evening.  Otherwise, he spent the time in the middle preparing for his trip to Chile.

His presents consisted almost entirely of things for his trip - a camera, a watch (because he won't have access to his phone), clothes, microfiber towels, etc.  We also gave him some money to buy fun things he'd like. 

Then the next day, he was off to Chile.  I accompanied him to his gate, just in case he had trouble.  But everything went smoothly and now he feels ready for his flight to the Mexico MTC in a couple months.  We're excited for his trip.  We hope he has a wonderful experience meeting and serving people in Chile.

His group is posting pictures to their instagram account so I get to see some updates.  He's got multiple layovers so naps are essential.  

The sights look amazing...and cold!

True to form, Benjamin finds the cat to cuddle.  He never liked our cat but he seems to love every other one he finds.