July 4th, 2019

My silly girl wanted to start the morning with some plain potato chips. And since she doesn’t take “no” very well sometimes, we just went for it! She only ate a few though, before she was done.

We were out of milk, so Jeff got ready to head to Walgreens, and Emmie decided to go with him. It was early, and the boys were still asleep, so I got a few minutes all to myself.

The morning sunlight was so pretty.

We had scrambled egg sammies on toast for breakfast, and coffee in my new Laurel mug.

Jeff and the boys worked on getting the pool read again (we drain it every weekend), while I washed dishes, played with Emmie, and then hopped in the shower. Jeff got a shower, the boys got dressed, and then I made myself an iced coffee to-go.

Had my sweet Granddaddy not passed away in 2016, today would have been 83rd birthday. We always loved celebrating his birthday and July 4th together, and always had big family meals. We have still done that every year, and it’s always a special time together. We miss him so very much, especially on his birthday, but it’s good to be together with family on hard days like today. (This photo was from 2013, and it’s one of my favorites of him. He wore that shirt every year on July 4th for many years!)

So today, we all went over to Uncle Keith and Aunt Suzanne’s house for a big family lunch. We had so much fun all being together, and playing with triplet babies, and eating delicious ribs.

Uncle Keith and Ellie took a nap together.

Riley fell asleep, but Meggie did not.

I love my family so, so very much! 🇺🇲♥️

Once we got home, we out Emmie down for her nap right away, and the rest of us all had quiet time as well. Jeff napped, I read (and finished a book), while the boys half napped & half played on their phones.

And then when Emerson woke up, we all went outside to play! I got in the pool for a few minutes, then Jeff got the pressure washer set up and ready, and I took over pressure washing the back porch. You can see where he started just a little bit, and then my progress at the halfway point (where I dipped into the pool for a 10 minute break), and then at the end! And it looks so much better! Jeff washed the table last weekend, and I washed the chairs today. But now we still need to wash the umbrella, but getting the topside of it will prove very tricky!

We all got dried & dressed, and then had some snacks. I tested for a while, then made super simple, super American dinner, of hot dogs with mac & cheese. (Oh, and for some reason, Emerson felt the need to take her dress off & run around in her diaper, so we just let her eat like that too.)

After dinner, the boys & Jeff cleaned and vacuumed the living room, while I got Tater Tot ready for bed and out on her nightgown. We played for a little while longer before bed, and then we did our usual bedtime routine.

I am exhausted after such a big day. The boys weren’t interested in going out or doing fireworks tonight, which is A-OK for this tired, introverted Mama. I think we’ll probably start a movie in a few minutes, and you can bet I’ll fall asleep on the couch here pretty soon. Today was a great day!