Happy 4th!

We had a busy day of celebrations on the 4th. We started with a family breakfast, then a family lunch BBQ with swimming, went home for naps, and ended with a fun dinner & fireworks with our friends.

In the afternoon, Emme got to ride her first four-wheeler around the block with Chris. She looks terrified in this picture, but she really had a good time. And Chris drove slowly and carefully.


We spent the evening with our friends the Schanz's, whose little 7 month old baby was diagnosed with a rare form of Leukemia a few months ago. He's in between rounds of chemo so he got to come home for the week, and was even able to watch some of the party from the garage before he went to bed. They have to keep their house extra, extra germ-free so we partied on the driveway with pizza and food and then lit fireworks in the street. We decided the 4th of July really is a redneck Holiday anyway. :)

Before it got dark, a couple of my young women came over and played with Sawyer and Emme, who couldn't part with that four-wheeler. These girls are my go-to babysitters because they're so great with kids!


Once it got dark, we got all decked out with glow bracelets and necklaces, which Emme absolutely loved. She was running around with three bracelets on each wrist, holding her arms (from the elbows up) up in the air so they wouldn't fall off. It was hilarious. All you could see of the kids were little glowing orbs running around the yard.

When the fireworks started, Emme had to have whatever Sawyer had -- so she insisted she sit on Sadie's lap too. Those two are like an old married couple, I tell ya!


Thank you Schanz's, for such a fun evening! When Chris and I got home that night we decided it felt like old times, when we used to be able to walk down and hang out with Sadie and Nathan any time we felt like it. It's harder these days because they are facing such a huge challenge right now with Graham's cancer. Sadie lives at the hospital with him full time and Nathan takes care of Sawyer and keeps the home running. When Sadie does get to be home, it's important for them to have good family time, which they see so little of these days.

So if you've got extra room in your prayers, please remember baby Graham. He's fighting so hard for his life. We pray for you every day, little Graham! We love you, Schanz's!