The Fourth in Review...

Our fourth of July was chock full of fun!

The post's fourth of July celebration is pretty spectacular. There's a carnival with rides and games for little kids, there's a concert, and another concert. The day caps off with a fireworks display that is the largest on the island. And best of all -- this happens just blocks from our house. Far enough that we don't get much traffic or noise, but certainly close enough to walk! So, after morning naps, we walked over to the carnival, thankful for our house on post.

Kathleen was just old enough for some of the kiddie attractions. She loved the rides and the games run by family readiness groups. She certainly loved the little prizes! She's been carrying an inflatable princess wand around since then. The much-loved and very messy candy bracelet didn't survive that long...

Anyway, Kathleen truly enjoyed the carnival. She slid.

She dug.

She threw.

She rode.

As is often the case, Madeline didn't get to do any of that fun stuff. She did look awfully cute as she watched, though!

After all that fun, we headed home for afternoon naps, a bit of a swim for Kathleen, and then dinner. We missed the big musical guest (Billy Ray Cyrus -- rumor has it they were hoping for the daughter, but settled for the dad), but made it in time to take a couple turns at the carnival's fun before camping out on the field with church friends to listen to the 1812 Overture and wait for the fireworks.

The fireworks were amazing. I don't have any photos of them or of the girls, for that matter. Our camera isn't great in the dark. But the show was spectacular. And the girls loved it. Kathleen sat snuggled in her daddy's lap, mesmerized by the display. And Madeline was just as enchanted. She kept reaching out, as if she could grab the fireworks right from the sky! And when it was all over, we walked our exhausted girls home to bed.

It was a full and happy fourth!