Happy Fourth...

Zoe all dressed in her red, white and blue

It was fun being back in the States to celebrate the Fourth of July. In the morning we went over to Granny and Grandpas for their neighborhoods annual trike and bike parade. Charlie has fond memories of participating in this event and enjoyed every minute of getting Charles and Aniela ready for it.The kids got to choose a theme that they would be judged on. Aniela chose the "prettiest" theme and was a patriotic princess. Charles we decided to put in the "coolest" category and he played the role of patriotic punk. We even decided to mohawk his hair, and with his build, he looks even more like a bruit now. The kids ended up winning trophies for all their efforts. Charles got first place and Aniela second. Charlie and I got a laugh that our little Canadian ended up winning first.

After the judging the kids got to follow a firetruck through the neighborhood to show off their bikes and costumes. At the end of the parade, everyone gathered for hot dogs, cookies, chips and refreshments. And just when we thought the party was over the firetruck hooked up it's hose and blasted a stream of water up over the trees and onto the street. Aniela absolutely loved running through the water. Charles on the other hand didn't want anything to do with it. With the heat that day I was about to jump in and join but had to nurse the baby...maybe next year! Thanks Granny and Grandpa for helping us out and inviting us to your neighborhood event.

Patriotic Punk

Patriotic princess

Charles had so much fun and loved his hair

The parade through the neighborhood

Everyone is a winner

Blast from the past for Granny and Grandpa

Enjoying our lunch

Time to cool off

Aniela loved it!

After a bit of a break in the afternoon we packed ourselves up and headed over to Babcia and Dziadek's house for dinner and pre-downtown fireworks. Charlie is such a kid when it comes to lighting up things that explode...albeit a responsible kid! Aniela, Charles and cousins Tomasz and Szymon had fun watching all the various poppers and fireworks. Then as it got darker we headed downtown. My sister, Danuta, was in town with her boys and knew a friend whose house overlooked the river. It was nice to avoid the crowds and still see the amazing fireworks that Peoria put on. The older kids thought they were really cool and enjoyed pointing out their favorites as different colors and shapes exploded in the air. Whereas the younger kids were a little tired to even really care! What a great day we had celebrating our Nation...Happy Fourth!

Waiting for the big fireworks to start

It's taking too long so Charlie and Dziadek make their own

Snuggling with Zoe