after the parade, hc and i scurried home to prep our place for our fourth party! we didn’t have a ton to do. we just didn’t have a ton of time with our guests coming over between one and two. we arrived home from the parade after twelve, so it left us little time to prep. i needed to make a small trip out to the store still and prep a few decor items. crunch times like these really stress me out! i always like to be ahead of the game versus behind or else i have mini meltdowns! ugh! poor hc.

anyhoo, as usual, we were just fine. we got everything set up and it looked purty. thuy and kim brought over the remaining items that we had purchased together the other day {at the grocery store} and some fun decorative items. we purchased old fashioned pop bottles and beer asap  our libations, we had fun fireworks, cakes, treats, games, pinanta, and a brand new play set for the kids to play on!

we prepped some apps for our guests. kim made a guac dip and we put together a charcuterie plate that was quite delish! after we served that, we got to work on some prep items for our entrees. we were having steaks and burgers, so we sliced onions, tomatoes, and cooked corn. my mom had also prepped the steaks prior to coming over and made her signature salad for everyone.

[thuy bought festive balloons for the party]

[happy fourth!]

[cake, cracker jack, rice krispy treats, and fireworks!]

[the yummiest cake]

[watermelon cake]

[it’s not red white and blue but it is sure tasty!]

[jane, hc, lynne, barbara, and dick]

[pete, lan, and thuy]

[playing with the truck uncle hc made bennett for his birthday last year]

[mad games of badminton]

everyone hung out outside while we were working away in the kitchen. it was so nice out…a bit warm but nothing over the top that was uncomfortable. kim had brought over a badminton set and it got pretty vicious out there. they were sweating up a storm playing each other! it was comical and great!

i spent most of my time in the kitchen, which is not what i wanted but had to do while my husband visited with our guests. i’m too controlling to let things go amuck. i just don’t want our guests {which is pretty much family} to think i don’t want to mingle but things have got to get done and i’m going to do it myself! haha! it’s just me {it’s how i roll}, so i guess no apologies!

all afternoon, we prepped food, we took stupid pictures, played badminton, the kids ran around, and we finally grilled, ate {burgers, steaks, grilled asparagus, corn, and salad}, and relaxed some more. it was a perfect afternoon with our families. we then served the delicious cakes and ice cream, along with lynne’s cookies and lan’s krispie treats!

olive finally awoke from her afternoon nap and the kids were excited to hit the piñata! olive was in no mood to do that, so that was a no go. she can be a grumper pants when she wakes up, sometimes {ummmm, just like her momma!}. anyhoo, everyone had their turn {twice} and reagan finally smashed the piñata open and down. out flung the candy and the kids jumped all over that!

[festive treat pops by the krispie baker]

[small hats are in]

[avery taking her turn at the piñata]

[bennett giving it a go]

[reagan knocking it down!]

[candy!]

slowly, everyone trickled out and home. it was a fabulous long, afternoon with everyone. i’m so glad we were able to get together like this and often. we love, love having family over…the most important group in our lives!

after everyone left, it was getting dark, and r + b were getting antsy and really wanted to light the sparklers and throw the pop its! it was time, so out to the mosquito filled back yard they went {even with hc spraying…there were still so many of those bloodsuckers!} and they had so much fun! they drilled through everything so fast, which was a good thing because they couldn’t be outside for very long {we sprayed and sprayed repellent but it didn’t keep ’em off for long!}.

[ready to pop some pop its]

[sparklers]

after the ‘fireworks’, we all headed back in and chilled just a wee bit longer before kim, terry, thuy, and the boys left. all in all, it was a successful fun filled fourth of july! we had such a great time hosting everyone over {as usual!}. we say it often and can’t say it enough, but we always love having friends and family over. we love it! it was a great fourth indeed! happy birthday america!

xoxo