Holiday weekend

We all had a wonderful Fourth of July, visiting with family at Nana and Grampy's cookout, and then attending the parade in my old hometown. The booming cannons were not appreciated by the children, but they loved the marching bands, the waving flags, and the politicians' balloons.

In other big news, both Beth and Amy have learned to ride their bikes without training wheels, and they spent this afternoon whipping up and down the street on two wheels, with Erin peddling furiously on her tricycle, in a futile attempt to keep up with her big sisters. Dan is ready for a good night's sleep, after running...running...running, while holding onto the backs of their bikes. I think we'll all sleep well tonight. At least, I hope we'll all sleep well tonight. Brian is fighting a nasty cold, and sleep seems to be eluding him at the moment.

This has been quite a summer for Beth. Today, she swam all the way across the "deep end" of the pool without any assistance from "floaties". She is turning into a real fish, swimming under water, picking up items at the bottom of the pool, and dog-paddling everywhere. Amy is trying desperately to keep pace, but she's still a long-way from being able to swim by herself. However, She and Erin have lots of fun splashing around, and Brian has no fear at all of the water.

I hope you were all able to celebrate our nation's birthday weekend in a relaxing fashion! Happy Fourth of July!!