Surprise!

Technically, my dad's birthday is on July 9th, but last week was the only time my sisters could come up from Vegas and St. George, so we decided to surprise my dad. We had planned to meet for dinner at Goodwood Barbecue (Yum!) without him knowing. My sisters drove up that morning and since my mom isn't very subtle about getting Dad to do what she wants, she had Jenn and Kyle invite him to the dinner. When they pulled into the parking lot, they saw our truck, so Dad thought Jenn would be making a pregnancy announcement. He sure did get a surprise when he walked in and saw everyone else there!

All I can say is thank goodness we had our own room! It was pretty loud and crazy in there with 10 grandkids under the age of 9! Dinner was awesome though, and we soon headed back to my parent's house for cake and ice cream.

Yes, we really did get 60 candles on the cake! The first ones that were lit were pretty much gone by the time the last ones were done, and the bow on the cake even caught fire! I'm surprised the fire alarm didn't go off amid all the smoke! Dad got all the candles blown out, with the help of all the grandkids.

Brooke sure enjoyed the frosting, and playing with their dog, Kodi. We just hung out and played games for the rest of the night.

The next day we headed up AF Canyon to do the things my dad enjoys the most. We had a campfire, went on a hike, had a picnic, roasted marshmallows, and had a blast. My little brother, Geoff, had gone up early to save us a spot. There was a gigantic tree which shaded us for most of the day. The kids enjoyed climbing in it and Steph and Geoff rigged Kodi's leash up in the tree to make a swing for the kids. We also ended up having a marshmallow fight, water fight, and an all around good time. It was fun to just hang out for the day and enjoy the mountain air! The kids were pretty tired and stinky that night, so it was a round of baths and straight to bed.

Saturday we got up and cleaned the house to get ready for the Fourth of July Celebration. Like most of our neighbors, we host a BBQ for our family and watch the firework show from Thanksgiving Point. We had yummy taco salads for dinner, and the kids did a craft where they made sun catchers. We then started a game of baseball in the backyard. The game got interrupted when water came shooting over the fence from Wassmer's backyard. Of course, a full on water fight errupted and the game was over. We let off some of our own fireworks, then moved to the backyard to watch the big show. It is so nice to not have to worry about big crowds and traffic. The kids can run around and be loud without disturbing anyone. We all had a great time even though it was a pretty late night.

I love celebrating Independence Day! I'm so grateful for our country. I loved having the opportunity to go to Washington DC a while back. It was amazing and awe-inspiring to see the monuments and history of our country. It was incredible to me to walk on the same ground that so many amazing men and women did. I'm thankful for the sacrifices they made and the sacrifices that our soldiers are still making today. Happy Birthday, America!