Does anyone have 50 cents?

My brother in law, Jamie, made this darling lemonade stand for his kids. It even has wheels for easy transport. It was a little slice of heaven for my three year olds, who refilled often, at their leisure, while watching the Provo parade. Kind of stinks for the entrepreneur-ing cousins trying to make it rich.

small towns

There is something about the 4th of July in a small town.  Years ago, while traveling through Idaho on the 4th, we were forced to a complete stop on the highway, for several hours, to allow the local parade to pass.  This was a one-stop-light, blink-or-you'll-miss-it town, and the locals did not seem the least bit worried about the cars backed up (ok, there were less than 10) down the road.  And actually, we were pretty entertained, both by the novelty of the parade, and by small town idealism that lets a parade stop highway traffic.

Provo is not a small town by this measure.  But it is small-ish. And it is where my sister lives.  She and her family graciously let us stay at her home with our 6 kids to enjoy the 4th with her family in a smallish town.

The festivities included fireworks in the church parking lot.

Stadium of Fire from my sister's house on the hill.  The best seats.

Dress-up box exploration with the cousins.

And then there was the traffic-stopping parade.

Thank you Emily and Steve for hosting our family on such a fun holiday weekend.  You made 8 extra people at your house (+ Nana and Papa + lots of day visitors) look so easy.  But I know better: It's a lot of work. You're the best small town big family.  EVER.