4th of July - 3 weeks later

For the 4th of July, we went to see the movie "Cars 2". Ryleigh was really excited to see it, then half way through the movie decided she wanted to go home. We made her stay, but Chris and I enjoyed it. Then we went to my parents house for a naptime and a BBQ. Chris and Kristin came over, and Cory was already there.

The boys had a mean game of slam the ball across the pool. Hit the goal and you get a point. I guess the objective is to prevent your goal from getting hit? All I know is that balls go whipping across the pool and you better stay clear.

Here's Ryleigh after her nap. That's the same dress from last year. Except this year it actually fits her pretty well! Shows how slow my kid grows!

From 2011 July

She was being weird. My mom was asking her for a cute cheese picture, then she started doing some crazy poses. As you can see above, she's sticking her tummy out and her shoulders back. Now she's showing off her belly.

From 2011 July

And like any model, she had to go review her shots. "Grandma, nee see chees."

From 2011 July

Once it got dark we got ready for fireworks in our backyard. The night before we were hoping to see the Lake Pleasant Fireworks from our front window (there's a great unobstructed view towards the lake), unfortunately it got rained out by one of the first real monsoons of the seasons, complete with 30 minute torential downpour. This is the first year that fireworks were legal in Arizona. You can now buy them and set them off on private property. So we went to the backyard. Chris and Kristin supplied the fireworks, and for Ryleigh - Glowsticks.
Ryleigh's got her glowsticks ready!

From 2011 July

Got the cool special effects going:

From 2011 July

And some fireworks:

From 2011 July

And somehow in the excitement, a glowstick ended up in the pool.

From 2011 July

And back to the fireworks:

From 2011 July

A sparkler fight between Chris and Cory.

From 2011 July

Ryleigh watching with her glow sticks still. You can see she got a replacement for the one in the pool.

From 2011 July

From 2011 July

From 2011 July

From 2011 July

From 2011 July

From 2011 July

From 2011 July

And a sparkler for everyone!

From 2011 July

We found a great spot to see fireworks on our way home. We figured it would be a good spot, but stayed a little to late. Hope the view is just as good next year so we can go sit up off the side of the road on Happy Valley. We saw at least 2 shows driving home along the road.