Happy Birthday America!

We had a great long weekend and on Sunday we hit the McKinney parade and fireworks show. First up was the parade. It was at 1:30 and of course super hot, however, we lucked out with parking. We found a spot one block from the parade and were able to get a front row seat right were we walked up (10 minutes before the parade started :-). The parade was short (probably 15 minutes), but that's just long enough for our crew. They really enjoyed it and even got to see firetrucks this year (last year McKinney had ZERO firetrucks in the parade!).
The fireman is waving (and laughing) at Jake who is waving feverishly at every float.
The motorcycle guys really liked Jake and were trying to get him to make the rocker sign (I love you in sign language, ha!). We had to stop Abby from running out into the streets when the horses came out, she wanted to pet them, of course.

Next up, the fireworks! We actually got there early to partake in some of the activities they had for the kids (free bounce houses, etc.) but the lines were INSANE! I think we would have waited 45 minutes for one ride/activity and my crew is not a patient crew. So we did the next best thing...
Roll down grassy hills!
Oh my these two have energy. They RAN non-stop for an hour in this giant soccer field. They rolled down hills, chased Daddy, then rolled some more. By the time the fireworks were ready to start they had to be carried back to the truck they were so exhausted! The hill was too steep for Lily and so she just ran around in the soccer field. She still had a blast :-)

We brought tons of pillows and blankets to watch the fireworks in the back of John's truck. The kids thought it was awesome and that they were actually going to get to spend the night outside in the back of the truck. Ha, not yet, but maybe a camping trip is in our future.

The kids ooo'd and ahhh'd over all the fireworks. They loved them. Lily was scared at first though. I was holding her and then daddy took over. Soon enough though she realized they weren't going to hurt her and joined in on the fun. I just love this shot of she and John, even though it's a bit dark. I'll have to lighten it a bit.

We lucked out on parking here too and were able to get out and home within 30 minutes or so. It still made for a late night, the kids didn't get in bed till 10:30 or 10:45 (and no, they did NOT sleep in., they came walking down the hall at 7 on the dot).
This was the first year we did fireworks and I was so glad we did. They twins are at the perfect age and love everything about them. Lily really did great too and I can't wait to see them next year. The kids are already asking when they get to see booms again.