The 4th of July--Alaska style!

It was a great celebration--like only can be done in a small town. The kids were asked to be in the town parade--in the library's "float" (which was just an old Ford truck with a sign on it). They were going to play their ukuleles, but fear of rain kept the ukuleles inside. Instead, they just sat in the back and through out candy. They didn't care, they had fun just being a part of it.
Next we were off to the community park, where we participated in all kinds of activities. Nail hammering, relay races (foot, team, crawling, crab-walk, and cartwheel races), a money search, and face painting were just some of them. Even mom and dad got in on the fun (and I might add, were sore for a couple days afterward).
The night ended with fireworks over the bay, which didn't start until after 11:00 pm, when it was finally getting dark enough to see them. They were beautiful, and a great ending to a wonderful day. The drive home provided us with a nice discussion on gratitude for the blessings of living in a such an amazing country. Thanks and God bless to all who help keep us free!







The Haines library "float"












"Hammer the nail" competition























Katelyn and Caleb in the races













OK, I can't lie. I didn't really win. The guy who just BARELY beat me is just off the screen to the right. But the pic looks good. :)




Team Races



















Katelyn dominated the cart-wheel races










The boys doing the wheel-barrow











Kristen making sure everything gets caught on video













Face painting








Hmmmm. I wonder who the "K" stands for?
Kristen? Maybe Katelyn? How about Kylie?
I think it's all three!








Kylie was there too, she just slept most of the time. But she woke up for the fireworks.








The clouds were low so you can't see the mountains in the background, but the fireworks were still great.