Halfway through the Year -- Better Celebrate!

The beginning of July marks the halfway point of the year.  It seems that what I've written about in the first half of the year should constitute a whole year, but then I think of all that's happened since then, and it's really hard to believe how much has been crammed in.  Wow.

It seems July is inherently a party month.  With both the 4th of July and the 24th of July as holidays, and with Daniel as a son, there is no question about what will be happening around here!  So, let's take a look...

Once again we attended the annual 4th of July parade in Oakley.  What a great small town event!

 My next celebration was celebrating time with my good friend Kim who is a school teacher.  It seems we always have the best of intentions, but we usually only get together during the summer.  This was our second annual hike, and we went to Ferguson Canyon in Salt Lake.  I loved it!  High granite sides and a stream -- practically perfect!

And then there was the celebration of a couple days alone!  Daniel spent some time hiking and rafting with the scouts, and Cheyenne ventured off to her first summer camp.  She had a week on her own at Clear Creek summer camp.  And since she caught not one, but TWO pot guts (aka ground squirrels) in her trap, she was one happy camper!!

Next I must blog the preparation phase of the Daniel and Friends Annual Fireworks Extravaganza.  This always takes weeks of preparation, but this year was especially intense.  They built and painted sets.  They designed boats to float in the plastic container of water.  They wrote original music.  They wrote a script.  They practiced.  And it all happened in our basement...

Between the preparation and the performance, there was the celebration with our friends the Jacques.  Working around summer school schedules yet again, we managed a couple days with them at a condo in Park City.  Among the fun times, we enjoyed a live-action version of the video game Fruit Ninjas.  I've never seen the game, but apparently you try to cut up fruit that's thrown in the air.  Why wouldn't you want to go to a city park, break out a real sword, throw fruit in the air, and try to cut it???

And at the price of fruit, why wouldn't you pick it up off the ground and enjoy it.

This is no photo contest winner for clarity, but it shows what happens when you strike a pineapple at the bottom of the green leaves.  They shoot out like a whole bunch of little sharp spears being thrown at high velocity.  Cool!! We also learned about knife/fruit interactions with cantaloupe, watermelon, apples, and grapefruits, but none were quite as cool as those spears.

The next day afforded a great trip down the alpine slide for all.  Fun, fun, fun!!

Finally, the big fireworks show itself was the 24th of July celebration.  I exhibited my crafty side with "fireworks" centerpieces, and an "authentic" rodeo queen belt for Cheyenne in the culdesac parade.

 Though it doesn't do it justice, this is perhaps the best picture I have of the set.  It was a seaside village with a fortress wall, lots of small buildings/businesses, the sea with boats in it, and a volcano in the background towering over the village.

 And this is the ultimate goal - fireworks glaring and fire burning up the town!  In the end, the volcano "erupted" into flames yet again, and ultimately, most of the set was burned.  

 Meanwhile, Cheyenne was meeting with her friends to be part of an original production by a sweet 9 year old who wrote and directed the play called "Coconut."  Cheyenne was playing the role of the mother.

 And the culminating celebration was the occasion of Daniel's first shave.  'Twas a big day, for sure, but not one that has necessitated repeating much since then!

 Thanks to all for the memories of celebrations!!