Happy 4th of July!

Happy Birthday America!

Let freedom ring!!!

I hope your 4th of July holiday was as fun as mine! The whole family (Mom, Dad, Nana, Papa, Uncle Phil, and Chelsey) went up to the cabin on Pelican Lake! Here are some of the highlights!!!

Obviously when you’re at the lake you have to go on the boat! I’m still not a huge fan of my lifejacket, but I’m getting better about it.

Speaking of boats, my Uncle Philly got a beautiful new fishing boat this year. Isn’t he cool?!

Another thing we always do when we’re up at the cabin is go out for coffee in the morning and then take a walk on the Paul Bunyan Trail. Here’s Papa and I waiting for Mom and Nana so we could start our morning routine!

Mmmm….Stonehouse Coffee Shop has the best coffee in the world! Here we are, enjoying a cup of java!

At the coffee shop they had flags flying and I really liked them! Don't I look like an American flag too?

Shopping is also a “must do” while up at the cabin. In fact, we even stopped on our way up to the cabin at a store called Christmas Point. Apparently Mom and Nana love that store! But I guess I like that store too … do you see all the toys in the background? I even got a few things here!

Here we are at a store called the Fun Sisters … apparently the girls were having a little bit too much fun at the Fun Sisters (at my expense). These glasses look ridiculous!

Mom also bought me an awesome winter hat. While I'm not too excited for cold weather, I am excited to wear my new hat ... aren’t I as cute as a little bear?

I did go in the lake for the first time and I went “all out!” I got wild on Pelican Lake because I went skinny dipping! Ahhhhhh!

Even though the water was a bit chilly, I didn’t cry or fuss! But I preferred to hang out on the shore and play in my own pool … the ducky!

Finally, the highlight of the weekend had to be watching fireworks for the first time! Brainerd always has the best fireworks display. So, Mom and Dad packed me up in my pj’s in the car (way past my bedtime) and we headed into Brainerd.

Everyone was a little worried that I might be scared of the fireworks and their loud booms. But they shouldn’t have feared … I loved them! As the sky darkened the show began and we stood outside for a while and watched (until the mosquitoes got too bad).

Then we watched from inside the car.

I LOVED the sparkly fireworks! Nana was holding me in the front seat and I looked out the front windshield of the car. Every time a firework went off in the sky, I would cheer (make a little noise), jump up and down, and then turn back to Mom and Dad to see if they were seeing what I was seeing.

Mom and Nana both cried as they watched me watch the fireworks. They said my reaction to the fireworks was so pure … it was sheer delight! They also said it was the neatest thing to experience fireworks through my eyes! They didn’t even need to watch the show … it was more fun to watch me!

Overall, it was a great weekend! And I'm proud and thankful to be an American!