on the third of july

i may have said this before, but the fourth of july is one of my favorite holidays, but it's not one that i typically think of as being my favorite. but then i'm sitting on the golf course with a bunch of people i love and we're playing cards and people watching and i'm freaking out about all the glittery, sparkly fireworks, and i realize that independence day is awesome.

this year we (of course) planned to go up to the north salt lake festivities on the third, which are always so fun, but then we decided we were going to help build ward unity by visiting the parade route in provo on the fourth, so we divided our independence day time for the first time ever.

on tuesday afternoon, we headed up to north salt lake (which is a real, legit city--don't let anyone tell you otherwise). this year was also the first time we've had friends come along, and that was a treat. anna, tyler, brandon and brett joined in the celebrations, and i hope they all had as much fun as i did. when we all got to the house, we rode in the bed of dad's truck up to our usual spot. we ate our fourth of july feast of wal mart subs (they are awesome, i tell you), chips and dips, deviled eggs, potato salad, and treats. after our appetites were satisfied, we ventured up to the clubhouse to see what was going on.

{what was going on at the clubhouse: a million high schoolers standing in groups texting+carnival rides and games+your typical dad rock band}

i was tempted to join the dance party, as i often am. "ymca" and "shining star" were calling my name, but the two boys i was with weren't acting like they wanted to participate. so, we went back down to our spot and pulled out the playing cards for a rousing game of scum. 

{note: the best times to play cards are those when you don't have any other distractions vying for your time and attention. lake powell at night, waiting in line for stuff, at parks when you get tired of doing active things, and probably other occasions i can't name right now. so this was a prime opportunity for us to get some good card-playing in.}

parachutists fell out of the sky, a cargo jet flew over, many people walked by our spot, and then it was dark--time for fireworks finally!

{something you may not know about me: i'm kind of obsessed with sparkly things. i may or may not have been freaking out about all of the glittery fireworks. colored ones=not my favorite, though still cool}

fireworks...are awesome. these were probably the best i've ever seen, and that's saying something. but i guess i say that every year, because every year it seems like they do even more awesome stuff than the year before. as those who have witnessed fireworks with me can attest, they are another of my simple pleasures. i get an intense amount of joy out of every new firework, especially if there is an abundance of sparkle.

after the finale, we loaded back into the truck and made our way slowly back down the hill. at home, we took an excursion to the basement, where we played fierce games of foosball, bulls-eye ball, and some form of horse. oh, and at one point someone kept attacking me with a giant medicine ball.

here are some pictures from the evening, courtesy of anna.

altogether, it was a great night. i can't wait for next year!