4th of July

 Disclaimer: These photos are not great...but I adore her pride in showing off her garden, in her 2nd year of sparklers and her precious face. More pics will be posted after the 4th!

 For me, the 4th of July is full of awesome memories. I love not only what the 4th stands for but how fun it always was for me as a child. We spent the 4th of July at my gma and gpa's fam in Ill. Oh those memories are some of my most treasured. The heat, the water fights, the family, the talent shows, the fashion shows, pretend weddings, hide and seek, 4 wheeler rides, tractor rides, sparkler races, the noise, the love, the pure joy in my gpa's eyes. I miss that man every.single.day. I miss my gma too. I need to get there more often. That farm is my favorite.place.on.earth. The memories flood when I get close and I can still smell my grandpa. I have an old hankie of his that I keep and it still smells like him. Five years later. Still smells exactly like my grandpa. I treasure that. Its worn, its old, it is perfect. He loved loved seeing all his family together. We were all his pride and joy and I can see him staring out the window at us kids running and giggling, watching the family games of baseball with such pride, the hugs, the laughter, the kisses, his hard working hands that were so strong and beautiful-telling such a story. I.Miss.My.Grandpa. I miss both my grandpas but on the 4th, I miss my Grandpa Wayne so very much. I miss those memories as a child and the joy- the utter joy- that came to me with this holiday. I try and want to give those same gifts to Vaughn-elise that my parents gave me. Tradition. Vaughn-elise is so stinking excited about the 4th that she did not fall asleep until 11 today. Though she doesnt fully get it she knows its the day we became independent and she thinks thats pretty cool. I do too. She is excited to wear her red white and blue, wave her flag, see the parade, the picnic at gma and papas, the cooking before hand, the fun- the celebration. I am excited to get to do that with her. I am excited to make it fun for her. I hope that in 25 years she will look back on holidays with the same fondness and joy that I do. I hope I am able to capture the moments for her and create lasting traditions and memories and things she can look forward to every year. This month has been full of nothing but transitions for her. Emotions, transitions, questions. I am excited to be able to give her a day to just have a blast.  She's a precious girl.