fourth of july

The Fourth this year was a mix of the two celebrations I described in my last post, different from the ones I remember rosily. We ended up both bumming around at the beach near my aunt's house and turning into prunes while goofing off in her neighbor's pool (I swear the heat makes my family insane- my mom and aunt were doing a synchronized swimming routine at one point!)

While at the beach, We took s stroll along the shoreline to cool off and admire the sand creations entered in the castle building contest. I use the term "castle" loosely, most of the options were nothing less than sculptures!

the only lifeguards for miles!

the heat of the day lead to a very crowded beach!

example- sculpted fishing boat with the big catch of the day!

sand castle trophy, what?

my mom and her sister are adorable- matching without planning to!

A very patriotic outfit! My t-shirt turned cover up is from the men's section at Urban Outfitters (I know I've mentioned this purchasing habit before). My friend Casey and I bought them together last time we hung out, in preparation for the Fourth!

I did have a favorite old pair of cutoff jean shorts on, but it was far too hot for those to be found in this picture! I got the shorts years ago as strangely cut capris from Pacsun and chopped them further myself! Isn't there just something wonderful about a perfectly broken in pair of jeans?

We spotted the boys on our walk back from the far reaches of the shore, water skiing away! It's definitely a fun thing to watch, especially when there are exceptional wipe-outs or last minute saves- both of which happen so much more frequently on the ocean than on the lake!

row of anxious watchers

father-son bonding!

sisters matching part 2

After our expedition to the beach, we skipped, hopped and jumped our way across the summer-scorced street and dove head first into the blissfully cool water of a neighbor's pool. We joined in the backyard celebration, bringing potato salad, various grill-able meats, and our heat-crazy selves!

Despite not bringing my camera along, I still managed to capture some pretty awesome shots of my cousin in his attack on the inflatable duck in the pool! We had a good laugh, capturing his antics as he tackled, flipped over, or tried to swim on this particular relative of Big Bird!

Their backyard is pretty darn idyllic. Of course there's the sparkling pool, something that becomes infinitely more appealing in the middle of a heat spike, but they also had beautiful flowers, grassy areas, and an expansive pool! It was the perfect environment for an outdoor gathering!

I decided that these were the real-life depictions of Ariel and Flounder from The Little Mermaid!

and they had plenty of friends!

Remember what I said about gorgeous flowers? These hydrangea's were lovely pops of color, and were great for a day where red, white, and blue rein supreme!

The hydrangea's lined either side of the lifeguard chair they had set up along the fence...

...so of course my dad had another "photo shoot, now!" moment!

Ahoy, mateys!

The food was delicious, I scarfed down the delicious shrimp and lobster roll offers (even though I felt guilty with the fish watching me from the fence... sorry, friends)

I wasn't the only one munching happily!

We munched, chatted and swam all while being treated to the Island sounds of a steel drum master!

Our host even joined in for a few songs!

I leave you with my pretty inadequate shots of the fireworks! I swear the show was so much more beautiful than these imply!

I hope that everyone spent a wonderful Fourth of July, and that you didn't end up too sunburnt- or that if you are, that you have a tub of aloe vera to soak in!