Recap from 4th of July

Every year that I can remember, we have spent the 4th of July watching the Ralston parade in Mrs. Chapton's yard. Quite a few of our church family join the crowd, as well as, Mrs. Chapton's neighbors (since her yard is right on the parade route).
This year, Crystal joined mom, Ian, and I watching the parade. Alex was with us for a while, but ended up in the town center helping his friend sell concessions.

Anyone who's been to the parade knows what to expect - politicians, lots of fire trucks, and lots of Shriners. This year though, we were surprised by one new addition - Darth Vader. Crys took Ian's picture with Darth Vader ( I need to get a copy of that pic). Uncle Dan would be so proud of his Star Wars fan nephews.

In and amongst the fire trucks was Ian's friend and family, Charlie. Ian met Charlie back in 2006 when they both went to Serendipity Preschool. They were the instant of best friends! Charlie's dad is a firefighter, so Charlie was riding in a fire truck when Ian saw him in the parade. After the parade, Ian met up with Charlie at the fire station before heading to the annual water fights. Typically, lots of people show up for the water fights because the weather is so hot. This year though, I don't think it made it past 70 degrees, very unusual for a 4th of July in Nebraska.

Ian was able to have a play date and spend the night at Charlie's before we left for Arkansas.