let the fireworks begin | Diary Days

Independence weekend... Almost my favorite part of the year! It's summer, you get dressed up in red, white, and blue (if you wish), and get together with friends and family. What better time of year is there? Well, other than the holiday season, but it's too cold. ;) I was extremely busy with random things over the weekend. I'll just give you a synopsis of what I was busy with.

Also, I decided to start a new thing called "Diary Days." Basically, once a month-ish I would write about a few specific days I thought would be worth sharing, but I would write them out in a diary format. I hope that would work, and I wouldn't get bored with it. ;)

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July 1st, 2016,

I had a lot of fun tonight. At around 6 p.m. we left our house to meet some friends at the Midwest Rodeo in Manewa. I've never been to a rodeo, but for the first time going, it was not all that bad. 

I did feel like an odd-ball though. I just arrived in a baggy teeshirt and long skirt (what I usually wear everyday), but I probably should have dressed in something more appropriate for a rodeo. Something like jeans, a plaid shirt... And boots. Possibly a cowboy hat too. But no, that's not my style.

What was most appealing to me was the women's barrel racing event. The horses were so fast, and it looked like such a fun sport. Of course, it was not something I would be interested doing, but nonetheless fun to watch.

Thank you Mrs. Rowley for taking the picture!

I do have one regret; I should have brought my wallet to buy a cowboy hat. Or not... I don't know whether or not to spend my money on something like that. ;)

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July 2nd, 2016,

I stayed up so late last night, but I managed to get up at 5:30 a.m. this morning and exercise. I might regret that later. ;)

Today we were going to a surprise birthday party for Mrs. Rowley. (whom I mentioned above.) We kind of wanted to make our dish to pass something relatable to Independence Day, so I found this on Pinterest and decided to make it. Man, what would we do without Pinterest, right?

Red, White, and Blueberry Trifle. Oh my goodness, tastes like heaven!

We arrived at our destination, and finally after waiting an hour, we shouted, "Surprise!" The party began.

There were around 6 homeschool families there, and we all pretty much knew each other. After eating dinner, we played what I think was 6 games of volleyball. Plenty of laughs were past around, and everybody seemed to have a great time.

When it got dark, some of my best friends shot off fireworks, and other people roasted marshmallows around a campfire. At around 11 p.m., four of us (myself included) escaped the mosquitos to play cards inside. Nuts as we were, we survived.

I got home at midnight, and I am absolutely exhausted...

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July 3rd, 2016,

Today, I worked most of the day. One of my sisters and I both stayed home and cleaned our house while my other sister and parents went to the store for half of the day. Let's just say, cleaning the house can be a very tiring/boring process, or you can have fun by blazing the speakers with music and taking short breaks with epic dance numbers. When the rest of the family came home, we all had to work outside.

My parents are hoping to get a garage built for us before the summer is over, so we have to work almost every day when Dad is off work. It is not all that bad, unless the sun is blazing hot on your skin and you get a really bad sunburn. 

We were planning to go to see the Shawano fireworks tonight. I was looking forward to it, but it would have been more fun to hang out with some friends too. I did learn from some reliable sources (a.k.a, my sisters) that some really good friends would be going. Hold on a second... They had something going on today. No, they aren't coming. I kept denying them, but it turned out they were right. Oh great, another night staying up late. ;) But it was worth it. 

Part of getting ready to see fireworks.

My phone wasn't really cooperating with this picture.

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July 4th, 2016,

The story of today; I slept in a little bit, and made a pancake breakfast. (which was, by the way, very delicious. I'm proud of myself.) Health freak like I am, I decided to try agave nectar on my pancakes. It tasted like it had a nature-type flavor, (if you know what I'm talking about, which you probably don't) which I thought was very good. 

At late morning, we started to work outside more. By the time I got inside in the evening, my arms and face were beet red. Also, from working in the dirt, my face was black. I don't think anybody would have really recognized me. ;)

What our yard looked like in the morning.

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And there you have it. I hope that you weren't bored out of your mind. If you were, you are free to tell me. :) 

As you can probably tell, I had an awesome 4th of July weekend. Please comment on the fun things you did for the weekend!