Fourth of July Grosse Pointe Style....posted 6 weeks later Cailin style

We arrived in our new place June 31st and thought it would be a great idea to have family come stay with us for the holiday weekend......so it was a very, very busy couple of days before the Burtons arrived but I think we did a pretty good job of getting everything put away and hiding the moving evidence in the storage room down in the basement--love those extra rooms. But because it was so quick it was a bring-you-own-beds invitation so by the time they got here at 11:30pm Thursday night, poor Keilani was knocked out--and luckily stayed that way through the noisy air mattress pumping rigmarole. And the next morning it was so adorable to see the kids go crazy to wake up to Keilani. I think they actually overwhelmed her a bit.

Make a Smilebox greeting

After breakfast, we went to the zoo with Tammy's friends who live nearby and had a blast. Definitely the highlight was the polar bears and seals enclosure. There was a long line to get into the underwater tunnel but it was worth it cause we got lucky and the bears were swimming. Swimming and pooping. Yup, that's right. As we were standing there in awe of these massive creatures cruising in the water alongside their natural prey--even holding up the kids for snapshots of them touching them through the glass--one bear decides to let loose. Impressive amounts of brown matter swept across our view and the pristine blue water turned cloudy and less inviting. Talk about a crowd pleaser.

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Later we headed to the friends' house for some pool and bbq fun. It was relaxing and tasty. And the kids were turning blue and shivering but insisting they weren't too cold to stay in the water. But after going to the potty and shakily trying to put on a soppingly chilly wetsuit back on, Keahi finally agreed that it was time to be done.

Make a Smilebox scrap pages

The next day we bbqed Oshima style at our neighborhood's community park. It's apparently the smallest park in the GP areas but even so it's amazing. Forget about the parks in Hawaii with people sleeping on benches next to their shopping carts. Forget being afraid to enter the bathroom which may or may not have toilet paper or soap and definitely sports questionable puddles everywhere. You have to be a resident of the Grosse Pointe City (not Park or Farm or Woods since they all have their own parks) and show a picture park id. The grounds are beautifully manicured as are the paths. There are tons of open picnic tables and ample grills. The toddler pool has fountains, rain sprayers, and two repositionable water spouts that cleverly stop gushing water if aimed outside the pool. The adult pool is shallow enough for a large portion of it that Keahi can walk out and be comfortable. And the bathrooms. The lovely bathrooms have curtained shower stalls with body soap and hot water, clean floors, lockers, a family changing area and granite counter tops. W-o-w. Eventually, the kids were wiped out and huddled in their towels on the side. Keilani even got a short, very late nap.

On the menu were some classic favorites like fajitas, spicy korean pork, and bbq beef. And, of course, we have to have grilled mushroom caps with lime, garlic butter sauce. Oh man, that sauce was great just on rice or even on the fajitas. Tammy's fresh salsa and guacamole were awesome. And I made a festive red, white and blue velvet cake. I love Cakeman Raven for putting his recipe online. But I had to half the frosting recipe because it seems sick and wrong to use

The kids did some sparklers (or buckets as we still call them in honor of Keahi's first attempts to say it when he was little) and really liked the spinning car one and the snakes. Then when it finally got dark--still adjusting to this whole staying bright till 9:30 thing, we headed out to Lake St. Clair to watch the fireworks show. While it may not have been as spectacularly diverse as the NYC show, that was definitely the best view and the closest we've ever been to the source. The cars driving by actually all stopped in a long line to watch the whole thing.

And while we got home late and the kids had had a very long, busy day, they still got up early on Sunday. Thank goodness for shows and Leapster.

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

And after church, we ate brunch at a cute little restaurant down the street where kids eat free. Score! And the goodbyes started and the cousins had part ways for now. It was a fantastic visit and I'm so glad we didn't let a little thing like moving get in the way of family fun.