We had a wonderful 4th of July week. In case you didn’t miss me, we were at our cabin for a week. That was the longest stretch we’ve ever been there. We arrived the Saturday before the 4th to prepare things. I did some touch-up painting (too bad the blue in the girls’ room didn’t match. Still have that chore to do) and Doug mowed. With the lack of rain and the sandy soil there, it was a mess.

Sunday, we enjoyed worshiping with an OPC church about 55 minutes from the cabin. It’s a small congregation, which we love, and very friendly. The preaching is solid and sound. We celebrated our day of rest by painting our nails and playing games.

My parents came around lunch time on Monday. It was my mom’s birthday and we made it festive with a “firecracker” cake – red, white and blue. Yes, I’ll post pictures as soon as Doug gets them downloaded. I asked her what her favorite food was. I’ve been her child all these years and didn’t know the answer to that! Turns out, it’s pizza. I’m not great with homemade pizza, but I tried a new crust recipe and I had different pizza pans. It was thin crust, which my mom likes, and turned out really well.

We have lived in Wisconsin for almost 38 years and none of us has even been on the Ducks in the Wisconsin Dells. Doug took the trip when he was around Jonalyn’s age. Even though it was brutally hot and humid, we went, and it was very enjoyable. These are vehicles used in WWII that can go from land to the water. The area is so gorgeous with the rock formations and little glens. The best part was getting splashed when we went from land to water.

On Wednesday, the 4th, my sister and her family came. Unfortunately, it was sooo hot that we couldn’t do much outside. The men grilled while the women cut the fruit. Alyssa made rice krispie treats for those with lactose intolerance, while the boys churned the ice cream. In the evening, we had a Yatzee game. I won!!!

My parents left on Thursday morning. The only activity that appealed to us on this 100 degree plus day was swimming. For the first time, we tried a county park not far from our cabin that has a beach on a lake. The water was filled with algae because of the heat, but once you got over that, even the warmer water felt great. I won the Yatzee rematch that night!!

Friday was the hottest day yet. I think the temperature was 102 or 103. Ridiculous. We took my sister’s family to the Dells and walked down the very touristy main street. After a short while, we were all drenched and decided to try out the Sprecher restaurant. The cold sodas tasted great! They left from there and we went back to the cabin and collapsed.

Saturday was a day of clean-up and getting ready to go home. It was sad to see the week come to a close. It will be a memorable 4th of July week for many reasons.

How did you spend the 4th of July?