4th of July

I love the 4th of July. I love the history, the traditions, the celebrations, the excitement, pretty much everything about it. And, to top it off, I spent my 4th of July in Provo, UT. I've said it before, but Provo KNOWS how to do the 4th of July. I've never experienced a 4th of July quite like it anywhere else. There is so much hype and excitement you just can't help but feel proud to be an American.

I mean where else can you do fireworks pretty much the whole week before and after, including, for the first time ever, aerial fireworks! This year was the first year aerial fireworks were legal in Utah and people went kind of crazy with it. I think Utahans probably spent a collective bazillion dollars on fireworks this 4th of July.

And, where else do people camp out for the 4th of July parade? I don't mean set out some chairs the night before and go home and sleep in your comfy bed, in your air conditioned house. I mean CAMP OUT. With tents and air mattresses and barbecues staking your spot roadside. This picture is from last year early on in the day before the parade - trust me it got even more intense. Whole families sleep out on the street in their tents. It pretty much turned into a city wide, night long party right outside my building, because I live on the parade route.

And don't think I didn't participate, even though I think it's delightfully crazy, because I definitely participated. On Saturday night I watched Stadium of Fire from the roof of my building after climbing up a precariously placed stack of tables and a ladder. On Sunday I played games, did sparklers, talked, laughed, went to Denny's at 1 in the morning (you know when you're tired and everything is a bazillion times funnier...yeah), watched The Sandlot in a tent, and finally collapsed into bed at 4am. After a full 3 hours of sleep I was awakened by the cheering for the Freedom Run. Personally, I thought everyone making noise should have their freedom revoked, but that's not what America is about...I guess. Monday was full of parade watching, resting on the couch, fireworks buying, barbecue preparing, eating, games, explosions, and celebrating.

We (meaning, Brooke, Kelsie, Elsa, Brian, Brandon, Matt, and I) had an awesome barbecue at Elsa and Brian's house. Brooke, Kelsie, Elsa and I all decided that it made us feel very grown up organizing our own barbecue. We had good food, played Scattergories and Pit, did fireworks, and made smores.

Overall it was an amazing 4th of July.

This is also from last year. They handed out newspapers with a "name the presidents in order" activity. And, I did it without any help. I just needed to make sure the world saw the documentation of my success.

(I'll add more pictures from this year as soon as I get them from Kelsie and Elsa...probably)

I feel like I'm suffering from the cruciatus curse!

In case you haven't heard JK Rowling recently announced this new web site. And that's all she did - announce it. It's been like a howler heard around the world. She hasn't giving any hints as to what its about or anything. But, this is from the lady who kept the secret of Harry's destiny for practically a bazillion years when pretty much the entire universe was bugging her to spill the beans, so it's to be expected.

I'm really hoping it's an encyclopedia of the Harry Potter world, a sort of Hogwarts: A History type of thing. Or at least something to that affect.

I've decided JK Rowling is very cruel. We're (and by we, I mean the collective Harry Potter fan community who stuck with Harry until the end) already beside ourselves waiting for the final movie, and then she goes and does something like this! Does she not realize that the anticipation is boiling over inside me like a potion down in Snape's dungeon? She should lose 100 points for this outrageous act.

On the other hand, I feel like I've swallowed a mouthful of Felix Felicis and am in the midst of the luckiest day/summer of my life! The final movie and a new website that promises to be as exciting as the Quidditch World Cup! A bazillion points to JK!

Gilmore Girlsesque

I feel like my life has been on fast forward the past little bit and that I haven't had time to think - let alone blog! So in keeping with my last couple posts, this one is going to also be a whirlwind of images, thought, and obscure references. Just like Gilmore Girls. Also I have cleaning checks tomorrow and haven't started my jobs yet at its 11:12 pm. But this is way more important than living in a clean apartment.

First of all, Elsa and Brian got married.

I'm still trying to get use to the idea. Elsa is the first of my close friends to get married, so it's kinda weird. I'm so happy for her and Brian, I know they're going to be very happy together. Now I can't wait until I get married so that we can be married friends together!

In other news, I have officially gotten my money's worth out of my Seven Peaks pass. When I bought it I was most excited about the unlimited access to the one water park in Utah Country and was thought eh about Trafalga. But now, I realized how mistaken I was to discount Trafalga! As part of the Trafalga pass you get unlimited games of laser tag, and on Friday night Brooke, Kelsie, Lauren, Seth, and I went and played 3 games of laser tag in a row. It was so much fun, our team won 2 out of 3 games, and the code names for the guns were awesome. For example, there was Princess, Reptar, Voldmort, Dumbldor, and many more. If we had paid for each of those games it would have been $18 each, but because of our amazing Pass of All Passes we did it for free! Brooke and I have decided that whenever we're bored we're just gonna go play laser tag!

Following the fun at Trafalga we headed over to Strawberry days in Pleasant Grove and walked around the carnival.

We had amazing strawberries and cream. It's the specialty of Strawberry Days. And now I can't wait until next year when I can have it again!

Doesn't it just seem like a carnival from Stars Hollow?! It was so much fun, and just another reason why I love Provo in the summer. Provo in the summer also reminds of The Sandlot. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that Sandlot was filmed in Utah, but every once in a while I just have these feelings that if I walk around the corner there is going to be a dust pit of a baseball diamond with a bunch of little boys playing ball and putting the moves on the lifeguard.

I also found another new show that I have quickly gotten obsessed with. It's called H2O: Just Add Water.

Oh boy. That looks as embarrassing typed out as it sounds when you say it out loud. It's another Summer I Turned Pretty situation.

Anyways, its an Australian TV show about 3 teenage girls who turn into mermaids and have super powers. The acting is bad, the story is cheesy, and I love it! It probably has something to do with either my obsession with mermaids or my obsession for juvenile shows and books. It's on Netflix, so really if you have a spare 20 minutes, which could easily turn into 20 hours you should check it out.

Why do I avoid things like cleaning checks?!?!?!