4th of July

This year our friends the Roberts' joined us in Truckee at Donner Lake, for 2 of our 7 day stay at a beautiful home nestled in the trees about a 5 minute drive to the lake/beach. Sierra caught the guys during a funny face moment! The day prior to the 4th we all enjoyed a day at the beach, the kids had blast! Maile & Marissa searching for treasure!? Beach Babes, Marissa & Sierra. Our Fourth of July celebration began in downtown Truckee at the Parade. Tons of floats some which tossed candy, and rubber duckies! I brought a few 4th of July themed crafts for the kids to make, here is a picture of Maile and Sierra making their 'Uncle Sam' pins. Melanie and Verne brought sparklers and 'legal' fireworks for the kids! Melanie, the kids and I also sported American Flag tattoos! The west end beach at Donner Lake offered activities for all ages, and live music. First-up the kids and the Egg Toss. Mason & Marissa partnered as well as Sierra & Kiwi. Maile met a little girl her age to toss an egg with. Brian & Verne also enjoyed playing the Egg Toss game. Marissa & Sierra entered the 6year and under Boys v. Girls Tug of War - GIRLS WON!! Marissa & Sierra also entered the 6 year and under Girls Hula Hoop contest. More play time in the sand, building sand castles, paddle ball, and a ton of goofing-off! Sierra was the first victim to be buried in the sand! Brian borrowed his parents' jet skis for us to ride

Brian, the girls and I enjoyed the remaining week together making crafts, being lazy, going on a walk with Hobie, watching and feeding birds and squirrels, enjoying dinner with Brian's Aunt Joni and Uncle Bob, who created a clever game for the girls to earn money (coins) by picking all the wilted flowers from over 15 flower pots around their home. We spent every day (5 days) at the beach, building more castles and burying each other - the last 2 days we were unable to play in the water after 3pm due to thunderstorms and the lifeguards fear of lightning and the dark cloud shadows blinding their visibility of the swimmers. The weather was gorgeous, despite the thunderstorms, warm and no rain, just a few minutes of light sprinkles!! The merchants association hosts Downtown Truckee Thursdays featuring live music, street fair, vendor booths and farmers' market. Marissa had her face painted like Cleopatra. Sierra played in the jumpy castle. We all enjoyed a fabulous dinner at Dragonfly. OH MY GRAVY!!! Superb Sushi, great food for the girls and Awesome [yes, alcoholic] Drinks [which we limited ourselves to]!!!

The house was also dog friendly, so we were thrilled to bring Hobie. Sadly it was our last vacation with him, but so thankful we brought him! Our last day, Friday, was spent taking a stroll with Hobie walking downtown and treating the girls to the town's variety [toy] store, with their flower picking money. Marissa insisted on a Hula Hoop to perfect her technique for next year's contest, and Sierra fell in love with a Hello Kitty lunch box. I explained to her that she could fill the box with all sorts of toys or crayons - and she said "Mommy, the box is for my LUNCH!" (what a wise ass)

Brian and I also found the most beautiful wall decor to hang over our fireplace, a set of 4 wall wood panels hand chiseled to reveal a spring tree, designed by Allan H. Palecek, which we found was not a local designer - later purchasing the item on the internet at a fraction of the price!! The day was concluded with a RAIN STORM (no sprinkles - heavy rain), as we enjoyed ice cream and lunch at Red Truck, basically a gourmet roach-coach serving the most cleverly, amazing indian food!

Celebrating the 4th of July in Truckee has been our family tradition for 3 years now. With such a beautiful place and awesome people, this tradition is one we are definitely keeping, and we've already reserved a water/beach front home for next year!