John and Brody looking good and happy on the 4th
We had family pictures planned for later that morning and repeatedly told Brody that, once we got there, it was picture time and not play time. Well, either he didn't listen or he really didn't care, because once we were all ready to take pictures, he had a major meltdown. Out of 11 grandchildren ranging from 7 years to 4 months, he was the only one to throw a huge fit. Of course!
Brody is a very strong kid, especially when he is resisting, so it took everything Lee had to hold on to him. I guess the chances of at least one child having a meltdown would be pretty great. Just why did it have to be mine! :( 
Having his alone time.
When he is mad or sad, he hates people to look at him.
Piper was just fascinated with Miriam's ear.
As long as he was playing and not forced to take pictures, he was smiling and happy. What a stubborn kid. He can't be made to do anything. And that doesn't come from me by the way. :) I really love these shots they took of him. Very cute!
Here is our family picture. Not bad for post meltdown.
This one is classic Piper. Love it!
Here are some other candid shots they took.
Piper eyeing down her shoes.
They finally made it in her mouth. Only a matter of time. She is obsessed with the soles of shoes, much like Brody was at this age. At least hers are clean.
"Trains, trains,trains, I love trains!"
After pictures, we had a great barbecue and then celebrated (Brody's cousins) Holden and Ethan's birthdays. Here are some pictures of the kids waiting patiently for their food.Sweet Lili
Tired Brody
Best friends Brooke and Lili
Birthday boys Holden and Ethan
Amy, Asher, Ethan, Papa, and Brody.
Mark and Brooke chatting it up.
"Mom, please stop taking pictures."
Mmmm, cake!
Later on that day and, after a seriously fun pool party (sorry no pictures), we did sparklers with the kids. Thanks to Meredith and Brian for sneaking them across the boarder. Brody was the first to try his and the first to get burned (it wasn't that bad), but he loved every minute of it.
The 4th of July is one of my favorite holidays of all time and my favorite part is the fireworks, of course. But this year I was a little too shaken up to relax and enjoy. Just before the fireworks started, we had a rush of panic because we (or I) lost Brody. It was getting really dark and I was trying to keep track of Brody among all the kids while John talked to a friend. It wasn't more than 2 or 3 minutes after Brody had come up to me with an injury that I noticed he was wasn't with all the other boys. We started to search around our area, but couldn't find him anywhere. It was too crowded and too dark to see. We all started searching then and it was probably a solid 5 minutes or more before he was found. Those were the scariest 5 minutes of my life and they seemed like forever! My brother-in-law Brian found him way over across the field with a group that was playing catch. He was happily playing and had no idea that anything was wrong. That is exactly Brody, though. He is my wanderer and follows anything that catches his interest. Thankfully, it all ended good and we were able to see some great fireworks.
Piper was fascinated by them.
Relaxing with Daddy.
All a little tired from a crazy, fun day.
Watching the finale with the cousins.
We had a memorable day and so glad that we could celebrate with family. Thanks to those who traveled so far. We loved seeing everyone and Brody loved hanging out with his cousins.
