Beautiful 4th of July

Our friends son Gus has his Birthday on the 4th of July so for the last 3 years we have enjoyed celebrating with them in one way or another. This year we were invited over to their new house for a lunch celebration this year. They decided to stretch out the day and had picked up chicken and tri-tip steaks to grill in the evening for those who wanted to make a whole day out of it. What a day it was! There were so many kids and so many different ages that I hardly had to supervise Anders the whole time and all the parents were able to just relax and chat all day.
At one point in the afternoon I noticed that Anders was getting overwhelmed from all the activity and had snuck away to do something "lonely" (play quietly with toy soldiers). I told him that after cake and presents he was going to have a little nap time in one of the bedrooms. He came up to me shortly after cake and practically begged to have his quiet time! I took him in a bedroom and read him some books and had him lay down and try to close his eyes. I rested too! =0)
After that nice interlude we continued to party until late into the evening and Anders had fun the entire time. There were no meltdowns just pure fantastic fun. Here are some pictures of the day

One happy boy!

All the kids took turns beating up a Transformers Pinata.

The Birthday boy Gus turning 4 on the 4th!

Some of the kids admiring baby Mae, Gus's little baby sister.

Chris and I really enjoyed ourselves.

Little girls love babies!

Little boys love weapons! This was a marshmallow shooter that was a big hit with Anders.

This is where I found Anders during the height of the party chaos. He needed some "lonely" time he told Chris.

Kids world!

Chris chatting with our friend John Walquist.

The kids got glow sticks while we waited to see if we could catch any fireworks from the back yard.

Looking a little crazed....

We had a raucous dance party after fireworks and the kids (and adults) danced the night away.