4th of July

On July 3rd Lauren and I started our vacation. We flew to Chicago to visit our friends Kim and Ella. Kim and I worked together in Chicago and when after I adopted Lauren she started her adoption for her daughter, Ella. She is a good friend and it is so fun to get together and get the girls together.

Once we got to Chicago we headed up to Lake Geneva for a few days. Kim's parents were up there in their timeshare so we got to spend some time with them also. It was so nice and cool and felt so good. We had left 110 degrees in Arizona and when we got to Lake Geneva it was in the 60s.

On the 4th of July we got up and Kim and I went and had a nice spa treatment. What at way to start vacation! Lauren and Ella stayed with Kim's parents and went swimming. When we got back from the spa treatment we took the girls down to the pool area where the hotel had a small cookout going on. The girls ate and then played in the wading pool and of course got wet but had a great time.

After lunch and a nap we changed into dry clothes and got ready for the evening.

The hotel had some great family fun activities for the 4th of July. For the kids they had face painting and some games that they could play. Lauren loves to get her face painted and wanted a kitty face. Ella was a bit afraid of the clowns, so she passed on the face painting.

The girls played some games and won a few prizes. The girls also entered a coloring contest. They had a good time and the hotel is so nice it was a great fun for them.

The girls then had to get snow cones and we got ready for the evening fireworks.

Kim's parents joined us for dinner and the fireworks. The fireworks were over a lake and very pretty.

Lauren saw her first fireflies and thought they were so cool.

It was a fun 4th of July and a wonderful first full day of vacation. We had two very tired girls when we got home. (In fact Ella fell asleep before the fireworks ended.)