The Jennings Four: The Fourth of July

Does everyone still have all of their fingers, and their hearing?! This was the first year that we actually bought fireworks for Ben. I've been a little hesitant, because I remember all too well, as a little kid, blowing up lots of things with Black Cats, writing on driveways with Smoke Bombs, trying to get the snakes to stay lit long enough to get one long, and whole, snake. I also remember the total fear when one went off in my hands, the ringing in my ears that lasted all day and the uncertainty of approaching a firework that didn't go off, hoping it wouldn't go off in my face! We got him the usual poppers that snap when you throw them, but I also got him some smoke bombs. OK, so it's not like I just took the leap and bought out the fireworks stand, but this was at least a start! I might have been a little too twitchy to teach him, because as I handed him the punk, I told him, "Light the wick by touching the end with this. When you hear it go 'pstt' MAKE A RUN FOR IT!" After he lit a few he stopped running and actually enjoyed the 5 seconds of smoke!

We also went to Highlonesome Ranch to see Jason's Aunt Julie, Uncle Jay, Jennifer and Daniel. His cousin, Jeanette, was also in town and she brought her two boys, Zachary (six months older than Ben) and Lucas (three months older than Rew). It was a really nice visit because we haven't seen Jeanette in three years and the last time Ben and Zachary saw each other they were around 2 years old. The two older boys really hit it off and became fast friends. I don't think Lucas and Rew realized there was another kid there that was their age! We played in the creek, and all of the boys got to ride a horse.