CELEBRATING AMERICA... BETTER LATE THAN NEVER

She's so happy!

Which makes me happy!

We were in Europe on the 4th of July.  So our besties waited to celebrate with us!  And we celebrated America on the 14th of July.  We played games.  We BBQed.  And we shot off fireworks!  We are soooooooo blessed with our DeThortenhausen family!  Kotten Kandy declared that it was "a perfect day!" 

Nine Square with our "family!"

Isn't she cute?!

Playing with sparklers....

Raisin and Jelly Bean

Lovin' our day to celebrate America!

I think he might be up to something?!

We only missed the Lillywhites....  They celebrated America on Independence Day.  My sweet niece, Mariah, made a delicious breakfast for Kiara, Cody, Gary and Shanae.  And she sent pictures!  (Kiara sometimes forgets to send her mother pictures... and it makes me sad.)  I teased Mariah that she forgot to send pictures of herself... so I got a selfie!  She's so wonderful!  I'm blessed to be related to all of these crazy, college kids! 

My beautiful daughter, and handsome son!

Mariah went all out....

Gary and Shanae...

Breakfast was early...

Apparently, Mariah is a morning person!

Isn't she gorgeous?!

I love my talented, beautiful and kind niece!

(Kiara and Cody also did fireworks with their besties: the Blacks.  But, again, she forgot to take pictures.  So she sent me a picture a couple of days later so I could "meet" their friends!)

Cody photo-bombed the picture of the Blacks!

Don't they look like a great couple?

I'm glad my kiddos have good friends!

And I got a couple of bonus pictures from my girl!  Yahoo!

While I was on vacation in Europe, I was able to read 4 novels. So....  Here are my reviews, for those who are interested, read on:

The first book I read, I read in 60 minutes.  Katia read it right after me.  It took her about 50 minutes to read.  The book was called Life on the Refrigerator Door: Notes Between a Mother and Daughter by Alice Kulpers.  This was one of the sadest books I've ever read, but I'm glad I read it.  Katia and I both cried.  The story unfolds as notes are left on the refrigerator by the mother and the high school aged daughter.  It was really amazing that the author could create such wonderful character development by writing notes.  I'd recommend it... IF you want to cry.
My parents recommended the next three books.  They are a series of WWI mystery novels written by Anne Perry.  I read two of her Detective Monk books already, and I really like her writing style.  So I was excited to read these books.

In No Graves As Yet, Anne Perry captures the world before WWI so beautifully that I felt the loss of innocence like it was my own when the war began.  Add to that a gripping multiple murder mystery and I thought the books couldn't be better.  I also really enjoyed the characters these books revolve around: the Reavley family.  I really enjoyed No Graves As Yet... And I couldn't wait to get back to America to start the second book, so my sweet husband got it for me.

Shoulder the Sky is the second book.  This book is approximately 8 months into WWI.  The Reavley's It again follows the Reavley family.  Joseph Reavley, a chaplain and former Cambridge professor, is ministering to the wounded and dying in the thick of trench warfare on the Western Front.  Matthew Reavley, Joseph's younger brother, is a member of England's Secret Intelligence Service.  In this book, they deal with another murder and are still trying to figure out who killed their parents in the first book. Reading these books is great, and I've learned a LOT about WWI in the process!

Angels in the Gloom continues the story of the Reavley family.  Historical fiction has really helped me to understand WWI (which I didn't understand before).  Anne Perry brings such depth to her stories and she hasn't disappointed me yet.  After reading the previous two novels in this series, I knew I had to keep going.  This story takes place 3 years after the first book.  It truly makes war "visible" and terrible.  Throughout the books, we see the toll the war takes on families, etc.  It's hard to read, at times due to the nature of war, but I definitely recommend this book series.  I love the characters.  I love the murder mysteries wove throughout the story of war.
Thanks, mom and dad, for the Anne Perry recommendation!  I'm recommending them to my friends now too!