THe 4th of July and Justin's week home!

The 4th of July this year we got to spend time with my mom and my dad.  My mom had flown in earlier to give me a hand since Justin has been gone and my dad drove in on Wednesday to come spend time over the holiday weekend (and to take my mom back home:) We give him a big thanks for surviving on his own while she was here spending time and helping us out!  On the 4th of July McKinney has a big celebration that starts with a parade in the morning, a car show in the afternoon and a big firework display in the evening.  This year since I had the extra help I was able to two out of the three events.  Me, Peyton and my dad went to see the parade in downtown McKinney since she is my child who can handle waiting for things to start and doesn't mind sitting still.  She really enjoyed seeing all the dogs and horses that were in the parade, but she could have done without the loud motorcycles. We then came home so she could have lunch and take a nap and the later that afternoon me, my dad and Jack went back to walk around and check out the car show.  Jack was very interested and loved walking around and looking at all the different cars.  He found his favorite car dealership had a few cars in the show (Bob Tomes Ford) and was very excited to that and also loved the Mustangs.  We didn't stay long because it started to get warm being directly in the sun, but over all it was a beautiful day and wasn't unbearable which for July 4th in Texas is saying something.  We came home and had a little cookout.  We recorded the fireworks on TV for the kids to watch later but neither on of them were very impressed.  Maybe next year will be our year to brave the fireworks, and then again maybe not...

Parade time with Peyton:

 

Car Show time with Jack:

 Just saw the Bob Tomes sign:

 "mom, I don't pose for pictures..."

Justin come home on July 5th and despite the first few day of fighting the jet lag he jumped back into things pretty quickly.  The kids were both so happy to see him and I let them stay up a little later then usual so they see him when he first got home.  Peyton got so excited she ran up to him and gave him a big hug and a kiss, and Jack got the biggest smile on his face.   My parents were in town until Sunday so Justin and I got to spend a little time together without the kids.  We went to a late dinner the night he got home and even got to see the new movie World War Z, which was pretty good.  The kids and I kept our same weekly routine, Jack got to go back to social, and Justin went into the office to catch up on his work here in Dallas.  We tried to eat some of his favorite foods while he was in town since the food in China can be interesting :)  He had to get up really early this morning and left at 4:30 to start on his journey back (thank goodness for the car service).  He  has already landed in Chicago and will be boarding a plane for the long trip back to Shanghai very soon.  This trip is not as long as the first one and he will be coming back home  on August 2nd. The kids and I are getting excited to seeing Justin's sister Joyce and her husband Michael.  They will be arriving on Friday so we have some company for a few day's while Justin is away these next three weeks.  

Today we are enjoying a nice rain shower which is suppose to bring with it cooler temperatures, so maybe we will have the opporutinty to get outside a little more this week.  I hope everyone has a great week and I will post again soon. 

    Here are some picture of Peyton helping me make guacamole for dinner, she is turning into a my great little helper: