Our Independence Day Celebrations ~Part 3

The evening of July 5th we held our own little family celebration and did all of those traditional little things that make these sort of celebrations special. We set off a very few small fireworks and the girls got to do a few more sparklers but the crowning moment of the night was making and eating our own homemade ice cream. The girls talk about it for days before hand!





And it is always fun when you have a baby to share it with ;)...
Here are way too many pictures of Andrew eating his first ice cream cone...









More ice cream? Please mom? Can I have yours?



It was a precious night :).
As with everything we have a reason for celebrating the Fourth Of July with our children. We do have a lot of fun and make precious memories but the whole time we are using this as a way to have an on-going, days-long conversation about the providence of God in their lives. Lee explained to the girls how blessed they are to live in America. How blessed they are to live somewhere where they can worship God openly, own a Bible and have plenty to eat, among other things. God determined exactly when and where we would live and we feel it is very important for our children to understand the times in our world today as well as to see how God has protected His people throughout HIStory, from Genesis 1:1 to the birth of our nation to the present day. So, while we do have a lot of fun, it's not all about fun. It's about being grateful to a mighty God who has set us here in this time and in this place for a reason. How we pray that America would abandon her liberal walk down the broad path and turn back to the straight and narrow along which blossom the blessings of God, and may God continue to bless our nation.

God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things; and hath made of one all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us: For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring. ~Acts 17:24-28