Our 4^th of July has been the perfect kind of weekend so far – a good mix of family, vegging-out, sight-seeing, and eating. Friday, Katie & Benjamin came down from Vermont to visit with us and celebrate the 4^th. After watching an episode of Tyler’s Ultimate, I decided to try to make fried chicken for the first time and it came out really well! It was a little tricky to maintain the optimal temperature of the oil, but I got the hang of it after the first few batches. We were all too tired from too much food & Rock Band to go see fireworks – not to mention the 10pm launchtime is WAY past the girls’ bedtimes – so we all passed out in the living room watching baseball. Not a bad end to a nice day.

Saturday we had a nice lazy morning on the deck drinking watered-down coffee and watching the girls play. After Katie & Benjamin headed off to their next destination, we decided to do a little roadtrip ourselves and took off for Gloucester, Massachusetts. (pronounced - GLAWSTAH) It only took about 45 minutes to get there. We parked at Fort Point Beach, played at the playground for a while, and then walked the boardwalk up the shore. Hannah loved throwing rocks into the water and looking through the telescopes at the lighthouse. Lucy liked watching all the dogs go by and being carried along the beach. After another stop at the park, we drove to the Gull Restaurant and had a really nice meal overlooking the harbor. This place reminded both of us a lot of the Spit in Homer, Alaska. We then headed to Essex, to a toy shop called The Silly Goose (perfect for our Goose) that was filled to the brim with all kinds of little notions. Hannah picked out a new magic wand and Lucy found a maracas that was especially tasty. On our way out of town, we happened upon Woodman’s which we were told had an ice cream shop in the back. Little did we know that the front is a world-famous seafood shop that had a line out the door and down the street. We’ll definitely need to go back there! Luckily, the ice cream shop wasn’t nearly as crowded, so we enjoyed some cones while Lucy practiced her new walking skills amongst the picnic tables.

Both girls were pretty tired by the time we got home. Mom & Dad are too. An early turn-in sounds like the perfect ending to this day!