We celebrated America’s independence this past week, and had such a fun family day.  Looking back on our 4th of Julys as a family, it’s about 50/50 between traveling and staying in town.  I can’t say I have a preference.  Of course, we are always up for a travel adventure, but staying off the roads and out of airports on a holiday is definitely a positive!

There’s something special about small town festivities on the 4th of July.  Slaed’s mom grew in Bothell, Washington (about 30 minutes north of downtown Seattle), so we get that sweet feeling of almost coming home when we visit. This year in addition to attending Bothell’s Grand Parade, we made a day of it, and spent time at McMenamins Anderson School.

Another fun family fact/side note: McMenamins Anderson School is a junior high school built in 1931 that’s been turned into a resort! Classrooms were turned into guest rooms that are each named after a significant person in Bothell, Washington’s history. The school/hotel’s namesake is my mother-in-law’s grandfather (Slaed’s great grandfather, and the kid’s great great grandfather), and the school’s first principal, Andy Anderson!

After saving ourselves a spot along the parade route, we headed to the Anderson School’s North Shore Lagoon for a swim.  With water temperatures between 88 and 90 degrees, and open (to the outdoors) skylights, this pool is a dream! We may not have ventured to an exotic location for the 4th, but it sure felt like it with their Polynesian decor and foliage.

We swam for an hour or so, and then treated ourselves to brunch at the resort’s Tavern on the Square.  At first we were a little disappointed that we were too early to choose entrees off of their lunch menu.  However, a quick look at their breakfast sandwich changed all that!  The kids were also thrilled at the novelty of ordering pancakes and eggs after they’d already had “real” breakfast at home.

This was the first year that we actually set up chairs along the parade route.  It worked out well.  Turns out though that folks are allowed to “reserve” their spot starting July 1st (at least this year), so it was slim pickings by the time we arrived.

The Grand Parade is such a nice celebration of community.  You could feel the town coming together.  It was neat for the kids to see important neighborhood entities like the firefighters, postal workers, and community leaders wave at them, smile, and of course, toss the piece of candy their way.

The culmination of the parade ended our Bothell adventure.  The celebrating continued however, closer to home where we barbecued with good friends.

I love how fun, creative and festive everyone got with the food! The layer bean dip that we contributed is actually a lighter, healthier version of the traditional 7-layer dip.  It was easy to whip up (and make holiday ready), and was well received by both kids and adults.

I also have to share the scavenger hunt that my friend Sara created for the kids.  It was a great way to focus their energy for bit, and gave each sibling pair the chance to work as a team, which I loved.  Each clue lead them to a different spot in the yard where a hidden cache with a special prize was waiting.

We ended the night with a wild “homemade” fireworks display.  The actual proper fireworks shows here in town happen later (around 10:20pm!) than we’re willing to let our kids stay up!

What are your independence day traditions?

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