4th of July: Theilen style!

Here's a run-down of what the 4th of July looked like this year in Missouri at my parent's place. (Nearly all of these pictures have not been color-corrected or cropped, so they won't be as pretty as they could.)

A few days before the 4th, my parents, Calvin, and I went up to the family lake house for some fun.  We took the boat out a couple of times (Calvin got to steer!), played some games (bocci ball, ping pong, nickle-nickle), and had a wonderfully relaxing time.

Here Grandma Donna and Grandpa Jim pose for a picture with Calvin (with lots of tickling and goofing around).

My mom and dad.

Dockside at the Theilens

 On the 3rd of July we celebrated my cousin Jaime's marriage to Daniel in D.C. earlier that spring. 

Jaime and Daniel, cutting the cake.  Yum!

Calvin is now old enough to take pictures, and sometimes he does pretty good.  Thanks for the picture, Calvin!

My dad (right) with his identical twin brother, my Uncle Jerry (left).

With lots of family staying at my parent's place, we had an early start on the 4th of July.  After breakfast and some time to fill water balloons and other last-minute preparations, we "let the games begin!".  

Some of us started the morning off with a round of pasture golf, which includes one club and a tennis ball and a course through the yard.  Though over the years the course has shrunk (7 holes this year) and now stays mostly in the mowed part of the yard.  Here Calvin is trying to hit the ball while Austin, Aunt Debbie, and Cameron stand in the background.

Uncle Tom, searching for his ball in the grass on the fist hole.  His game improved after that "rough" start.

After struggling on the first hole with an adult-sized golf club, Calvin adopted a 3-year-old-friendly strategy of just throwing the ball.  As you can see, this didn't really give him much of an advantage.  But it made it more fun.

I'm getting ready to hit my ball on the 7th and final hole while Calvin and Bryan watch.  This hole involved sending the ball over the drive way and into a spray painted circle on a hill.  This one had a water hazard: a motion-censored water sprinkler.  Genius.

The 7th hole of pasture golf.

Calvin is always on the look-out for sticks.  He found some long ones over by the barn.

Calvin, playing with sticks - one of this 3-year-old boy's favorite games.

Uncle Jerry, shooting an arrow at a target with a compound bow while his daughter, Janel, and son-in-law, Haney, watch from the shade.

My cousin Janel and her husband Haney.

Uncle Jerry and Aunt Judy.

My niece, Kelsey (right), and her friends, having fun on the 4th of July.

Calvin couldn't participate in most of the events this year.  But he had plenty of entertainment to keep him busy for the day, including a front-end loader (ha ha ha, that's not a bulldozer.  Silly mommy.) and dump truck that had lots of mulch to move.

Uncle John and Aunt Mary enjoying the shade under a big tent.

The swimming pool was fun, but the water was very cold thanks to the cool summer Missouri has had this year.

One of the many projectile games at the 4th of July celebration at my parent's house, the 22-shoot is a popular game.  Here Uncle Dennis takes aim at the target.  Unfortunately, with so many games, people with which to visit, and a 3 year-old to help keep track of, I didn't make to down to the 22-shoot this year. 

Here I'm testing out a new event - a tight-rope walk between two trees.

(left to right) Cousins Cameron, Carolyn, Denton, and Austin formed a competitive team in the obstacle course. 

Cameron and Denton paddling out to the middle of the pond to get their next clue.

Cameron and Denton, celebrating an obstacle course well-played on the dock of the backyard pond.

(left to right) Denton and Cameron play Dan and my sister Michelle in a round of bocci ball.

Carolyn, Uncle Tom, and Austin remain the last three players in this round of croquet.

Spectators (and losers) in this croquet game included Bryan, Denton, and Cameron.

After lunch, the "flat spot" behind the house has a lot of nice shade, and most of the competitors gather there.  Aunt Debbie and Cameron play the balls-on-a-string game (I have no idea what it is actually called, though we've been playing it for years) while Austin and Jaime play a game of washers in the background (with partners off to the left).

Carolyn visits with Cameron and Aunt Debbie.

(left to right) Aunt Mary, Judy, Janel, and Uncle Jerry play a game of bocci ball in the afternoon shade of the big walnut and elm trees behind my parents house.

Aunt Debbie makes bunny ears on Calvin while he swings and Nathan runs off to another game.

Now its time for my favorite event of the day: the 2-person log saw!

Spectators and fellow competitors watch the log saw event, including (left to right) Mom, Austin, Jackie, Cameron, Uncle Tom, and Denton.

Uncle Tom and Cameron start the game off while Bryan, Jaime, and Dad steady the log.  They sliced their section in an impressive 2 minutes 10 seconds.

We had a lot of great teams this year with most scores coming in between 2 and 3 minutes. Here Uncle Jerry and Haney cut through their section in 2 minutes and 12 seconds - they were very close to beating Uncle Tom and Cameron.

In a great show of coordinated teamwork, mom (right) and Aunt Debbie (left) score second place as they slice through their section in just under 2 minutes (1 minute, 55 seconds).  Grandma Betty and Grandpa Joe would be proud!

Maintaining our place as log-saw champions, dad and I breeze through the log in 1 minute 22 seconds.  Like slicing butter! (only every muscle in your body is weak with exhaustion)

Still swinging, Calvin is joined by Daniel.

Michelle (right) and Dan visit with friends while watching the games on the lawn.  It is water balloon time!

Water Balloons!  My niece Kelsey is using the slingshot to send a water balloon to her teammate/friend, who is waiting with a laundry basket to "catch" the balloon.  Bryan (standing) and Calvin wait with friends for their turn.

Calvin:  When is it going to be MY turn???

Trying to be patient.  Ignoring mommy with the camera.

Me: Smile, Calvin!
Calvin:  Cheese!!!

Calvin is getting into the spirit of things!  I'm not sure what he is looking at, but I think it is a water balloon being launched into the air.

After dinner and the last round of games, we all gather back together in the basement for the awards ceremony in which Dad announces who won each event.

There were ~40 family and friends at this year's 4th of July celebration at my parent's place.  It was no small task setting up for the big day - after hours of discussions, brainstorming, and trial and error, it was Michelle and Dan who finally figured out how to arrange all the tables and chairs so that everyone could sit inside and in the same room for lunch, dinner, and the awards ceremony (let alone setting up games, preparing food, etc.)  But it is all worth it and continues to be an annual favorite reunion.

One of the two scoreboards, with the events listed vertically on the left and everyone's names across the top.  As you can see, rarely do all of the events get played by everyone - there just isn't enough time in the day.  Many events don't have scores and aren't even on the board. 

The second score board.  Unfortunately I don't have pictures for all the games played, but you can see many of them listed here. (Missing photos for bb-gun, trap shoot/clay pigeons, blow darts, trivia, not-a-maize maze, rope course, lawn darts, and the water-canon shoot). 

After the awards ceremony and prizes, we all carry our chairs halfway up the 1/4-mile driveway to set off fireworks and watch the various city/town fireworks displays in the distance surrounding my parents place.  The 4th of July has been done this way since I was a kid, with new events added each year.  Some years have special themes ("Survive '05"), and some years are skipped altogether (2010), though that is rare.  Not everyone makes it in every year, but most do most of the time.  In recent years, all of us kids (who are now grown up, of course) stay up late and play mafia or salad bowl, laughing until way too late (at least for my old self), but not wanting the day, the holiday and fun, the time reunited together to end for the year.  This is 4th of July the way my family does it.  This is 4th of July, Theilen-style!