Family for the Fourth! Fireworks at the Capitol

Utah has been hotter than two cats dancing on a hot dutch oven.

^It's okay, you weren't supposed to understand that. Speaking of which, my family is here for the Fourth of JULY! I blogged about our adventures up at Silver Lake here.

For a fun fourth of July adventure, Rissa and I were thinking Red Butte Gardens. However, Mother Nature had something different. Or the Devil. Because hot damn it is absolutely boiling out there. My parents came to Utah for a reprieve from the boiling California desert heat. Only to be greater by temperatures hotter than back home. Yes. You read that right. Hotter than Palmdale.



Instead we decided to check out the Natural History Museum. Which I thought would be a snooze fest because that attention span of mine. But it was way fun! They have lots of interactive activities!

You can see my dad playing with one of the models. And a bunch of our feet above some dino bones. Thanks glass floor! A big part of the exhibit was of course dinosaurs. Utah is pretty big into dinosaurs, it was a thing once. And because dinosaurs are frightening and deserts are hot and dry and barren, there are a lot of "make this face with me" photos.

Check out the top right picture. Little prehistoric monkey thing!



Happy faces in dinosaur places! It is fun to get your picture taken by bones...of dinosaurs.

The museum has lots of other things besides dinosaur bones though. One of my favorites was all the gems and stones they had. How much for this one?

At one point I think I may have "accidentally" locked Ross out of the museum. 

Its okay. He took refuge in the Area of refuge. But eventually my mom saw my "mistake" and let him back in. Love you Rossy! Oh yeah, he took the afternoon off from studying. It was a small miracle for sure. He is so close to taking his exam and being DONE! But not just yet. 

There is a pretty view of Salt Lake City from the museum. This is a risky picture because, IT. WAS. SO. HOT. Especially out there with the sun reflecting off shiny surfaces. I barely made it. 

We chilled at Rissa's chic home until things had cooled off a little. Ross and I ventured out to Sugarhouse Park to check out the fair and spots for the fireworks. I got some cool new jewelry from a local vendor, but we rushed back because it was miserably hot. 

There are many fantastic locations to see fireworks in the Salt Lake Valley. It is a pretty big deal here and high schools, parks, companies, organizations, all get together and have very legit fireworks shows. We decided to try our luck at the Capitol Building. Because I'm not republican, and I don't want to die a martyr, I've never been to the Capitol building. 

But I can say, one this grand, patriotic day, it was breathtaking at sunset! It has a nice grassy lawn and we found a really perfect spot before things got too crowded. 

A pano with a dad clone. TWO? How lucky!!

The view wasn't the absolute best for firework viewing, but we could see various shows all around the valley, and that was pretty cool! 

Perhaps the best part of the night was the surprise fireworks show after we had left the Capitol. What do I mean by that? I mean, Rissa was driving us back home when almost directly above the car, we saw the largest and most bright and beautiful fireworks! Right above our heads! A few more shot off and they were so close that the smoke clouded the view of the car. It was epic.

And although I haven't joined my comrades in public appreciation for America and all those who fight and work to keep it free, I am most grateful. It is a humbling day to realize the freedoms and liberties we have, which are even more special when we share them with family.