ringin' in the 4th with sparkle pens and flag treats

This year we didn't ring in the 4th with our annual July 4th party, and that's okay.

Baby showers, weddings, beach trips, and day trips, have been keeping us busy, so Independence Day was upon us before we knew it. That doesn't mean that we forgot about our Nation's Big Day, though.

Here's how we're celebrating July 4th, today:

• Sparkle Pens: I revved up our pen jar a bit and surprised Maddy, Owen, and Cora when they went to write names this morning in their Everyday Name Books.
  

Inspired by an idea I saw in the July 2010 issue of Family Fun, all I did was cut apart some July 4 bling I picked up at the craft store and taped it to some basic, plain-Jane pens.

I always kept a jar of crazy pens in my classroom when I was teaching--kids love to use them, even if they're the big guys in high school. When my own kiddos woke up to these at the breakfast table, they knew they were in for a happy, sparkly 4th of July.

• Rice Krispie Treat Candy Flag: We usually stick to our old faithful, Flag Cake but decided to mix it up a bit this year. (And I wanted to get rid of a ton of candy we had in the house!)
  

I had Maddy, Owen, and Cora separate the red candy from the blue candy while I whipped up the RK treats.

First we separated the blue and red candy from the rest. . .

. . . and then we got ready to make our flag!

We squished the blue candy in the corner for the stars, and we lined up the red candy--M & M's, red fish, and red jelly beans--for the stripes.

When we finished, it was one big, beautiful, sweet and totally unhealthy picnic treat in all its glory.

Two easy, fun, and patriotic treats on a sunny Independence Day here at our house, sneaking in a little--and okay, I mean little--writing, sorting, and cooking fun along the way.

Happy 4th!