Happy 4th of July

Happy Independence Day! As Archibald’s we are destined to be ever patriotic. We want to make mention of a few of the reasons we are grateful for America.

We have traveled around quite a bit in the last year or so. We’ve moved from Provo, UT to Las Vegas, NV to Newark, DE and now we are summering in Raleigh, NC. On our adventures we have had the opportunity to visit Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, PA and NYC, NY. These places along with almost every other place we have visited honor the known and unknown heroes of our country. We are grateful for the Founding Fathers and their diligence in declaring our independence and writing a constitution that ensures our freedom. We are grateful also for the firefighters and the service men and women who sacrifice so much for us. Without them we would not enjoy the protection and freedom that we have today.

The world around us is magnificent. We have literally been from sea to shining sea in the 2 ½ years we have been married. We have seen mountains, hills, forests, gardens, plains, rivers, and lakes. We love driving, kayaking, swimming, hiking, biking, walking, and (sometimes) running. There are many beautiful places in America and we are grateful that we can freely enjoy them.  Though we miss the red rocks and high mountains of Utah, we have thoroughly enjoyed the green forests of the East.

Finally all of the joys we experience would not be worth it without family and faith. Living in America and having the freedoms we enjoy allows us to have our family and worship how we will. Erik and I are both blessed with wonderful parents and siblings. We are grateful to have each other as well as Alyssa. We are grateful to be members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, to have a living prophet to guide us, and the scriptures to give us knowledge and understanding. We are grateful for the temples that dot the land and the blessings we have received there, especially that we are sealed together forever as a family.

Happy 4^th of July!