First Fireworks Experience

Tonight, we attempted our first 4th of July celebration that included fireworks. It was a bit of a last minute arrangement. My husband learned about the fireworks at a local country club while he was at work today. So, when he came home, he informed me of his plans. Since it was a bit last minute, I didn't think through what we would need for the excursion.

We started out with a trip to Walmart for fireworks, then stopped by Culver's for ice cream. Next stop--the park across the street from the country club. We decided to play at the park for a bit, which was tons of fun. Both of my girls LOVE to swing. But I tire quickly of the monotony of pushing swings, so I suggested that we cross over to find a seat as soon as it appeared to be getting the least bit dusky. Even the walk across the way was enjoyable, watching Little Miss try to catch lightning bugs and laughing at hubby as he tried to keep up with Baby Girl, who was attempting to take off her diaper. As we got closer to the crowd, I became painfully aware that we were under-dressed. Then, Little Miss decided to take a walk by the lake (which was littered with duck poo). Unfortunately, with this birthday, she also seemed to forget how to obey. So, when she ran away from me, I had to pick up my screaming, kicking child to take her back to her daddy. My hubby took over watch of Little Miss, as we walked around. As we're walking, I mentioned to hubby that we didn't have any chairs, a blanket, or bug spray. We were totally unprepared!

Fortunately, we were on a golf course; on golf courses, there are sand traps. Sand traps have sand, which 3 year olds love! Little Miss and hubby played around a sand trap and caught lightning bugs, while Baby Girl and I listened to the music and danced. But, it was getting past Baby Girl's bedtime, and she was indicating her need to eat. My feet were starting to hurt, and my imagination was going wild with thoughts of contracting the West Nile Virus from all the mosquitos that seemed to be out to get me. It was pretty dark when I suggested we leave. My hubby was all for leaving, since he is running a 5 mile race in the morning. He wanted to go to bed so that he was rested for the race. By the time we were almost back to the street that we needed to cross to return to the park, the first warning fireworks were sent off. So, we quickly found a spot and sat down on the grass, anticipating a great show. Now, I love fireworks, so I couldn't wait for the show to start. However, when the first real set went off, the boom scared Little Miss. It was actually a little funny; as long as Baby Girl felt my hand on her, she was fine. She was mesmerized by the lights. Little Miss, on the other hand, kept hiding her face in her daddy's shoulder, announcing that she scared and wanted to go home. We quickly picked everything up again and walked to the car. I was sorely disappointed to miss the really good portion of the fireworks. Once we got safely into the car, Little Miss commented on how pretty they were. "They won't hurt me; they're just loud," she said. I'm sure my sadness was easily seen when I heard the finale from inside my house.

Maybe next year we can enjoy the fireworks. I certainly hope so!