Our Fourth Of July--Part 2

The Fireworks:

We all took a good long nap (after watching the space shuttle lift off at Daddy's request), and we were ready for an afternoon of fun! A pretty big storm rolled through while we were resting, but it looked as if there wasn't any rain and we were in the clear for the rest of the evening. I re-packed the bags and cooler, grabbed a quilt and we were off again!

We got to Strasburg park around 6:30, and walked about a half mile from the parking spot we got well down the road. We rolled Gracie around in her stroller and let her see all the activities. There were 10 or so inflatable games, pony rides, food, over-priced souvenirs, and a really awful band playing. We thought that Gracie would have a great time, so we took her over to some of the inflatable bouncy things, but she wouldn't budge. We walked around some more, tried different things...she demanded back in the stroller. At this point I was getting a little frustrated. It is hard to have such a shy child. All of these things looked like fun, and best of all they are free! But still, I try to stay calm and not push her to do things--that won't help any of us. I am starting to get worried about the fireworks for tonight remembering the stroke she had last year. I don't mean to be, sometimes I am really embarrassed that my child is such a "chicken." Its at this point, I check my temper and remember that it is who Gracie is, and I can't expect anything more from her. The best I can do is show her a good time and do my best to reinforce that there is nothing to be scared of.

We gave up on the games and even the free pony rides, and headed for the ice cream stand. This seemed to make Gracie feel better. We enjoyed our treats after we staked out a prime spot on the lawn, perfect for watching the fireworks later on.

From here we spent much of our time playing with Gracie (I brought along a kit of books, toys, crayons, etc just in case, and boy am I glad I am a prepared parent!) and listening to the really awful singer the town hired. Ironically, Gracie was intrigued by the band. She adores music, so I think that really helped her stay calm.

When it started to get dark I pulled out the light sticks I had been saving that Grandma got for her at the dollar store last month, and the over-priced light up toy that they bought her last year. Gracie had plenty of fun with these glow in the dark toys, and I was starting to feel more optimistic about the pyrotechnics. Last year we fleed in embarrassment with a screaming baby. The year before we were so proud of our fourth month old who watched in amazement at the fireworks and didn't cry. I wasn't sure what to expect this year, but I told Garren we wouldn't flee, that only makes it seem like we were running from something scary.

At 9:30 the fireworks started, and so did the screams. Garren held her, but that wasn't working. I reached in the bag for the thermal receiving blanket I had packed just in case she got cold, and I scooped her up and held her up against my chest, putting the receiving blanket over her head like a jacket hood so she could still see. I held her head tight and covered her ear with my hand. She was heavy and sweaty, but she stopped crying! It worked. She didn't exactly "ohh, and ahh," but she felt safe with me holding her tightly and the blanket acting as a "shield."

It didn't take long before my back and legs were killing me, so I laid down and put her in between Garren and I still holding her tight. She whimpered a little but then she calmed down and I covered her ear again. She seemed to enjoy watching the colors, and I kept things calm by calling out the colors and shapes and making a big fuss over how neat they were. Believe it or not when the 15 minute show was over she sat up and clapped with everyone else! We were so proud of our brave little girl!

All in all, things went well, and we had a wonderful family day. Poor little Gracie was so exhausted from the day, she feel asleep in minutes after putting her to bed.

You can see the pictures from the day by clicking here. You'll also see some of the fireworks we saw as Garren tried out the "fireworks" setting on our camera.

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