Yesterday was Biscuit's first Fourth of July. My parents were in town until yesterday afternoon, and Jeff and I had just planned to hang out at home last night. We both like fireworks, but the show in Greensboro is so big, it's just too much of a hassle to get in and out of the place where they have it.
But when a friend called to suggest we meet them for dinner then see the fireworks show in their smaller town, we thought it sounded like fun.
We drove over and had dinner at a good Italian restaurant near their house. Since Biscuit has gotten so good at sitting up, I figured he could try one of the booster seats that they pull up to the table. He was asleep when we got to the restaurant (20 minutes or more in the car and he's down for the count), so we just left him in the car seat and carried him in.
We ordered some cheese bread as an appetizer, salads and pasta dishes. Then I jinxed myself. I thought, "Wouldn't it be nice if Biscuit slept until I was done eating?" So what happened? He woke up as soon as the cheese bread hit the table.
Jeff got one of the booster seats, and I set up the fancy cover thing he got for a baby shower present. It's a padded seat cover that fits over boosters or the front seat on store buggies. We got him all strapped in, then he had his dinner of two jars of baby food - summer vegetable medley and sweet potatoes. He tolerated the veggies and chowed down on the sweet taters.
We left the restaurant and went back to our friends' house. As usual, I had a takeout box from the restaurant with most of my dinner in it. They said the community center where they were doing the fireworks show was within walking distance of their house. And I was more than a little excited that I had a new stroller to take on the excursion.
It was a nice walk until we ran across some brilliant citizens who thought it would be a good idea to park on the side of the street, straddling the sidewalk. Biscuit's stroller has small bicycle-type tires, but still, I don't think off-roading-it should really include having to scale ditches and embankments. But with me pushing, Jeff at the front and a friend on each side, we got the boy safely back onto a cement surface.
We got to the community center, and it looked like everyone in the town had turned out. We found a nice spot and threw down a blanket. I took Biscuit out of his stroller and let him stretch out and play. I was excited about seeing the fireworks because I can't remember the last time I went to a fireworks show. But at the same time, I had no idea how Biscuit would react to the noise, so I was also pretty nervous. Throw in that it was WAY past his bedtime - an hour and a half, to be precise.
The first fountain of sparks lit up the sky, and it was followed by a pretty loud boom. Biscuit jumped, but he didn't make any noise. The next one went off and still nothing. I was holding his face close to mine and talking to him, telling him the colors and saying "Wow" and "Look" and whatever else I could think of to let him know it was okay.
They sent up two or three at one time, then there was a pause of a few seconds. Biscuit's little head started turning all around. He was looking for more fireworks. I was nervous that he would be scared, but here he was looking around for more.
After the show was over, we loaded him back into his stroller, and I figured he'd be asleep before we got back to our friends' house. But with all the excitement, he was still wide awake and looking around. I don't know where he could've gotten that nosiness from!
We didn't even go in when we got back to our friends' house. We just loaded the boy in the car and headed home. We didn't place bets on how fast he'd be asleep, but I'm pretty sure that instead of his normal 20 minutes, it was more like two.
I hope he continues to be okay with fireworks. It would be a fun Fourth of July family tradition.
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