Happy 4th of July!

The 4th of July was last Thursday and we had a wonderful day. We had a lazy morning and then went out at about 10:30am or so to see what was going on at various local city events. Kaysville and Layton both had parades, fairs and fireworks. Being new to the area, we weren't sure which to go to and decided to tour Kaysville attractions first and then go to Layton's if we had time and the kids moods allowed it.

We had to park several blocks away from Kaysville's fair because of all the traffic and crowds. On our walk, Emmett tripped (as usual) and skinned his knee and elbow pretty badly. I usually keep band aids in the basket of the stroller because Emmett falls down and hurts himself almost every time we go for a walk. Unfortunately, Emmett had removed the band aids the other day to look at them and apply them to "pretend" owies and I had forgotten to put them back. His shirt and shorts got a little bloody and he cried for a long time, but eventually he forgot about it and we were able to have fun again.

Even though the weather was much cooler than it had been earlier in the week, it was still 100 degrees and so hot/miserable to be outside in. We caught the end of the Kaysville parade (Emmett loved the motorcycles, horses, and school marching bands) and then battled our way through the crowds to get to the fair. Once there, we parked under a canopy for the shade and took a much needed water break. Casey found a first aid station and we were able to put band aids on Emmett's knee and elbow.

After our long walk in the sun, Bethany looked the way we all felt.

 

While we were getting our drinks, Emmett noticed the inflatable slides and jumping houses/toys that had been set up for kids to play on (free admission!) and begged us to take him over to play. Casey went with Emmett and I stayed in the shade with Bethany and played with the camera.

Casey and Emmett returned about 10 minutes later and Emmett was crying inconsolably. Apparently a little girl half his age knocked him down in the bounce house and jumped on his head a few times. Emmett was too scared to go down slides or jump and play because there were so many kids he just kept getting knocked over.

 There was a booth that had balance bikes and we tried to show Emmett how to ride one and push it along with his feet. We'd talked about getting him one for his birthday instead of a scooter but had decided not too because they're quite expensive. Emmett played on it a little bit and then got too nervous and wouldn't ride it anymore. It made us glad we hadn't paid money for one!

Since nothing seemed to be working out, we ended up just getting Emmett a snow cone and sitting in the shade. Casey heroically walked back to the car and let me wait comfortably for him to come and pick us up.

And while all of our other attempts to please him had failed miserably, Emmett thoroughly enjoyed his first snow cone...

....but probably not his first experience with "brain freeze".

Bethany passed the time shredding napkins and playing with grass and leaves.

When the snow cone ran out and the leaves and napkins had lost their novelty, they entertained each other by growling loudly and then laughing hysterically.

Soon Casey returned with the car and we all went home. We ate lunch and the kids crashed for their nap. I went to sleep too, and Casey went to the store for groceries. (I have the most amazing husband, don't I?)

Around 4pm our Uncle Craig dropped in for a visit! He stayed for dinner and we grilled veggies while he played with Emmett. Then he was sweet enough to take us out for ice cream at Baskin-Robbins.

Originally we had planned not to go to any firework shows and to just lite a few at home, but Casey decided to be "super-dad" and took Emmett to see the Layton city firework display that started at 10pm! We considered trying to keep Bethany up for the show, but decided we couldn't risk it. Although Emmett was able to stay up late for a firework show without a hysterical meltdown when he was only one year old, Bethany needs her schedule and her sleep! I was sad not to be there for Emmett's first real experience with fireworks, but Casey filled me in on how it went.

Apparently, Emmett was enthralled with all the little fireworks that people were setting off before the show. He would point at each one and screech, "Oh! Do you see the fireworks?! Do you see the colors?!" When the big show started, apparently the display was quite large and impressive and it was directly over their heads. It scared Emmett at first, and when the show began he turned to Casey and exclaimed, "We need to go home!" Casey reassured him, however, and soon Emmett was enjoying them and screaming, "BOOM!" at the top of his lungs each time a firework went off. All the way home he sang "Old McDonald had a farm.... and on that farm he had a firework.... with a BOOM BOOM here and a BOOM BOOM there, here a BOOM there a BOOM, everywhere a BOOM BOOM!" In short, it was little boy heaven. He behaved perfectly, there were no melt downs, and he went to bed without a fuss when he came home. The next morning he woke up at his usual early hour (6:30am) but then when I was putting Bethany down for her nap at 10am he told me, "Mom, I just really need to take a nap too." and went to his room for a 4.5 hour siesta. From a mother's point of view, it was awesome!