MOMday: First Fireworks

This past weekend, we took the girlies out to Elliston Park for the Stampede Fireworks. After how strongly my girlies reacted to the smoke alarm in our house (also known as the "scary beep beep"), I wasn't sure how they'd do with the a) sounds the fireworks made b) the crowds and c) the staying up late.  I knew some prep would be in order.

Saturday afternoon was our niece's eleventh birthday party and dinner.  We didn't end up getting home until close to 9 and the fireworks started at 11.   As we drove home, I gave them the list of what we would do until we waited for the fireworks

1) Eat a snack - so we wouldn't have a blood sugar crash
2) pack some blankets to sit on
3) Change into pajamas - so they could go to bed as soon as we got home.
4) watch a movie about fireworks

Then we would pile into the car and head for the city.

Doodle's "spirited" nature means she does really well if she has a list to recite so this was perfect.  I could ask her what's next and she'd tell me.

Thanks to the magic of the Internet, I was able to find a couple of great videos with big fireworks displays on YouTube.  They showed the sounds, the fireworks themselves and the noise of the crowds. It was really good prep for these midgets because they got the entire experience while sitting on couch eating their snack.  






With our checklist complete, we piled into the care at around 10:20 and drove into the city.  The girlies were chattering excitedly about seeing the "fire flowers"

We found parking not far from the entrance on the west side of the park and discovered that the crowds were pretty thin on the hill over there.  The girlies rested while we waited for the show to begin. 

The show was great - and though not as colourful as I'd hoped for, the girlies still said it was like beautiful rainbows.  Buggie didn't like the noise but she confidently told me she would just put her hands on her ears and watch.  Without the preparation for the noise, I think we may have had a temper-storm worth leaving the park over.   Doodle just snuggled in and pointed and exclaimed about the beauty.  The few steps we took to prepare them really increased our enjoyment of the overall show and made for a wonderful first fireworks experience for my daughters.

and the rains held off until the show was over and we were walking back to the car.  So lucky.

When we got home and I draped a sleepy Doodle over my shoulder, she kept mumbling over and over "Go again, momma.  See the fire again"   I think we may need to score some Global Fest tickets now.