I wanted to write this post right away because I didn’t want to lose the feeling from the day… but alas, time got the best of me and I forgot.
After a great parade and some quality time with Nana and her puppy dog, we came home for naps and then went to my parents’ country club for a fourth of July party with my sister and her fam (something we’ve done with my parents for the past 3 years).
The kids all went swimming, there was music, food and a bounce house obstacle course race thing.
It was great. Just so, so great. Sometime around 6 or 7, we took the kids back to my parents house. My kiddos went to bed and the rest of us hung out, played games and watched a movie. Around 9, we woke up Charlie to take her back to the fireworks.
When we got to the car, she noticed that little Hem wasn’t with us. “Where’s hemy?” We explained that he was still too little and had to stay at Grandma and Grandpa’s house. She cried. “But I want my Hemy! We gonna pick him up and put him in my car after fireworks?” No, honey. “But I want my Hemy!!!” <MELT>
When we got to fireworks, C was excited and a little nervous. A few days earlier, I had bought some noise cancelling protective headphones… in blue of course, so she was ready.
The fireworks started and she was super timid. Her face looked panicked and she sunk back into Mark. She started muttering things like, “I no like fireworks. I’m all done.” etc. Finally, I just started hyping it up. “WOAH!! Did you see those colors? Wow!!! That’s beautiful! I LOVE that kind!!”
Charlotte got into it. “Mommy, you wuv that kind??” “You see dat? Its butiful!”
I loved every moment. We Oooo’d and Ahhhh’d! We hugged and laughed and were totally those annoying firework commentators.
When the fireworks ended, we walked around looking for fireflies and checking out the stars and moon. Charlotte goes to bed so early, she rarely (if ever) sees the night’s sky.
We decided to head back home – H slept at my parents’ house – and look for fireflies in the backyard. Our neighbor was shooting off fireworks.
Charlotte was so incredibly happy. I can’t even begin to explain it, but there was just this magical feeling about the whole day. Like, such a cliche movie-type day.
When we finally got C in bed, she just kept hugging us saying, “mommy, daddy, i wuv you. We wuv eachovers.”
If only I could just put it in my pocket. Bottle that moment and that feeling and those sounds and smells and everything up and keep it with me forever.
What an amazing summer day.