Happy 4th of July!

Holy cow! How is it time for July 4th already? I realize how stupid that must sound, especially considering my nephew's birthday is July 4th and I volunteered to make his cake - and the party IS tomorrow (on the 4th) and I've been working on the cakes pretty much all evening (as my own kids allowed!), but somehow it seems a little surreal... Maybe it's because for the past 3 years all we've done to celebrate the 4th has been a birthday party for the little guy. Maybe it's because now that we have kids ourselves, we can't just pack up and stay out all hours of the evening to watch fireworks. Not to mention the fact that for some reason, my son has decided that he's afraid of fireworks, although I don't think he's ever actually seen any... but any really loud noise and he'll say "Mommy! Fireworks scare me!"

But today, (before I got started on the cakes), as I was running errands with my grandmother, she said something about the local fair - which always falls the week of the 4th. For a moment, I was a little shocked. I grew up going to the fair. It was part of a summer ritual. The fair, the 4th of July, fireworks, funnel cakes, rides... although I'd never go back to being a teenager, sometimes the memories are a little tempting. And it is nice to be able to pick up and go without the fear of keeping eagle eyes on a toddler and carrying around an infant, not being able to ride anything and feeling guilty that you fed your kids popcorn and ice cream for dinner... Why is it okay for us to eat the kind of crap they sell at the fair but for some reason NOT okay for us to feed our kids? Even now, thinking about it, the thought of fried Oreos crosses my mind. Yum!

I've driven around town for the past few weeks, watching people set up those big white tents with the signs for "Fireworks!" all the time knowing that the ones they're allowed to sell aren't the really fun fireworks. I've thought of a friend of ours who has been known to cross into another state where you can get better fireworks. I've even *briefly* remembered a year pre-kids when my husband and I drove into downtown Charlotte one evening to watch the fireworks display. But still, somehow the fact that THIS Saturday was July 4th seems to have snuck up on me.

I realize that it's about so much more than cookouts and fireworks or fairs or birthday parties. One of these days I hope to teach my kids that the holiday is really to celebrate Independence Day. But now, as the mom of a two-year-old and a six-month-old, somehow I think that the cookouts, the family get-togethers, the birthday parties, and hopefully sometime soon, the fireworks will be just fine. Besides, aren't these the things memories are made of?

I hope you and your family and friends have a wonderful holiday, however you choose to celebrate. Be safe and have a great 4th of July!

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