Tuesday, July 23, 2013

4th of July in Fillmore, CA

Our country’s Independence Day is a wonderful holiday for me (and it has nothing to do with the red, white and blue desserts).

Benny and grandma watch the Fillmore High Fireworks

I have fond memories of anxiously anticipating the trip to Fillmore, California where fireworks are allowed and where we would gather at my godmother’s Guille's house every year to watch the colorful light displays of dangerous explosives. I usually stood back and let the little boy cousins do the work, often covering my ears and nervously waiting for the bright, smoky surprise to pop.
This year, I drove my son Benjamin to his first Fourth of July Fillmore Experience.

I should mention that my husband, in hopes of passing along to his son the boyish amusement of lighting rowdy, loud firecrackers, purchased several the night before and lit them on our driveway. Benny cried and hated them.

But I figured it would be better the next night since I took time to explain to my 7 month old, the history of Independence Day as I drove to Fillmore. His little eyes seemed sleepy as I went on about the 13 colonies and Thomas Jefferson and the Declaration of Independence but I know my Benny, and I just know he understood and immediately felt a new appreciation for the fireworks..ha!

In any case, we arrived in Fillmore but this time it was not at my godmother Guille's House.  We went to her daughter’s house (my dear cousin Luanita…how we’ve grown!).
Luanita has a month-old precious baby named Ethan who is certainly going to be one of Benny’s partners in crime.
Baby Ethan being held by his Uncle Alex
Both babies took the fireworks very well… Benny seemed to want to let out a loud cry every time a firework was lit but was overcome by curiosity to keep watching the light show and never actually cried. Ethan let out a few soft sobs, but he's practically a newborn so we'll attribute those to colics :)

It was a beautiful, cheerful and festive day with love all around. Best of all, our baby boys handled the noise fairly well! (yay). 

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