4th of July!

Last night we went to our town's annual firework display, and the girls had a ball.  Julia has had to come around to enjoying fireworks, after the disastrous July 3, 2009, upon which we had to rush her home after the first burst of sparkling colors because she was afraid the fireworks were going to "sprinkle down" on her.  However, as a seasoned 8-year-old viewer, Julia is now quite at home with the town's annual tradition.  Madeleine, on the other hand, has never felt anything but joy at the sight of the fireworks, and last night's display took the cake for her.

Madeleine entertained the whole crowd around us with her bellowing exclamations of wonderment throughout the whole show.

"WOAH!  That firework made the shape of a FLOWER!"

"WOW!  That one looks like a STAR!"

(after a huge set of gold fireworks were set off all together) "WOAH!  They're just TAKING OVER the whole sky!"

(multiple times) "BEST FIREWORKS EVAAAAAAAAAR!"

"Fireworks can be ANYTHING!  They can be ALL DIFFERENT shapes, they can be ALL DIFFERENT colors, they can be ALL DIFFERENT noises, like this kind: BWEEEEEEEEEW! or like BOOM!  BOOM!  BOOM!"

"Mama?  I think the fireworks must get BETTER and BETTER every year, because THESE are the BEST EVER!! EVEN BETTER than LAST YEAAR!!"

We even had this discussion:

MADELEINE: MAMA!  What if the fireworks got SO HIGH into the air that they touched the EARTH?!?

ME: Well, the fireworks all fizzle out before they touch the ground.

MADELEINE: No.  Mama.  I mean the CIRCLE part.

ME: Well, they can't get so high that they'd exit the earth's atmosphere and go into space.

MADELEINE: Why not?

ME: Because that's just not possible.  Besides, if they were that high up, we wouldn't even be able to see them.

MADELEINE: (matter-of-factly) Come on, Mama.  Of COURSE we'd be able to see them, because they're COLORED.

All in all, it was a great night for the girls, despite the fact that we didn't even get into bed until after 10pm.  

This morning, we all headed into the town center, where I was going to run the town's annual 5K road race and the girls were going to ride on the YMCA swim team float in the town parade.  As we prepared ourselves to get going, I mentioned to Ethan how I didn't feel particularly confident about the upcoming race.  Madeleine took the opportunity to wisely remind me of my own words that I had lectured her with after she fell apart, sobbing, upon finishing last in her track club's 100m dash last week.

MADELEINE: Remember, Mama, it doesn't MATTER if you're the fastest.  It just matters that you finish the thing you're doing!  Besides, Mama.  It doesn't matter if you win a ribbon or a medal or a trophy.

Probably the best advice I could have gotten.  And for the record, I didn't fall apart sobbing when the race was over, so it's a good thing Madeleine gave me that little lesson as a reminder.

Happy 4th, all!  Enjoy the long weekend!