July 1 2013 – Canada Day
Our town and the surrounding towns are celebrating Canada Day quite a bit.
Outdoor concerts, giant games, bouncy castles, face painting and more. The day ends with fireworks over the river.
We don’t participate in the celebrations. We tried when we first got here… We tried for a couple of years actually… a lot of the activities are for kids and the best spot is just around the corner from our house. We can walk there!
Emily was 8 the first year… The loud voices of parents screaming at their kids, babies crying, kids playing and ignoring screaming parents plus the Master of Ceremony…. were too much for her! The outdoor music bothered her…. The big crowd bothered her…. She wanted to go to the bouncy castles but the multitude of balloons completely traumatized her….
She wanted to stay but couldn’t manage it.
I (we) had to pick her up and carry her back home. Of course, all that while people are staring and wondering what’s wrong with her.
We tried again the year after but got the same reaction…
She was getting heavy to carry home and we were getting a lot of attention from people who could have been minding their own business. It makes me wonder if their life’s are so boring that staring at us was the highlight of their day….
So we tried…. for 2 or 3 years.
We don’t try anymore!
It is so not worth it to upset her that much! We can BBQ at home, crank the music up and enjoy Canada day in our backyard. It’s free and we don’t have balloons. If the song of the moment upsets Emily, we can skip it.
Nobody stare!!!
We’ve taken Emily to the fireworks over the years. If we are too close, the noise bothers her… If we are too far, they are not really impressive. Although they are the high point of the celebrations!
I think we’ve been skipping the fireworks over the last couple of years. You have to find a spot to watch them, park the car, wait till 10pm than be stuck in traffic for awhile once they are done.
In my humble opinion, it’s not worth if!
Last night at 9:40, Emily decided we had to go see the fireworks so we went. Her in her pyjamas me in my clothes 🙂
We parked far away and waited 10 minutes.
When they started, we got out of the car.
Within 5 minutes, Emily was crying….
“Mom, those are sooooo boring! There’s no music and …… It’s boring…..”
I was laughing at her reaction while she was bawling….
I know…. Bad mommy!!! But come on! That was so funny.
It appears my child was expecting a Disney/Epcot Center quality fireworks in our little city…
LMFAO!!!
We got back in the car, drove home and went to bed.
She cried a little more so we cuddled and eventually fell asleep.
I find it so much easier to avoid those big disappointments with her rather than subjecting her to them but sometimes I wonder if by doing so, I am removing an opportunity for her to learn something… Thoughts?
Lessons from my daughter 
Ah… I can relate so much. when Gabe was a baby, I remember walking past the speakers of a concert stage and he slept right through that…. Now, he can’t stand loud noises. But I’m wondering…. He says that he loves rock n roll. He loves drums. We play that music at home, just not overly loud… no where near loud. I’m wondering if we might take him to an outdoor concert over the holiday weekend. It’s free, so why not give it a shot and then if we have to leave it won’t be that bad, aside from my own desire to stay… but YES, it’s very easy to just avoid those situations we know that they can’t tolerate. All through the school year, Gabe doesn’t participate in any of the concert, recital things and it’s a no pain situation… for me, and him, but mostly me. I’m tired of the constant talking to him to make sure he hears, understands and stays with me. But this weekend we ARE going. I’m talking to him about it from now.