The 4th of July fell on a Monday this year. Since the Germans don't celebrate the 4th of July and kindergarten is year round here, Caden went to school. I sent him to school with a special American flag cake and a few pictures of the Statue of Liberty and fireworks with an explanation of what Independence Day means to Americans and how it is typically celebrated. After I picked Caden up from school at 1:30, we all took a nap knowing that we would be up late to watch fireworks. The festivities began at Patrick Henry Village around 4 pm. We brought chairs, blankets, drinks and snacks to enjoy while we listened to the music and waited for the main event.
They had a fantastic area set up for kids that included games, rides, face painting, etc. Caden and Addison had lots of fun. Caden especially enjoyed the bumper cars, which is done slightly different in Germany. Once you buy a ticket, there is no line to wait for your turn in a car. It is a free for all once the session is up- getting an available car was almost as much fun as Caden driving it! Addison's favorite was the blow-up bouncy slide. An older boy helped her up the ladder once, but then she figured it out, and was climbing to the top of a very large slide all by herself- over and over again- without regard to the line.
At sunset (around 10 pm), we all got to see a 50 cannon salute to the 50 States and then a fantastic fireworks show. We had so much fun and the kids stayed up way to late!
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| Addison sporting her patriotic look |
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| Kids playing with balloons and bubbles, prizes from kids games |
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| Caden with friend, Gavin, climbing slide |
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| The big girl climbing the slide by herself |
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| Success! |
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| Caden mid-slide |
1 comment:
Hi- I just stumbled upon your blog while googling Independence Day in Heidelberg. Can anyone get on to Patrick Henry, or do you need to be military? I'm married to a German and will be in FFM area over July 4, 2012. Trying to plan how we will celebrate. Thanks!
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