Fireworks or No Fireworks; That Is the Question

The thing I remember most about the Fourth of July is the fireworks.  Every Fourth of July, my father would pack my brother, my sisters, and me in the car and we would drive out to get the days explosives.  We would load up on firecrackers, bottle rockets, sparklers, smoke bombs, roman candles, fountains, pinwheels.  You name it; we got it.  We would then spend the rest of the day running around with lighters, matches, lit punks; small explosive devices in hand, creating mayhem up and down the street.  Once the sun went down, we would gorge ourselves on grilled burgers and hotdogs, while my father would orchestrate the grand finale, the fireworks extravaganza in our backyard.  These are some of my fondest memories from childhood.

Now that I am a dad myself, I am faced with a decision.  Do I continue the Wilcox fireworks tradition, follow in my father’s footsteps and allow my own children to “blow up” the neighborhood? 

Now as a guy, I have to admit that I enjoy blowing up stuff.  The Fourth of July provides every guy the opportunity to act out their childhood fantasies of throwing “grenades” and dropping bombs, to be slightly destructive, and to create mayhem.  As a dad though, I am concerned about safety, property damage, and actively promoting the idea of blowing up stuff.

My children have always been exposed to fireworks.  Every year, we head to my wife’s sisters house for the annual Fourth of July picnic, where fireworks are prominently on display.  When my boys were younger, they were content to watch from the sidelines, put on edge by the noise and the smoke.  As the years have passed, they have become progressively more involved; enjoying snaps, sparklers, smoke bombs, and the occasional tank.  This year, however; the boys, who are now 8 and 6, are clamoring for more.  They have been asking me for weeks if we can buy our own fireworks this year.  They aren’t satisfied with smoke bombs anymore.  They want firecrackers and other things that explode.  So now I am in a quandary: Fireworks or no fireworks.  Do I continue the tradition of explosive Fourth of Julys, or do I try to temper my boys’ enthusiasm and stick with the smoke bombs? 

Anyone know where the nearest fireworks stand is?