In case you didn't know, my little hometown is the best place to celebrate Independence Day. We headed over to Lolli and Poppa's, fed Avery dinner, and strolled down to get in our usual parade watching spot. I was a little nervous about how Avery would do because a) her stroller would not be moving and b) the parade would be loud. We had to wait for a bit before the parade arrived, so Avery entertained herself with some of her silverware. Once the parade started, she was all squeals. The more noise coming from the float, the better. Ned made the mistake of giving her a Twizzler still wrapped in plastic. At one point I tried to take it away but lost 5 "Mom Points" for giving it back when a fit followed. The spitty Twizzler became Avery's flag. The more excited she became, the more she waved the Twizzler. Luckily for us, Newsoms' parade is double the fun...you get to see it twice! It travels down Main Street, turns around, and comes back again. We see both sides of the floats! My favorites this year: a truck pulling a trailer with a Dr. Pepper ~ a root beer float ~ and a trailer full of old men in recliners with a sign reading "2012 Olympic Swim Team."
After the parade, we headed to the community house/ballfield for a hotdog dinner. Because other towns had their celebrations Saturday or cancelled them because of dry conditions, there were lots in attendance. Avery got a little ansy during our wait for dinner, but once we found our spot to sit she was happy to munch on puffs and people watch. Lots of people came up to speak and she was full of smiles (I about turned blue from holding my breath!). She had her first taste of watermelon and enjoyed unpacking her diaper bag on the picnic blanket. There was a ballgame starting when we left, but it was already Avery's bedtime, so we headed home. Our fireworks in Emporia were cancelled due to lack of rain. We wouldn't have been able to go anyway, so I was glad they weren't booming to wake Avery.
I am so proud of my little town for holding such a fun, small-town celebration. I'm already excited about next year and being able to stay a little longer. As Avery grows older, I look forward to being able to teach her why we have such fun celebrations on July 4th, sharing hotdogs and watermelon, and waving Twizzlers!
*I hope to add some more pictures soon...having some Blogger issues.
1 comment:
Loved looking at all the photos on FB. Those floats were priceless. One of these years I might have make a trip to Newsoms for the 4th just to witness this parade.
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