Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Big Day in Small Town NC

My girls have spent the last couple of July 4ths at our house in the suburbs of Virginia.  This year for Independence Day, however, I packed up my car and drove south to the small town in North Carolina where I grew up, and where my folks still live.  Now that they are old enough to really enjoy it, I thought it was high time Princess and Birdie experience this holiday of patriotism, greasy grilled food, and amateur pyrotechnic displays in a place and way that I recall fondly from my youth.  I think that they are really happy that we did.

We started our day bright and early with my home town's "Big Day" celebration, which kicked off with a parade.

Birdie waiting for the parade to start

The lead unit in the parade, right after the
police car escort and the National Guard color guard

The obligatory fire truck & bonus tow truck
Only in a small town does bike-riding qualify as a
parade-worthy skill



Waving at old people in old cars-- another small town parade necessity!
Princess wanted to know if they "were famous or something?!"

Get your own, Mama!


After the parade, we walked down the "block" to where the rest of the Big Day festivities were being held.  There we enjoyed country ham biscuits, roasted corn on the cob, baked goods of all varieties, and ice cream-- at 10:00 a.m.  Oh, and there was other stuff besides the food, too-- I was just too busy eating or feeding my kids a steady stream of this stuff to do much else.  Of course, being out in the sticks, we also had a good old-fashioned cake walk, live gospel music, a kiddie train ride, face painting, and lots of familiar faces.  Birdie asked me if I knew everybody, or if I was just pretending.


After the Big Day festivities, we moved the party back to my folks' house.  My dad invested in an inflatable pool for the ladies, and they have spent lots of time splashing and soaking in this sweltering weather.  (Soaking in the wading pool counts as a bath, right?)


When I finally convinced the girls to get out of the pool, we finished up the evening by grilling burgers and dogs for dinner, with my brother setting fire to some grocery store fireworks afterward.  It was every bit as awesome as it sounds.

The amazing pyrotechnics display, y'all

Princess examining the fireworks
after they cooled off


Birdie stayed a safe distance from her uncle
"just in case he doesn't know what he's doing."




My girls are exhausted (and my folks), but fun was had by all.  We had a busy day on the Crazy Train, celebrating the Fourth North Carolina country-style, and now this mama is glad to report that the Crazies are sleeping.  *sigh*

Happy Fourth of July, y'all!

18 comments:

  1. We went to the Big Day as well :) Small town friendly at its best...

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    1. I hate we missed you! Always fun to visit RC!

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  2. What...do baton twirlers??? ;P That sounds AWESOME!!! How fun for the girls (and you).

    Love all the pics! Happy belated 4th of July!

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  3. Hey, small town parades rock! We were in Cody, and in addition to bicycles and old people in old cars, there were 3 mule trains (I kid you not) and a child with a raccoon on his shoulders.

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    1. Love it! A raccoon the parade is a new one on me, but the mules I have seen a million times, as well as a few possums!

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  4. What a fun day! Being from a small town I can attest to the fact that a cake walk is 100% necessary on the 4th!

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  5. Wow! We live in NC. My husband is from one of those small towns : Midway, NC.

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  6. Hi from the Friday Blog Hop. Love your site. Come one and say hello when you get a chance. Cynthia www.richlymiddleclass.com

    Wishing your the best day ever,

    Cynthia

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  7. too sweet.

    Aloha,

    Stopping by to say "hi" and to be your newest follower from the melomomma hop... ya know I coulda sworn I was already on board this crazy train, but I guess I wasn't so I've got a ticket now and am looking forward to the ride. =)

    If you're up for a bit of a ride I'd love it if you'd join me at localsugarhawaii.com where we're riding the wave of life. And, if you'd like, we're linking up with tons of beautiful bloggers today for our ALOHA Friday HOP-- come join us.
    xo,
    Nicole
    localsugarhawaii.com

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  8. Stopping by and following from the Aloha Blog Hop! Have a great weekend!

    Shanna
    thesouthernhousewife.blogspot.com

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  9. I love living in a small town located in Rowan County, NC! Hope you and your family enjoyed yourself!

    Saw your blog on the Aloha Blog Hop! "Small Town NC" caught my eye! :)

    -Rachel { A Dash of Southern }
    ruralrach.blogspot.com

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  10. Me again...YOU'RE IT!!!

    I'm tagging you with the Fabulous Blog Ribbon! Read the details on my last post here: http://ouradventureswithriley.blogspot.ca/2012/07/i-got-tagged.html

    Hope you'll play along and have a great weekend! =D

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    Replies
    1. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! My first bloggy award! :)

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    2. You are very welcome Christina! ;P

      I'm the female version of Ace Ventura. Baaahaaahaa!

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  11. stopping by from the blog hop. i grew up in a small town and this brings back really great childhood memories for me. i think all kids gotta see a small town parade like this at least once in their lives right?!

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  12. What a magical day. I want to visit. Thank you for sharing your wonderful day with us. Have a great weekend!

    Cynthia

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  13. Checking out your blog from the blog hop :) Even though I'm a big city girl, small town living has always intrigued me. Looks like you had a great 4th of July celebration!

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    1. It really was great to celebrate the same way I did as a kid! My girls loved it too! Thanks for stopping in!

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