While thousands of others hit the roads for the July 4th holiday, venturing to big city bashes or small towns for a slice of Americana, my family stayed home as we do every year and celebrated a fun hometown Fourth with friends.
We kicked off the day downtown with a parade. This band of Colonial actors set the tone early on…
But plenty of funky goodness brought out the kid in all of us.
After participating in the high-five world record–breaking attempt where just under 3,000 people high-fived at the same time (we didn’t break the record), we needed to refuel and cool off.
That retro hamburger joint untouched by time? This is the place. Why we have waited so long to eat here is beyond me. The fast-food style burgers don’t cost much and that means you can get in line again for another…and some milk shakes and a Cheerwine slushie because your husband’s looked soooo good.
Have you been introduced? Cheerwine is a Southern staple, y’all. It’s a black cherry soda, but so much more. And Beef Burger has gone and made it into a slushie. It’s good.
Do we really need another super ball? Because I thought twenty was enough. No? Twenty-one is the magic number? OK.
After lunch, we met up with other friends and participated in their neighborhood parade, which has been going on annually for 64 years. The kids decorated their bikes and scooters and rode the parade route as onlookers watched from shady lawns.
After hot dogs, baked beans, corn on the cob, watermelon, and more, we ended the day with fireworks. Instead of heading to a crowded amphitheatre, we opted for a grassy, out-of-the-way area where the kids could run, burn sparklers, and experience a bit of their own freedom.
That’s a family-style Fourth in our American hometown. And I’m proud to be a part of it.
Mom in the Muddle 
Sounds perfect! Our celebration was marred by ungodly heat here in the Midwest, but it was a lovely day together. Thanks for the snapshot of Americana at its best.
It was hotter ‘n blazes here too, but by golly, I didn’t melt. Today I’m staying inside though!
Hey Karen,
I come from a small town in Ma, when I lived there we has about 2800 people in town.
On the forth of July main street is closed down to traffic at 6am one end to the other until 10pm.
The entire town turns out for Summerfest.
There are local vendors selling there wares on the street, they have bands all day long, a tractor pull, we have a local daredevil jumping cars on his dirt bike and baseball and soccer games. As a kid it was something I always got excited about. We had a parade and soapbox races and when the darkness came we had a fireworks display that would give any city a run for their money.
Last June a tornado hit my hometown and destroyed main st and Summerfest was cancelled the first time since its inception in 1979, but was back this year and friends of mine who still live in town tell me it was one of the best they can remember.
There is something about small towns that cannot be beat, friends and strong sense of community.
Except for a few details, that sounds a lot like our street festival. Part of the fun is knowing you’re making great memories for your kids too. Glad that your hometown rebounded and brought back that summertime feeling. I grew up in a much larger area and, while I miss watching the fireworks over the Elizabeth River, we didn’t have any of that small-town feel. It’s special.
OMG! Do not show Dimples those super balls. The kid is addicted to any kind of ball. Which does not bode well for the future…
Oh, that is hysterical! Well, look how pretty and enticing they make them. Come on, kids. Don’t you want a ball? Sure you do. The one on the very top. Just one more quarter ought to do it.
Looks like a great holiday! I really enjoyed this post. I live in a small town too and I absolutely love it. I grew up in Atlanta with all the big city stuff and gradually moved further and further out to the country. I now live in a small town in Alabama and it doesn’t get any more country than this. I also work retail though and had to work all day on the 4th so I missed all the fun.
I have a younger sister (in her 40’s) that has collected super balls since she was young. She has a whole bunch of them. Not sure if she even knows how many she has. lol
Thank you! Even in the town we are in, which is a good size but has a small feel, I can’t handle the crowds sometimes! I like going to the holiday parades and seeing folks from my kids’ school in it. I like being able to run into friends old and new and meeting up to watch the parade. Sorry you missed out on the fun this year. My husband and I used to work in newspapers and we’ve had our share of working every holiday. It stinks.
That’s funny that your sister has kept them all these years. I’m not sure how many super balls my kids have either. They do play with them (and lose them). They have some of the giant ones and we’ve made up a game with them that we play in the hall at night. We each roll one to the other end and whoever goes farthest and comes closest to the other end without hitting wins. Simple.
Having been raised in NC, I really enjoyed this post. Stumbled across your blog at Bloggy Moms. Looking forward to reading more. Even though we now live in SC (after traipsing all over the country!), nothin could be finer than to be in Carolina…North Carolina. Hope you’ll come by and see me at my blog, red van ramblings.
http://joellhmorris.wordpress.com
Now that’s a way to make memories for the 4th of July. What fun! I’m around DC and it was 106 today; any cooler there? If not, stay hydrated. Great post.
Thanks, and no, it was over 100 here too but I’m not sure what. Our AC upstairs broke and it hit 94 up there in a flash. We’re supposed to get in the low 80s next week. It will feel like fall!