We are very lucky to live in a town where so much goes on. Even though it’s a relatively small town (50,000) they offer so much. I just always assumed every town did this but I have so many Instagram friends who say their town doesn’t do things.
We go to everything. Old town tours, 3rd Fridays, Old State Bank tours, Civil War tours, balloon festivals, Civil War reenactments, festivals and art shows and library special events and free events at our free art museum and so much more.
This past weekend was a Mardi Gras parade. Mardi Gras actually started in Mobile, Alabama not New Orleans like most people think.
This is a huge fundraiser for our Art Museum. It starts at 10:00 and has a Canine Mardi Gras Parade, then a Children’s Parade at 2:00 and then the actual parade at night. There are events and a scavenger hunt of sorts where you had to get stamps from 28 small shops located in our downtown area. We had such fun going into shops we had never visited and meeting the shop owners. We tasted Cajun cooking at the cook-off and wandered around the children’s activites area. We spent the entire day there, then ran home and changed to get back for the night parade.
All the dogs all the time.
The dogs in the parade
Aren’t they adorable? Keilee wants to take Nomad so much but he is so badly behaved on a lease. We said what we always say, “Next year we are taking him for sure”!
We almost didn’t go to the night parade because it was so cold and my goofy child refuses to wear a coat (“It messes up my outfit”) But I am so glad we did. They outdid themselves this year and the floats were spectacular. My iPhone failed to really capture the beautiful, vibrant colors.
More floats:
We stood on the front row and got beamed by beads a couple of times. Those people throw HARD!! But Keilee ended up with over 50 necklaces!! And so many people actually came over and put them on her neck. She also got some Moon Pies which she had never tried before. (I know, I know, they are a Southern tradition but I hate them and she has never expressed an interest in trying them) Her verdict : “I would never specifically ask for them but they are good”.
All in all it was a wonderful day.
Does your town have any cool traditions or festivals?
Homeschooling Rocks!
Karen
“We don’t hide the crazy, we parade”. ~Unknown
Laissez les bons temps rouler! Let The Good Times Roll
Looks like so much fun! Did Keilee make her tulle skirt? the flower girls in my daughter’s wedding wore home made tulle and crocheted dresses! Our town is a very tiny, very rural place. We used to have an annual founder’s day celebration, but they stopped doing that a few years ago! We also have Youth Days every year, with a parade, bands, and rides, but that has gone down hill in recent years, too!
We have been scouting out more in our community. We have our beloved dog festival and this year we went to the pumpkin festival but that was truly horrible. This summer I hope to get to blues at the beach, which is supposed to be great. For some many years we just passed opportunities by. Now we get out and do more. This day looks amazing. We don’t have anything Mardi Gras related here, that I know of…..
That looked like so much fun! Loved the dogs all dressed up. Our small town in Utah (where I’m only there for part of each year) has “Black and White Days” every May and it’s said to be “the longest running Holstein cattle show west of the Mississippi”. Last year was its 100th anniversary. It’s fun, especially to watch the competitions. It’s like a mini rodeo and fair. That’s pretty much it, though. You are soooo lucky!
No! We have a Pie in the Park, a couple of hours fundraiser where pies are donated to buy (to raise money) and local musicians play, and a weekend “fair” with a few rides, games, food and a parade to raise money for the fire department. That’s it! Nothing like this sadly.
We live in a city about double your size. Our Mardi gras parade was not nearly as cool as yours. However, we do have lots of festivals and things to do. We are considered the “Paris of the South” after all. I am afraid that with all the micro breweries that are coming to town that we are going to get to much of a beer culture for my taste. We may be at the peak of our glory right now. Time will tell.
Blessings, Dawn