2015 Furlough: "We Missed It!"

We arrived in Portland a week after the Rose Fesitival.  We missed out on the floats designed and created with rose petals and the big parade they were in.  We missed the crowning on the high school Rose Festival queen chosen from the princesses selected from each high school, and the carnival rides set up for the occasion.

We arrived in Conrad, Iowa a week after their Black Dirt Days celebration.  Along Main Street, a 20 foot banana-split was set up, and folks could help themselves for free.  There was also a kids' pet show, a Dash and Splash race (at the end of the run, kids jump in the swimming pool.) Also on offer was a tractor-pull, a junior tractor pull, and fireworks.

Oh, well.  Better planning is our goal for the future.  At least we'll be around for the 4th of July and should see some fireworks.  And we can't complain because even though we might have missed some big, organized celebrations, we are enjoying the little, unexpected moments like seeing a deer while taking a walk, roasting hotdogs and marshmallows over a fire, playing games with family, and tasting apple dumplings.  Yum!