Over the River and Through the Woods...
It is a little more complicated than that, but I went to visit my Grandma over the weekend. It had been about 3 years since I last saw her, so when my cousin asked if I wanted to go with her for a visit, I couldn't say no. So we hopped on a plane to Kansas City on Friday. The timing could not have been better.
My parents both grew up in small rural towns in North Central Missouri. There's not much to keep visitors entertained. I remember playing a lot of board games when visiting. We just happened to hit the one weekend when there IS something going on. Grandma's hometown was having it's annual homecoming weekend. The 67th Annual, I might add. I remember coming to this with my parents a few times when I was young. There was a parade and a carnival, complete with Ferris Wheel. We even got to ride our bikes in the parade and got to decorate them with fringe and crepe paper. What fun! So how did this trip measure up? Pretty good, although the celebration was much smaller. No ferris wheel. Just a huge inflatable slide. Grandma can't get around like she used to, so it was just a treat for her to be there and socializing with all the town folk. For a 'city slicker' like myself, it was so fascinating to see how things are done in a small town.
Here's me with my Mother, Grandma, and Cousin Jenny
And here's a few parade shots:
Miss Bucklin makes her way through the crowd. (Bucklin has a population well under 1000, and possibly under 500).
I love this classic fire engine! Just wish they would have blown the siren a little farther down the road...
Here's some of the candy that was thrown at me (Yes. I was pelted with Tootsie Rolls. And narrowly missed by an Otter Pop.) The people on the floats throw candy at the spectators! There were some kids waiting on the sidelines with grocery bags. At "the" park, they had some lawnmower races, craft & gardening competitions as well as music & fireworks. We missed that stuff because Grandma was pooped before the band started. Maybe next year... It was so nice to spend time with my Grandma. She is a really spunky, positive person. I wished I could have stayed longer than 2 days...
Posted by Mel at 7:05 PM
