Cherry Days...A Small Town 4th

Small towns love to celebrate the 4th of July with parades. Fire engines, color guards, antique tractors and floats of all kind make their way down Main streets across America. In Paonia, CO, today was not just the 4th, it was also the kickoff off of the Cherry Days Festival. So we were expecting a doozy of a parade and Paonia delivered!

The Cherry King & Queen (hope they didn't lose their cherries)

And lots of beautiful horses

This was impressive

There were lots of tractors

It was a perfect small town parade! So what else do you do on Cherry Days? You go to the orchard to pick 8.5 pounds of cherries to bring home to friends.

And if the orchard also happens to have a winery onsite? Then you obviously have to taste their wine. Two terrific bottles- a Reisling and a Chardonnay plus a freshly baked baguette came back to Rhoda with us.

It's been a full and busy day. So we're spending the afternoon relaxing in our shady shelter with the dogs reflecting on the miracle that is the United States of America. 248 years of democracy is an incredible achievement. It's terrifying to think that it could be wiped away in November. Please vote to save our freedom and the country we are celebrating today. Good bye from Crawford, CO. On The Rhoda heading for home tomorrow.