Fun Fourth of July Playlists for Your Celebrations

I just love perusing You Tube for fun seasonal playlists, and I found a few this week I wanted to share! I like having these playing in the background throughout the day as we're busy with preparations for our celebration, or visiting with friends! Maybe you'll find one to enjoy!

- Vintage Fourth of July Playlist

- Essential American Songs - A Fourth of July Playlist

- 4th of July Party Music Playlist

- Relaxing 4th of July Ambiance

- 50 Patriotic Songs - Music For The Fourth of July

I hope you all have safe and enjoyable day celebrating our great country! I'll see you again soon!

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Welcome, July!

 "July, with its days of blue skies and time that seemingly stands still, 

holds a special place in my heart." 

- DAISAKU IKEDA

Two Free Printables

Recently someone commented and said there were looking for a poster with the poem that I have featured in my right side bar, Home Is Where I Belong.  This was a poem that I found YEARS ago, probably around twenty, to be honest. I fell in love with it then and I love it still. That being said, I couldn't find it anywhere, especially not as a poster, so I decided to make my own.  I also have a similar poster I made some time ago, You Are Welcome In This House, and so I've decided to share both of them. I hope you will enjoy them!

You can find the link for this one, here.

 And the link for this one is, here.

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Summer Bingo Challenge - Visit A Small Town

VISIT A SMALL TOWN

Yesterday I marked the first square off of my Summer Bingo Challenge, Visit A Small Town.

My husband had arranged to pick up an item he purchased on FB Marketplace around 3:00 p.m. in Roanoke, so we decided to make a day of it and take the long road through Rocky Mount, Virginia.

Rocky Mount is just a little over an hour's drive from our front door, so it was the perfect day trip. I chose Rocky Mount because a few weeks back they had a festival, Vintage Market Roots that was co-hosted by a couple of vintage/antique shops there. But alas, it fell on my daughter's birthday weekend, and as that was not something she would have enjoyed, I made a note of the two shops that were hosting and decided to visit them another time. The description on the flyer sounded like they would have things much to my liking, but alas, I was a bit underwhelmed. There were definitely a few pieces that I liked, but it was a pricey and the biggest turn off was that the owner of one of the shops was, well, a bit smug, so that was a real put-off for me. But, aside from my disappointment with the shops themselves, I found the town completely delightful!

The picture at the top is of this post is Trinity Episcopal Church. I am not sure what it is that draws me to Episcopal Church buildings, but I can typically spot them from a mile away. They seem to often have similar architecture and brightly colored doors. I just love them!

This building was another favorite, and yes, It did actually used to be a Coca Cola Bottling Plant, but more recently housed a cafe which appears to have been closed for some time now. It's hard for me to imagine why something else hasn't taken up residence because it is just such a cute building! But I'm glad to see that in spite of it appearing to have sat empty for some time now, they've done a good job with the upkeep of the property.  It makes me sad when so many of these beautiful buildings just rot away.

A few things that I learned about Rocky Mount.

It is located in Franklin County, which is considered The Moonshine Capital of the World. There is apparently a Moonshine Musuem, though we didn't visit, but I liked this little town so much I'm already considering a second visit in autumn, so maybe then.

They are big on music and local bands, which I LOVE! Rocky Mount is considered the gateway to The Crooked Road which is a 333-mile-long driving trail that connects 10 major venues and over 50 affiliate venues that preserve and promote traditional Appalachian old time and bluegrass music. Being reminded of this today is inspiring me to plan for a few more summer road trips and visiting some of the venues that are featured on their website.

They have an event every weekend in June, River of Lights, which I so wish I had found out about sooner. You tube down a section of a river with lights strung overhead in the trees, which to me, sounds simply enchanting! Definitely putting this on the list for next summer.

We had such a wonderful time in Rocky Mount, and like I said, I'm already planning to go back in autumn. Just the drive there will be breathtaking that time of year! One of the things I love best about living in Virginia is that within a few hours drive in almost any direction you arrive at another small quaint town just full of wonderful things to discover. I'm glad that while what initially brought me to Rocky Mount turned out to be a bit of a disappointment, the town itself offered more than enough to make up for it. If you're ever in the area, I highly recommend spending at least a couple of hours exploring Rocky Mount! 

So what about you, what are some things on your summer bucket list, have you been inspired by my summer bingo challenge, and if so, what things have you marked off so far?

Whether you've made your own list or you're trying to get that first bingo, I'd love to hear about your plans and adventures, so be sure to share in the comments!

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