Festival in the Park - May 25 and 26

Okay, so the Festival in the Park runs longer than two days, but I can only really tell you about my experience. For the first time, I went to the Friday night concert - which I was excited about because it was the Gin Blossoms. I remember this band from back in the day - I am not going to date myself, but let's just say I do remember them from the early 90s. I wasn't much into music back then - I could tell you if I liked a song, but could not tell you the song title or the band. However, I enjoyed sitting at the concert listening to this band again.

It did make me feel old to watch all the teenagers running around in extremely skimpy outfits. I don't think that I am much of a prude, but definitely not things I would want my kids running around in (much less what I would wear at that age). The cool thing about the concerts is that they are extremely family friendly - kids 6 and under get in for free. Depending on the bands playing next year, I will probably bring the kids with me.

Saturday, I headed to the Festival to check out the family fun. Not only do they have tons of family friendly events (including the beloved Fireman's Foam). I love wandering through the tents looking at all the items people are selling. Sometimes I wish I had a lot more money than I did - it would be nice to support these local ventures. I love the jewelry that people create, my kids love the crazy creatures. There is no end to the gifts and artifacts you will find.

Not to mention the performances. There are all sorts of exhibits and talents that you will see. From Pro- BMX bikes to artists to sand sculptures. Many children love the little petting zoo - with the alpacas, bunnies, ponies and more.

Memorial Day Weekend is an important, special weekend. This Festival brings out everyone - we even met some people who drove in from Richmond for the concert. If you haven't checked out this Festival yet, put it on your calendar for next year. I already know that it is on mine.

Festival in the Park

Today was a gorgeous day for the Festival in the Park. As my poor back can attest, the sun was shining bright. We headed to the festival at 11am and checked out the Auto Show. I was devastated to learn that a 1984 Ferrari was considered an antique. I am not sure what that makes me then. My youngest loves to look at cars. I was trying to teach my older son about compromise - if we look at cars for brother and daddy, then we can do something we enjoy too. We took a stroll through the park to see what was there. There wasn't anything scheduled for the Main Stage that early, so we wandered up Food Vendor Alley and checked out what was there. On a smaller stage, they had some performances going on. What a crowd - it was hard to see from the outskirts what was going on. We wandered through all the arts & crafts vendors. The boys picked out a few new animals (a dragon and a lizard - these are live critters by the way). My oldest had a blast going through the bouncy obstacle course - he did it twice. He also took a turn in the Fireman's Foam. We caught a few acts and I couldn't believe that it was 2:30 when the boys were starting to get worn out. My youngest told me he was going to do those crazy BMX tricks on his bike. I hope my children never lose that drive.

I doubt we will be able to catch any of the evening performances, but tonight, tomorrow night and Monday night have some great performances planned. I will definitely put volunteering for this festival on my list of things to do next year. Depending on how the rest of the weekend goes, we may take the kids back out to the festival tomorrow or Monday.

UpComing Fun

Just a glimpse at the schedule for the Festival in the Park this weekend:

Evening Concerts on the Amphitheater Stage Concert Ticket Required Beginning at 5:00 PM
Friday, May 27
6:30pm	Rutledge	Country
7:30pm	Steel Magnolia	Country
8:30pm	Emerson Drive	Country
Saturday, May 28
6:30pm	PolyChrome	Rock
7:30pm	Jordan Harmon Band	Rock
8:30pm	John Popper and the Duskray Troubadores	Rock
Sunday, May 29
6:30pm	The Sessions Band	Rock
7:30pm	1964: The Tribute	Rock
8:30pm	The Family Stone	Rock
Monday, May 30
6:30pm	Corey Hunley and Jeff Maiden
7:00pm	JaneDear Gilrls	Country
7:30pm	Brett Eldredge	Country
8:30pm	Eli Young Band	Country

(Schedule and times are subject to change)

Saturday, May 28
Amphitheater Stage	Group	Type of Entertainment
1:00	Southwestern Virginia Ballet	Dance
2:00	Micky and Taylor Nelson	Adult Contemporary
3:00	Cory Campbell and 4th Street Soul
4:00	Government Plant
5:00	Madrone
Festival Stage
12:00
1:00	Smoke N' Mirrors	Rock
2:00	The Dirt Road Travelers
3:00	Watershed Conspiracy
4:00	SideShow
5:00	Groovascape
Gazebo Stage
11:30am	ProTown BMX Bike Show- Jefferson St.
12:00	Mel Parker
1:00	Betsy Biesenbach and Marybeth Tochaconas	Folk
2:00	ProTown BMX Bike Show- Jefferson St.
3:00	AwesomeSauce
4:00	ProTown BMX Bike Show- Jefferson St.
5:00	Johnnie Barnett
Kaleidoscope Stage
11:00
12:00	Anna Jack	Family
1:00	Branan Thompson Magic Show	Family
2:00	Mill Mountain Zoo	Family
3:00	Anna Jack	Family
4:00	Kountry Kickers Cloggers	Family

(Schedule and times are subject to change)

Sunday, May 29
Amphitheater Stage	Group	Type of Entertainment
12:00	Tri-County Cloggers	Dance
1:00	Miss Mona's School of Dance	Family
2:00	The Ronald McDonald Show
2:45-3:00	Youth Art Show Awards	Announcements
3:00	Bebop Hoedown
4:30	Porch Party Mamas	Americana
5:30	Shaolin Dragons Kung-Fu	Martial Arts
Festival Stage
12:00	Human Infection
1:00	Phantom Zone
2:00	Savannah Shoulders	Classic Rock
3:00	My Friend Thomas
4:00	Save the Flame
5:00	Mohammad Bhana- formerly Electric Chameleon
Gazebo Stage
1:00	ProTown BMX Bike Show - Jefferson St.
2:00	Sharayah Spears	Folk/Indie
3:00	Andy Crawford
4:00	ProTown BMX Bike Show - Jefferson St.
5:00	AwesomeSauce
Kaleidoscope Stage
11:00	Dan the Piano Juggler	Family
12:00	Anna Jack	Family
1:00	Dan the Piano Juggler	Family
2:00
3:00	Dan the Piano Juggler	Family
4:00	Anna Jack	Family

Monday, May 30
Amphitheater Stage	Group	Type of Entertainment
1:00	Twelve O'Clock Knob
2:00	TouchPoint
3:00	The Materia Project
3:45-4:00	Festival Scholarship Awards and other announcements
4:00	Jamiel Allen and the J-Team
5:00	Young and the Rest of Us
Festival Stage
12:00	Poverty Level
1:00	Gabriel Morales
2:00	Manic Farm	Southern Rock
3:00	Back Again
4:00	Big Blind
5:00	Ballistic	Alternative Rock
Gazebo Stage
12:00
1:00	Mel Parker	Oldies
2:00	Trilogy
3:00	Johnnie Barnett
4:00	Jessilynn Kidd
5:00	Ross Flora
Kaleidoscope Stage
12:00	Antique Rockers
1:00	Roanoke Children's Theatre	Family
2:00	William Penn- Patrick Henry High School	Family
3:00	Micky and Taylor Nelson
4:00	Shaolin Dragons Kung-Fu	Martial Arts