Jul 5, 2012

Weekend Round Up July 5-8

Stephenie Walker / Weekend Roundup / weekend / 8 Comments

Usually anytime there’s a mid-week holiday the weekend is pretty quiet around here, and this weekend is no exception. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing – if your house is anything like ours, we usually need a few days to recuperate from eating all that great grilled food and sampling the family desserts that accompany our July 4th celebration. But if you’re hosting friends or family through the weekend there are a few low-key things you can do to get out and about.

Be sure to check out our Garage and Yard Sale page for a handy map of where all the sales are taking place, and be sure to look at our whole calendar of events so you don’t miss something important!

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1. Seeds to Sprouts at the Garden

   Friday from 10AM – 11:00AM: Especially for little ones age 2-5, you can experience nature coming alive through stories, crafts, and songs at the Huntsville Botanical Gardens. Today will be all about caterpillars, and something tells me you might be stopping into the Butterfly House as part of the program. Parents are free with a membership or Garden admission, kids are $8 each.

2. Experience a Local Concert

   Thursday, Friday, Monday: Great outdoor music can be found at a variety of places this weekend, all free and encourage you to pack your picnic basket. Thursday brings you the Rocket City Brass at the Concerts at the Library, and it’s Southern Gospel Night featuring the Pine Grove Church choir at the Madison Gazebo Concerts. Head to Lowe Mill Friday night to hear Brett Mosely at the Concerts On the Dock. Jumping ahead to Monday you can extend your holiday festivities a bit longer at the Concerts in Big Spring Park with the Rocket City Brass Quintet and Huntsville Concert Band, while further afield in Decatur is the Concerts by the River series, featuring Crossfire and the Madison Community Band. What are you waiting for? Grab the kids, the sunscreen, and your lawn chairs and get your boogie on!

3. Build Something

   Saturday Morning between 9:00AM – Noon: Both Lowe’s and Home Depot host a FREE children’s woodworking clinic the first Saturday of each month. Workshops teach children do-it-yourself skills, tool safety, and instill a sense of pride and accomplishment, plus they get to keep their nifty project aprons.

4. Athens Kiddie Carnival

   Thursday – Saturday from 6:30PM – 9:30PM: We’ve been singing the praises of this event quite a bit lately, but it’s only because it is SO great! The Athens Lion’s Club hosts this carnival only for about six weeks each summer, and rides are only 50 cents each. Our advice is to get there early and leave room for the old-fashioned fair food. You can get our detailed review here.

5. JulyFest in Mentone

   Saturday & Sunday: If you don’t mind a scenic little drive, this two-day event opens at 9AM on July 7th with an arts and crafts show featuring more than 60 premier artists and craftsmen. Music fires up at 11AM and includes performances by 13-year old Mentone resident Nicole Jones, Chris Hale and his banjo, Foggy Hollow, and Nature’s Way. The day wraps up following a free concert by Stranded Band at 7PM at the Mentone Inn Pavilion. Activities resume on Sunday at 11AM with the arts and crafts show and more live music. All activities take place rain or shine and admission is free.

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As always, click on the orange titles to visit the associated website for more information on a particular event. If you see an event we’ve missed, share your info in the comment section.