The 4th of July dawned nice and hot. No surprise. Bill and I were up before dawn to load succulent dish gardens, pecans, and copies of my books to sell at the market during all the 4th activities. We were all set up with no problems and ready for visitors.

Many food trucks and other vendors were set up, but I will have to admit, I didn’t try to get pictures of all of them. Too many! The Muleshoe Chamber of Commerce and Agriculture hosts the day’s activities, and general manager Brittany Pendley said a total of forty-two vendors and food booths were set up for the day. So I sat and watched as the crowd gathered in under the courthouse trees, and people started lining up along the highway for the parade. I mean, they were ready! Chairs were set up in the shade early, and as many people were lined up for the parade as were circling up under the trees for the afternoon. A really big crowd showed up for the day’s activities.

The parade started promptly at 10; I know that because I could hear all the sirens down Main Street where the parade starts. It then turns the corner and comes down Hwy 214 which runs in front of the courthouse. I walked across the street to take pictures so the sun would be at my back. Well, that didn’t seem to help; this was not my best photography outing. The sun didn’t help, plus I had to dodge kids scrambling for the candy thrown from the floats. This was a nice, long parade, with forty floats entered in the float contest and many others participating just for the fun of it. I didn’t take a picture of every single entry, and some I did take didn’t turn out well, so I will share some of the better ones. So, if you took part but I don’t have your picture. please know that I do appreciate you taking the time and trouble to strut your stuff and show your red, white, and blue.

Texas Agri Life Extension Service, Lee Ann Helton, and local 4-H kids created a float for veterans to ride on.

Lots of kids took part: some Girl Scout’s dog pulled their Girl Scout cookies wagon and girls followed on their bikes. Some other kids decorated their vehicles for the parade.

A variety of kids were also on floats.

The winning float was this one from Five Area Connect. A most appropriate title, don’t you think?

Many other floats were in the parade as well.

A long line of a variety of ATVs came up after the floats, some fancier than others, but all decorated with flags and red, white, and blue. Here are a few of them.

The parade had firetrucks from Muleshoe, Sudan, Lazbuddie, and some really big tractors. A few fancy cars and a few really loud muscle cars added to the parade and were also on display afterward.

But the best part for me was the horses that ended the parade. When I was growing up and going to parades, and even when we moved to Muleshoe, lots of horses from riding clubs, horse-drawn wagons, and individual riders would be at the end of the parade. I think horses come at the end just in case they decide to leave a deposit on the street. It’s just not a parade without horses, and this year there were several.

And then the parade was over and the crowd took advantage of the shade for the other events of the day: the Lil’ Miss and Mister Firecracker pageant; the watermelon eating contest; the cheerleaders performing; the cornhole tournament; and for the kids, frog and turtle and potato sack races. I will have to admit I missed all those activities as I was visiting with people who stopped at our booth.

Things broke up around 3 p.m., but the celebration wasn’t over yet. The City of Muleshoe ended the day with a fireworks extravaganza at the park. I have no pictures of the display this year because I needed to stay home with our newest three-legged dog who is afraid of the noise that goes with fireworks that were being set off around our house. But I could see it from our front window, and from reports from those in attendance, it was spectacular.

The day was eventful and busy, and I think everyone had a good time.

Let’s do it again next year.

Thanks to Brittany Pendley and Bill Liles for their help with this story