First Friday's In Leesburg

First Friday events are held in downtown Leesburg on the first Friday of each month. On these nights, 35 different specialty shops and businesses stay open until 9:30 offering various types of entertainment.

Each month, scheduled entertainment is posted at http://www.firstfriday.com/. The entertainment varies, but usually includes many choices for art galleries, live music, wine tastings and more.

In August, my husband and I went and took the kids (ages 3 and 6). We grabbed a light dinner at the historic Georgetown Cafe and headed to the Last Ham Standing, a regulary scheduled monthly improv comedy show at Tally Ho Theatre...and yes, it is family friendly. It was hysterical... although I admit that my children kept waiting for the movie to come on. (They really didn't understand why we were in a movie theatre and not watching a movie!)

September promises to be great fun! While window shopping and antiquing, help yourself to the refreshments offered at the various shops, register to win a free makeover, and enjoy all the entertainment, much of it free.

You'll enjoy one or more of the many musical performances (anything from award winning pop vocalists to local favorite acoustic quitarists, or a classical piano trio, a punk rock band, a Latin American band and much more). Loudoun, well known for it's wines, won't disappoint...wine tastings are offered all throughout the downtown area. Whether trying wines from around the world or sticking with local favorites, there is something for everyone to enjoy.

For those with refined tastes, take in the museum or the art gallery display or a lecture and book signing. If you're looking for something a little more unique, stop in and visit Esoterica for a tarrot card or palm reading. Or, join the Yoga Happy Hour for a little yoga practice combined with beer tastings! Of course, Tally Ho is also offering their Last Comic Standing show - which promises to be great every month!

Come on down and enjoy all that the town has to offer! You won't be disappointed. In fact, there's so much to do, I bet you can't do it all. But, once you try it, you'll want to come back time and time again to check just one more item off your list! So, will YOU "Meet Me Downtown"?

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PS - A hint from a local: join the Facebook Fan pages of the businesses you might want to check out. Not only will you get more info on their scheduled events, but many times Facebook Fans get special discounts!

Pop!Bang!Boom! Loudoun Is Celebrating This Weekend!

It’s time to celebrate America’s Birthday and no one is more proud of our heritage than Loudoun. All across the county, our residents will be celebrating in style! There are at least 10 public fireworks displays; and many other festivities being hosted in our various towns, villages and communities.

Everywhere you turn this weekend, you’ll see red, white and blue. The air will be scented with the smell of charcoal. Quiet meadows will come alive with make shift stages and homegrown music. Our local parks will be filled with families and friends. Little boys and their dads will be catching crayfish in our streams. Children will be playing ball, riding bikes, and climbing trees. Fishermen (real or wanna-be's) will crowd our riverbanks. Our waterways will look like marinas, with boaters positioning themselves for the best view of the fireworks. Pools, public and private, will be overflowing. Fireworks – legal and otherwise – will inevitably fill the nighttime heavens.

Pop! Bang! Boom! Get ready… Loudoun is celebrating this weekend!

We kick it off early here in Loudoun with 6 celebrations on Friday the 3rd!

Lovettsville starts us off right with a hometown parade followed by activities at the Community Center ball field; a concert by DC3, and awesome fireworks. Festivities begin at 5:30. Tickets are $3 for kids, $4 for adults.

Landsdowne, just east of Leesburg, will hold their Sounds of Summer show from 7:30 to 10:30 with fireworks starting at 9:20.

South Riding begins festivities at 6 with a parade from Center Street & South Riding Blvd, making a right on Upper Clubhouse to South Riding Golf Club. Bikes, trikes, small floats, and wagons are welcomed. Food will be available for purchase during the King of Swing concert beginning at 7. Fireworks start at 9:30, and blankets, lawn chairs and picnics are encouraged.

Sterling Park has fireworks beginning at 9:15.

At the Old Stone School in Hillsboro, see the Blue Ridge Thunder Cloggers perform, hear live music by Hewn By The Mountain. There's a BBQ dinner, bake sale, and free ice cream and picnics are welcomed. Kids will enjoy the moon bounce, games and prizes. Then, the family can settle down to watch the fireworks display at dusk.

The Town of Waterford is so hyped, they are having a 2 day party! At 4pm on Friday the 3rd, the town will host a softball game at Waterford Elementary. At 6, the music and potluck dinner starts at Bond Street Tanyard; followed by fireworks at Water Street Meadow.

On the 4th, festivities really get rockin!

Waterford continues their celebration with an 11am parade down Factory Street to the Bond Street Tanyard. At 11:45 there will be patriotic songs and remarks; more music, photos, and of course... more food. Then, the Greystone pool will be opened (fee for non-members).

Nearby Paeonian Springs also has a parade beginning at 11. It starts at the upper end of Highland Circle and ends at the McLaughlins' at the lower end. Motorized vehicles are prohibited. All are welcome to join in the "after party" at the McLaughlins'.

The Celebration here in Leesburg, in the county seat, will begin at at 10am on the 4th, with an old fashioned Independence Day Parade in the downtown area. The parade will start at Ida Lee park and travel down King Street to Fairfax Street (just before the intersection with Catoctin Circle). Residents are encouraged to dress in their very best Red, White and Blue outfits! Then, it’s off to enjoy your favorite summer time activities. Ida Lee rec center and AV Symmington Aquatic Park will be open for all to enjoy. At 6, the gates at Ida Lee will open for the evening celebration where your family can enjoy Jimmy Buffet tunes played by the Land Sharks (a nationally recognized band featured with Jimmy Buffett at Margarittaville). Be sure to bring a little cash – there is usually a suggested entrance donation; and the concession stands there are the bomb! Be sure to line up early for the funnel cake; one year I nearly missed the fireworks waiting for mine! Fireworks begin at 9:30 and are synchronized to explode in time with a medley of patriotic songs. The combination of “hearing” and “seeing” synchronized celebrations of patriotism truly adds to the experience. If you can’t be within hearing distance, but are watching the display from elsewhere, check the local Leesburg radio station – Wage AM 1200, as they usually broadcast the songs, too! Don’t miss the full experience.

Ashburn Village has an entire day planned. At 10:30, you're invited to join in the one mile parade, which begins at Fincastle Field featuring residents with decorated bikes, wagons and strollers. At 11, the party gets going with inflatables, food, swimming and games at the Sports Pavillion. Just after 7, the music kicks into gear, with the Suburban Rush band. At dark, they'll finish off the night with a "low flying" fireworks display from the island in Ashburn Lake.

At Claude Moore Park in Sterling, from 10:30 to 3:00 there is an old fashioned July 4th celebration with live music, crafts, nature and reptile exhibits, historic tours, and even pony and wagon rides. All this is offered for a small suggested donation of only $5 per family. The Heritage Farm Museum at Claude Moore will have an open house, offering free admission throughout the day. They will also have a special celebration for our “Heroes on the Homefront”; in recognition of the contributions of Loudoun Farms during WWII.
In Middleburg, the Community Center pool will be open from 11 to 6; and the family can enjoy evening music, games, and contests. Fireworks there begin at dusk.
Purcellville’s Franklin Park hosts the Polka Dots, a local folk group, and Acoustic Burgoo, the headlining bluegrass sensation. Fireworks begin at dark. Gates will open at 6; admission is $5 per car.

Please, make this a wonderful weekend. Keep re-applying the sunscreen – especially on the kids. Make sure everyone stays hydrated. Keep the potato salad refrigerated. Carefully supervise the use of personal fireworks, and keep it legal for your own safety. Have a designated driver, and don’t over indulge in the spirits. Your pets will be scared, so keep them inside.

Loudoun is a great place to visit, and an even better place to live. Although we have high quality emergency response teams and very good hospitals; I really want you to never have to know it. Be safe and be well… Happy Birthday, America!

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For more information on public festivities offered by the Town of Leesburg and Loudoun County Parks and Rec, visit http://www.leesburgva.gov/index.aspx?page=568 and http://www.loudoun.gov/Default.aspx?tabid=328&fmpath=/Current%20Activity%20Guides .

To learn about our local real estate market, please visit http://www.therealestatewhisperer.blogspot.com/ or http://www.vickychrisner.com/.

Halloween in Leesburg

When we moved to Leesburg, no one told us how different Halloween would be. Here, on “All Hallowed Eve”, children dress in their costumes, lining the streets of downtown Leesburg, to collect treats thrown to them from passing parade floats. The parade is put on by the local Kiwanis club, and this year, everyone in attendance was asked to bring a canned food item to help fill our local food banks.

Most floats are sponsored by local businesses, who are having a little fun promoting their business and giving back to the communities they serve.I’m told that the Leesburg Halloween parade is the longest running in the country, which I think is kind of neat. I love to see old traditions remain strong. Here in Leesburg, I see no danger of this tradition ever going out of style. Every Halloween, if you live in Leesburg, you go the parade. EVERYone’s there. You’re IN the parade or AT the parade, but you’re there.

Now that we’ve been here 8 years, we’re finally getting the hang of it.In fact, the last 2 years, I’ve been IN the parade; on a float with my brokerage office, Keller Williams Realty of Leesburg. Last year, I drove our float - and it was among the most frightening halloween experiences I've ever had! You try driving a float while dodging 5 year olds who are playing chicken with your truck to get a Reese’s!

This year, I opted to walk along side the float, giving out candy, being careful to reward those children that obediently stood by their moms, despite the greatest of temptations. So, did you see us? What did you think? We didn’t win any awards… but we thought it looked great.

Can you believe our broker (Rick Cockrill) actually had these houses “lying around” as leftovers from a 4-H project he’d done with his son? It was a very easy assembly for us… and special thanks to local J & M Market on Rt 15 (think Pumpkinville) who donated all pumpkins, mums, corn stalks and more.

This year, our float was promoting a new web site launched by own of our very tech savvy agents, Steve Lieby. If you haven’t seen it, you should check it out…www.callloudouncountyhome.com/.

I can not imagine how cool it would have been to have this parade experience as a child. My 2 and 5 year olds left the scene with bags FULL of candy! Pre-teens and teenagers can still get candy without being those annoying kids without costumes at your door on Halloween. I think it's fabulous.

By the time we returned home, two year old Spiderman was done for the night. Hanna Montana, on the other hand, had to take to the streets to see her fans.

Lucky for her, trick or treating in Leesburg starts AFTER the parade. Lucky for me, it doesn’t last long.