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If you're looking for a lot of fun this weekend, then you're in the right place. Saturday night there will be some great fireworks at Harris Park in Dodgeville, kicking off a fun filled Sunday for Iowa County Farmers Appreciation Day. There will be a parade starting at 11 a.m. through the downtown. Then the parade, with the "Echoes of Camp Randall" (UW) band leading you to Harris Park for a lot of activities. Alice in Dairyland will be there to help hand out awards and give a presentation on her duties and talk about Wisconsin agriculture. There will be a bounce house, petting zoo, pedal tractor pull, a great meal served by the Dodgeville Kiwanis club featuring Iowa County Cattlemen's steak sandwiches with chips, cheese and milk, several exhibit booths and 4-H clubs serving dairy products and other treats plus the Upland Hills Health Auxiliary serving homemade pie - plus a lot more fun.
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Also, on Saturday, will be Ridgeway's celebration. Fun includes a volleyball tournament, home talent baseball game, Butterfly Release and Suicide Memorial Walk at 6 p.m. and helicopter golf ball drop. There will be ice cream and cake at 6 p.m. and fireworks at dusk.
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Also, if you like rodeos, then Highland is the place to be on Saturday and Sunday. That's when the Little Britches Rodeo will be held at the rodeo grounds just north of Highland on Lagoon Road. You get a chance to see the youngsters take their try at being like the "big guys and gals" and ride the buckin' broncs and bulls and more!
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I had a young lady, who was a volleyball player in the late 90's at Iowa-Grant, approach me the other day at a store. She said she remembered me taking a photo of her and three other girls and putting a nice caption in the paper about how good of players and young women they were. She recognized me, but I didn't recognize her. She said that I haven't changed a bit. So I said she must need glasses! She still looked as young as she did in high school, but the two youngsters with her gave away her age a little!
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Son Michael made the trip from Muscatine, Iowa Saturday to have a bite to eat at "Bob's BBQ", his favorite place! He also had to go to Madison to see a cousin who works at HyVee there and pick up some "Spotted Cow" beer to sneak back into Iowa for some friends (and himself of course). Michael has worked for HyVee since he was in high school, so is a veteran of that business. He said he heard they are putting a store in Waunakee and that Platteville is still in the mix.
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With temperatures in the 90's Friday evening, the Dodgeville Dolphins Swim Team held "Dance Under the Stars" at Comer Pool, with over 250 attending and taking part in the activities. In the 13 years they have been holding that event, the number there was about in the midway range - but there is so much more going on for youngsters every night during the summer and school year that pulls them away from one single event. Next year, with the $25,000 donated by Lands' End there should be a slide ready to go at the pool. Many people have oohed and ahhed at that happening!