You've got no excuse to be a sour stay-at-home this 4th of July in and around Albuquerque, NM--- there's plenty to do, and plenty of venues for a super-fabulous fireworks display!

• Check out an "American-as-apple-pie" ballgame at Albuquerque's Isotopes Park. The Isotopes will take on the New Orleans Zephyrs at 7:15, and then follow up the game with an outstanding fireworks display.
• Or you could enjoy "Freedom Fourth" at Albuquerque's Balloon Fiesta Park. Admission is just $2 for adults, kids 12 and under free, and the afternoon and evening will be full of entertainment, with food vendors, a beer garden, and loads of family activities. Entertainers include South by Southwest at 4:00 p.m., Savor at 5:15, Redline 7000 at 6:15, and The Blues Brothers Revue at 7:45. At 9:30, enjoy a breathtaking fireworks display choreographed to music!
• Half an hour east of Albuquerque, Moriarty, New Mexico will be holding its "Star Spangled 4th of July" celebration that includes a rodeo, parade, dance, and fireworks.
• Rio Rancho, NM will start celebrations with a parade at 10:00 am. Families are encouraged  to participate by riding decorated bicycles, with prizes awarded for best decorated, most patriotic, and most original entries. Following the parade, Rio Rancho will hold a ceremony marking the 233 anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. In the afternoon, Loma Colorado Park will be the scene of live musical entertainment, chilcren's activities, and food. A fireworks show that is promised to be "one of the state's biggest and best" will begin about 9:30.
• South of Albuquerque? Los Lunas, NM will be holding a 4th of July celebration that begins with a parade at 9:00 a.m., and includes afternoon entertainment at Daniel Fernandez Park. There will also be a Home Run Derby at 5:00 and a men's softball game at 6:30, and of course, a firworks display at night!

So get out and celebrate Freedom on the Fourth!

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For more information about Albuquerque and the small towns and rural areas of central New Mexico, visit my website, www.LauraWarden.com, or call or email me any time at (505)239-4796 or nmbroker@earthlink.net.