​Labor Day Weekend in Pottawattamie County can only mean one thing:  Hoo Doo Days!  

You can “Peace, Love, and Hoo Doo” all weekend in Neola!  This year, there are 3 days of live music, 3 days of beer gardens, and 4 days of fun! 

Events kick off Friday night with an ice cream social from 7-9pm and “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” outside at sunset on the corner of 3rd and Front Streets.  Bring your chairs and blankets and camp out for a family-friendly good time!

Saturday, you can catch the 3-on-3 basketball tournament or the bike ride.  Both start at 9.  A vendor fair will also be going on all day on 3rd St. from 9am to 3pm with the accompanying Beer Garden from 11am to 10pm.  Plus, The Blue Moon will be hosting Finding Dixie both Saturday and Sunday afternoon! The evening brings the teen dance from 8 to 11pm and the adults can hear The Humdingers play from 6 to 9pm.

Things really heat up by Sunday with the Hoo Doo Hustle 5K at 8am or the softball tourney at 9, or for all of you who prefer to eat over run, the Pancake Breakfast will be held at the NACC.  The Lions Club puts on quite the breakfast though with pancakes, eggs, sausage, biscuits & gravy, and applesauce! Keeping with the weekend sports theme, watch the volleyball tournament at 11.  The family fun also starts at 11am with the kiddie tractor pull (with a very impressive tractor trophy for the winner) followed by the kiddie water wars at noon, but the whole community can join in for the water fight from noon to 2 or stay a little drier and do sidewalk chalk drawing from 11 to 5. 

Possibly one of the highlights of the weekend is the scavenger hunt that kicks off at 2!  Scout the town for a crazy list of things to find!  And it’s even more fun if you’ve already hit the beer garden which is open from 11 to 5 with the Ledd Peppers playing from 2 to 5pm.  Rumor has it they will also be having daily cornhole tournaments in the beer garden, too.  Get your practice in now!

I, myself, would love to take pics at the beard and hot wing-eating contest at 4!  See who has the most interesting beard and who can put the wings back! Lol. 

I also think the firemen’s dinner from 5 to 7 sounds like a good way to get out of cooking and you can dance off the calories from 8 to midnight with music by The 70’s Band.

But believe it or not, there’s still a full day of entertainment on Monday!  The parade begins at 11 followed by the Loess Hills Country Cloggers and the carnival rides with food vendors, bingo, a car show, and, as usual, the beer garden with the super fun Polka Police playing from 4 to 6pm. 

How should you do the weekend?  You should Hoo Doo it! 

​People, it is off-the-charts full of fun!  Neola goes all out for Hoo Doo, it’s the event of the year!  As lazy as you may be after the kick-off to the school year, you won’t be sorry if you roll out for the Hoo Doo fun!

Also, be sure to check out all the sponsors and volunteers!  It is crazy impressive how many folks go out of their way to make this weekend happen!  As always, #SmallTownLifeIsTheBestLife!  #PottawattamieLoyal #SeeIowa #PottCounty #LaborDayWeekendFun

​Brought to you by TS Bank. 

Something old, something new, and plenty of somethings to do in Pott. County this weekend! 

As most of you are probably well-aware, school starts back this week which means back-to-school events!  Tonight, you can gorge yourself at the Food Truck Night at the Pottawattamie County Fairgrounds set up to make your school open house evening an easier one with no cooking! 

And if you’re feeling a little down or a little more excited than you want to admit, you can drop the littles off on Friday and do breakfast with the other parents at Silos in Treynor.  Rumor has it there will be Bloody Marys, Mimosas, and a breakfast buffet from 8am to 11am! 

Who’s in?

No need to feel guilty about that morning drop-off, just make plans to end your Friday with the family at the park in Macedonia for wiffle ball under the stadium and other fun family-friendly activities.

Saturday starts off bright and early!  At 6:30am, you can make your way to Breezy Hills Vineyard in Minden for their Harvest Party which involves grape-picking, breakfast, grape-stomping, and lunch!
(What an experience!)

Or if you’re not quite that energetic, you can simply stuff yourself with pancakes at the DeWitt Building in Macedonia starting at 7am as it is part of the Donia Days Spectacular!

Speaking of Donia Days!  They have a full day planned!  At 9 am, you can hit the craft fair, the flea market, and the silent auction.  From there, the parade is at 10 featuring the Omaha Pipe and Drum Corps!  (How cool is that?) Also, from 10 to noon, you can grab a treat at TS Bank and the food booths and folk art festival will open!  At 11, kids can do chalk art, parents can check out the garden & flower show and the classic car show, but the highlight, friends, has to be the bed races!!  I am sooo excited to finally be able to be there to see them!

Although, I have to admit, I’m really curious about the hot dog eating and bubblegum blowing contest at noon!  I’m wondering which participants I will know????

And also starting at noon, you can eat pie.  Homemade pie.  Yum!  And the afternoon is packed!  There will be a bounce house, face painting, cow bingo, a dunk tank, a gyrosphere, a kickball tourney, and a cornhole one, too, with live music at The Back Forty All Day Long from 11am on! 

​People, Donia knows how to party!

That being said, I would be remiss to not mention, Silos is having a golf tournament for all you golfers at 10 on Saturday, as well, and QuailFest at the Quail Run Golf Course in Neola will also kick off at 10 with a 2-person scramble, live music from Finding Dixie, and a cornhole tournament! 

What a day in Pott. Co!

And if you aren’t exhausted by Sunday, there’s still fun to be had!  Prairie Crossing Winery in Treynor will be having their Harvest Party and Grape Stomp from 1pm to 5pm with live music by the Polka Police!  Get your exercise and your drink on! 

Again, I can’t say it enough:  we have the coolest stuff happening in Pottawattamie County!  Who wouldn’t want to live here???  #SeeIowa #PottCounty #SmallTownLifeIsTheBestLife

Pott. Co. is going to keep you busy this weekend!  It seems like the end of the summer has been jam-packed and that’s because it has!  This weekend it will be literally and figuratively! Lol.

We kick off this weekend on Friday night as the Eckel’s Memorial Library is hosting their “Hometown Heroes” event from 6:30 to 7:30pm where all little kids can come get footballs signed by the Riverside football team and cheerleaders along with some bonus reading activities.

Also, Friday night, Minden Fun Days will get started!  Be in the ballpark at dusk for a movie in the park!  The weekend continues with the parade at 1pm on Saturday followed by a cornhole tourney, barbeque sampling, kiddie games, and the always popular beer garden.  The City of Minden, along with help from the Minden Meat Market and the Minden Bowl Café will keep you busy and full!  Finish off the weekend in Minden with a pancake breakfast on Sunday at the Minden Fire Hall hosted by the Boy Scouts!  This is the big hoorah weekend for Minden so be sure to check out all the fun!

Saturday will have a few other offerings, as well.  The Crescent Roadhouse will be holding a cornhole tourney starting at 10 am and running till 4pm which is perfect timing because the Back-to-School Carnival will be happening at the Walnut Community Center from 4-6pm.  And, people, you may laugh but if you’re looking for a little nostalgia, the concession stand will feature wiener winks and no-bake cookies (a former, and yummy, Walnut High School tradition)! 

In addition to pancakes in Minden on Sunday, you can also hear live music with Jumpin Kate at nearby Breezy Hills Vineyard from 2 to 5pm or you can head over to The Sweet Vale of Avoca Museum at 1:30pm to see the unveiling of the time capsule from 1969.  From what I understand, new things will be put in the time capsule and it will be tucked away again!

Finally, we can’t talk about the weekend without a Monday coming up afterwards.  The Monday Market in Underwood will feature a jam and jelly competition.  Not sure about you, but it sounds like a good night to be there!
​
Whether you’re looking for good food, a parade, some cornhole, or music and drinks, it’s all here in Pott. Co. this weekend!  Don’t miss it!  #SeeIowa #PottCounty #SmallTownLifeIsTheBestLife

As we quickly approach the school-year, it’s time to get in all that last-minute fun in Pottawattamie County, and there’s plenty of it! 

Kick off your Thursday in Crescent with music in the park provided by Rock Revue.  Get in those last feels of summer!

Friday night you can have another night of lawn chair/blankets on the grass while watching “Breakthrough” at the Underwood Lutheran Church.  They are having their last family movie night of the season starting at dusk (or approximately 9pm).

But be sure to catch Family Game Night at Impact Hill in Oakland before it!  It runs from 7-9pm!  Perfect timing to hit both!

If you’re looking for more of an adult theme, head to Breezy Hills for Wings & Wine-a-Ritas and some live music from HissyFit.

Also starting Friday and running through the weekend, you can get all those back-to-school clothes or decorate that first college dorm by checking out the city-wide garage sales in Avoca!

Saturday brings a couple of cool options!  Neola is hosting the trifecta of parties with a hydrant party, a pizza party, and a movie party all in one.  Cool off with the Neola Fire Department’s free-flowing hydrant party down Front St. and then grab a bite at Buck Snort and catch “How to Train Your Dragon The Hidden World” at The Phoenix at 2:30pm.  It’s a fun-filled, packed afternoon for $10 a head!

Saturday also offers the Rural Ramble.  If you’re not familiar with it, Paige Volkens, the East and West Pott. Soil Conservation Educationalist has brought back the tour for 2019!  It’s a self-guided tour of some of our local agriculturally-based small businesses plus they are feeding you at AgriVision in Donia!  Sign up for raffles, catch some fun kid activities, and learn what the locals are offering.

And don’t forget the Grist Mill Theater Camp performance at 10 on Saturday!

Sunday is your chance to relax with some cupcakes and Iowa-inspired clothing.  Hit the White & Yellow and Frosting, Inc. pop-up in Walnut from 11am to 5pm.  And, the Dreamland Theatre will be showing The Lion King to finish off your Sunday evening.

It’s definitely a weekend of options!  Music, movies, tours, water fun – we’ve got it all!  #PottCounty #SeeIowa #SmallTownLifeIsTheBestLife 

​Did I miss something?  Be sure and let me know.

What a weekend!  And I use the term loosely!  It’s a long weekend of fun in Pott. Co!  In fact, this might be the most exciting weekend of the year!  We’ve got the Old Settlers’ weekend in Hancock Friday through Sunday and the rodeo in Carson from Thursday to Saturday.  Plus, the bonus is a Monday Market Ice Cream Social in Underwood on Monday!  How’s that for an exciting weekend?

Let me tell you all about it!  Let’s start with the National Rodeo being held in Carson.  People, it ain’t their first rodeo!  Lol.  In fact, it’s their 42nd!  Thursday is Family Night and includes the always-popular mutton-busting for kids.  Friday and Saturday night bring bull riding, barrel racing, clowning, bucking broncs, beer, and big-time fun! 

But Carson doesn’t just give you a rodeo, they give you the whole small town experience complete with the rodeo street dance on Friday night with the music of Chad Lee and Saturday same song second verse with Finding Dixie playing!  And they have Saturday packed to the brim with events including a lot of free fun!  Take in the rodeo parade at 10:30am on Saturday down Broadway, followed by the 5 buck lunch at the pavilion, then hit the cornhole tourney at 1 or the bike rodeo for kids.  From there, the Candle Queens are having a truck show at Hotze’s.  And don’t forget church on Sunday at the Carson United Methodist with coffee and fellowship pregame at 10:30am and worship at 11.  As someone who’s been there and done that, I can honestly tell you that Carson pulls out all the stops for this event!  The community comes together to make this a weekend you won’t forget.  You won’t be disappointed!

Of course, then we’ve got our friends in Macedonia, who are piggy-backing the weekend with some live entertainment at the Back Forty.  So if the outdoors isn’t your thing, kick back inside after the rodeo with a DJ on Thursday night, the Anthony Koester Band on Friday and 4 on the Floor on Saturday.

As I said though, it’s quite a weekend in Pott. Co. and you can pack yours full by also attending the Old Settlers Days in Hancock.  This is the big event of the year in the tiny town of Hancock, too!  Friday kicks off with pulled pork sandwiches at 6pm.  Saturday brings the men’s softball tournament at 9 with kids games at 1pm and the pedal tractor pull at 2 with the adults trying to outdo the kids afterwards. Lol.  Of special note, a cornhole tournament will be held at 2pm with all proceeds going to Troy Walker, a Hancock native battling brain cancer.  Your chance to have a little fun and help a fellow Pott. County guy out.  At 8:30pm, they have a dance in the beer garden featuring the local faves, “Murphy’s Law.”  Sunday starts off with a pancake breakfast by the firemen at 8am, the parade is at 1, and the weekend concludes with the benefit auction at 4.  Both days will also feature an antique tractor show, open air market, and kids’ games like human foosball, a dunk tank, and pig bingo!

Seriously, there’s so much to say and so much to do!  Just check out the flyers and if you have questions, you know where to find us!  Enjoy a feel-good, hometown weekend with some beautiful weather!  We’ll be looking for ya!  #SmallTownLifeIsTheBestLife #PottCounty #SeeIowa