‘What a Blast!’ at Hanson Park — Sat 6/27, 5–10pm, free. The big one, in Aldie (with Brambleton CA): The Legwarmers headline at 7, fireworks ~9:30 (rain date Sun 6/28). Kid's Zone, bounce houses, food trucks, splash pad. Free parking — lots fill by ~8pm, so come early.

Star Spangled Sterling — Fri 6/26, 6pm, fireworks 9:30. Sterling Middle School: DJ Greenzie, a Loudoun United FanZone, moonbounce, rock wall, food. Free.

Star Spangled South Riding — Fri 6/26, 5:30–9:30pm. Parade at 5:30, Eclipse (a Journey tribute), fireworks ~9:15 at the golf club. (It's the 26th, not July 3rd — the Town moved it.) Coolers OK; no outside alcohol or pets.

Movie night: ‘Lilo & Stitch’ at One Loudoun — Thu 6/25, 8pm, free. Outdoor screening with Alamo Drafthouse popcorn. (Fri 6/26: free Summer Strings with Roxanne Cook, 6–9.)

Juniper Lights at One Loudoun — Sat 6/27, 7–9pm, free. High-energy covers on the Plaza; all ages.

Groovalicious ’70s disco at Tarara — Sat 6/27, 6–9:30 (gates 5). $20/$10 online. Bell-bottoms encouraged — and it's the Tarara Saturday series’ final season.

Live music at Vanish Farmwoods Brewery — Sat 6/27. Film at Eleven 1–4, Acoustic Chicks Band 5–8 at the big Leesburg farm-brewery; dogs and kids welcome.

Solace pop-up at Halcyon Watson (Leesburg) — Fri–Sun. Joel Delgado Fri 5–8, Berlin Calling (’80s) Sat 3–6, Ky Davis Sun 1–4; Solace beer + Paradise Springs wine, food trucks, free.

Tally Ho Theater (downtown Leesburg). 90s Rockfest Fri 6/26, Better Off Dead (Dead tribute) Sat 6/27, a Taylor Swift singalong Sun 6/28 — doors 7 (Sun 6).

Another Broken Egg — now serving at Bram Quarter (Ashburn). Brunch, 7am–2pm weekdays / 7am–3pm weekends. Expect a first-weekend wait.

Wonder food hall — grand opening Thu 6/25, Cascades Marketplace (Sterling). One kitchen, 20+ brands; order by app or kiosk.

Also new around town: Tatte Bakery at One Loudoun, the new IKEA in Chantilly, and Pinstack bowling/arcade at Kincora — the latter two double as easy indoor backup plans.

Free, expanded transit starts Wed 7/1. Loudoun launches a fare-free Transit On-Demand pilot across a 14-sq-mile slice of Sterling and adds weekend on-demand service in Leesburg with four new pickup spots. Useful if you're car-light or commuting.

Data Center Watch. Two things to know: data centers are no longer a "by-right" use anywhere in Loudoun — every new project now needs public hearings (applications filed before Feb 12, 2025 are grandfathered). And supervisors are studying the former GW campus off Route 7 (sold to Amazon for $427M) after vowing to fight centers that would harm neighbors. The corridor's defining fight.

Summer Reading is the easy win. The library's free 2026 program — "Dig into a prehistoric summer" — runs through Aug 16: finish 10 challenges for a free book and two Washington Nationals tickets, and every registrant gets a weekday kids' pass to Great Country Farms. Free dino family shows tour the branches (Dino Academy June 29–July 2).

Volcano Island Waterpark at Algonkian is open weekends, 11am–7pm. Right in Ashburn's backyard — the easy weekend-with-kids move.

Farmers markets: Leesburg Sat 8–12, Cascades Sun 9–12; EatLoco at Ashbrook (Sat) and Brambleton (Sun), both 9–1.

Summer camps: county Daze/Fest camps (grades K–8) start the week of June 29 — check for open or late-add spots.

Youth football — CLYFL fall tackle closes Sat 6/27. Most divisions are full; grades 5–6 still open. Proof-of-grade and physicals due July 1.

Basketball — Dulles Youth Basketball opens July 1 (grades K–5; $200, rises to $250 after Sept 1).

Soccer — Loudoun Soccer fall rec is open (closes Aug 7; players placed first-registered).

Watch for it: the county's Fall Activity Guide drops online mid-July — the trigger for most fall rec programs.

Soccer fans: no Loudoun United home match this weekend; next at Segra Field is Fri 7/3, 7pm vs Sporting JAX ("703 Night").

The county slate runs Fri 6/26–Sat 7/4. Standouts: Leesburg's celebration (Sat 7/4 — parade 10am downtown, then the region's largest fireworks at Ida Lee, 9:30), Fourth Fest at Claude Moore (Sat 7/4, 10:30am–3pm family day), Franklin on the Fourth fireworks, and Lovettsville's parade + fireworks Fri 7/3. Full rundown next week.

▶ Play today's W&OD — Words & Omitted Details, the daily Ashburn anagram game. Build a streak; no account needed.

▶ Play today's Interchange — one clue, two words that share a middle letter; three puzzles, easy to hard. See the leaderboard.