Fourth of July festivities kicked off with a patriotic start this morning with two children's parades — one in the Camp Ground and another in Aquinnah.

Parades, cookouts and fireworks are all on the agenda for the national holiday. The Edgartown Fourth of July Parade steps off promptly at 5 p.m.

On Monday evening live alpacas and a goat paraded about the yard of Mort and Bev Fearey overlooking the Edgartown Harbor at the eighth annual garden party and auction that benefits the Animal Shelter of Martha’s Vineyard.

She will write and perform an entire production alone, weaving 15 different characters into the same play. But Sarah Jones does not have multiple personality disorder. She just knows how to listen.

On July 2, Flatbread will open its doors to host music for the last time at the YMCA’s sixth annual Stars + Stripes Festival. The show begins at 7 p.m.

The Martha’s Vineyard Museum’s annual opening-of-summer party and fundraiser was Saturday. The theme was Gatsby-esque, and a capital campaign was formally launched.