Happy Independence day! It's officially time to celebrate this Fourth of July with family, friends, fireworks, fun and food. Check out these 4 surprising ways Americans across the country are spending their day of Independence.

#1 Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest - Coney Island, New York

Photo via sportingnews.com

Over the July 4th holiday alone, Americans are expected to eat 150 million hot dogs. And helping those numbers is the annual Nathan’s Famous hot dog eating contest in Coney Island, NY. Contestants are to ingest as many hot dogs as they can in 10 minutes, last year’s winner broke the record with 72 hot dogs within 10 mins!

#2 Peculiar Pet Parade - Bend, Oregon 

Photo via kristinshieldsart.com

Every 4th of July since 1932, Downtown Bend closes its streets for a parade for pets. What started as a simple idea to let the local children parade their pets in wagons through downtown now attracts over 8,000 participants and spectators. It’s not unusual to find more than just dogs or parading down the street. Over the years, participants have brought their “pet” deer, badger, goldfish, chicken, squirrel, duck, oxen, calf, pet eagle and baby coyotes.

#3 Keeping Age Old Traditions Alive - Bristol, Rhode Island

Photo via mentalfloss.com

This summer will mark the 233rd Bristol Annual Fourth of July Celebration, established in 1785, is the oldest continuous celebration of its kind in the United States. The celebrations started as a service with prayers, speeches and singing at the town’s Congregational Church. Over the years, it has evolved into the parade you see today.

#4 Going Big in Kaboom Town - Addison, Texas

Photo via Dallasobserver.com

Ranked as one of the top 10 fireworks displays in the country by USA Today, the Wall Street Journal, and Travel + Leisure Magazine, Addison Kaboom Town puts on an unforgettable show each year. Thanks to their spectacular 30-minute-long fireworks display, this normally small town of 15,000 swells to 500,000 onlookers come Independence Day.