Everyone Loves a Parade

It was a perfect day for a parade.  Just. Perfect.  Chilly, sunny, absolutely no wind or breeze to speak of, and we were sooooo ready.  Samantha had never been to a parade before, and I'd been scouring the newspapers for listings of local events this season that I might be able to take her to.  Just the day before, I ran across this one, in a town I've been anxious to visit, not too far away.  And the town itself could not. have. been. more. adorable.  Several hundred years old and staying true to its origins with an incredible charm that takes your breath away, we weren't (I mean, I wasn't) surprised to be greeted by the sounds of bagpipes as we walked towards the parade route from our car. 

We staked our spot on the curb, and Princess was so, so, so, so good and, surprisingly, patient!  She sat and watched all of the growing activity around us, and when the parade started, she loved it!  It was almost done by the time she'd decided she'd had enough, and I was happy to oblige her the return to the car. 

My only complaint was of the sheer quantity of hard candy being thrown to the crowd from the floats.  Keeping it from Sammi (and keeping her from throwing herself in front of the local Polo Club's horses to pick up a stray sweet) was a little bit of a challenge.  I mean, how do you tell a child she can't eat a piece of candy?  We've never given her hard candy, and I'm absolutely terrified of the day someone gives her one when we're not around to stop it.  Can we make her wear a sign around her neck, ala Gremlins, that says, "Do not feed me hard candy?"  Fortunately, some kind soul on one of the floats chucked down lollipops, and that seemed to appease the child.  Lollipops are okay, with supervision. 

And I now have a pocket-full of candy for those all-too-frequent needs for a sugar fix.  hehehehe

Revolutionaries in front of Ye Olde Safeway Supermarket...

Kind of an odd look on her face, almost like she's feeling a bit unsure about something, but if you look behind her, you can see my leg and my hand on my knee.  This was a seriously awkward angle to be taking a pic...  I see this photo as her excitement lighting up her face as the parade passed by.