Maple Ridge Christmas Parade
We took the boys to see the local Christmas parade, along with our friends and their two boys. We stood in the sub zero temperatures at night to watch the saddest parade you've ever seen. Local businesses loaded into pick ups with an inflateable lawn ornament in back. A smallish fire truck covered in Christmas table cloths held together with packing tape. A dance troop of 8 year olds. Couple of local churches with some seniors carrying a banner. Five llamas lit up with Christmas lights(my personal favourite).
Riley's comment as he sat perched atop my shoulders, "Parades aren't fun. All you do is stand here. I thought there was games." While this is my own opinion of parades (I find them frightfully boring and pointless) I don't want Riley growing up to be as bitter and soulless as I am. Just in time to save the evening some warm hearted and frozen fingered folks handed out candy to the spectating kids. Yay!
"It's like trick or treating, except THEY come to YOU!" I shouted to try to cheer the kids up. The candy did it's job and fired the 4 boys up. As well, the anticipation of the arrival of Santa Claus on the grandest float got them jumping. It doesn't seem to matter how many times they see Santa in the mall, on TV or at company Christmas parties, they still get excited when he's on his way.
Only he wasn't.
We could see the start of the parade route, and a blaze of blinking lights from what we assumed was Santa's float. We waited 10 minutes after the last pickup truck full of real estate agents wheeled by and still no float. Still no Santa. The temperature had dropped to 4 below, and I foolishly had left my gloves and my alcohol at home. With supreme effort we pulled our kids away from the parade route to head back to our cars. (We had to bribe them with the only thing more powerful than Santa, pizza.) As it happened, our cars were close to the start of the parade route. We got a great view of a tow truck pulling up tow away Santa's broken down float.
I shoulda have thought quickly and told the kids that Santa wouldn't be able to make it to anybody's house this year. I think a few pizzas under the tree would have been a fantastic gift.
Riley's comment as he sat perched atop my shoulders, "Parades aren't fun. All you do is stand here. I thought there was games." While this is my own opinion of parades (I find them frightfully boring and pointless) I don't want Riley growing up to be as bitter and soulless as I am. Just in time to save the evening some warm hearted and frozen fingered folks handed out candy to the spectating kids. Yay!
"It's like trick or treating, except THEY come to YOU!" I shouted to try to cheer the kids up. The candy did it's job and fired the 4 boys up. As well, the anticipation of the arrival of Santa Claus on the grandest float got them jumping. It doesn't seem to matter how many times they see Santa in the mall, on TV or at company Christmas parties, they still get excited when he's on his way.
Only he wasn't.
We could see the start of the parade route, and a blaze of blinking lights from what we assumed was Santa's float. We waited 10 minutes after the last pickup truck full of real estate agents wheeled by and still no float. Still no Santa. The temperature had dropped to 4 below, and I foolishly had left my gloves and my alcohol at home. With supreme effort we pulled our kids away from the parade route to head back to our cars. (We had to bribe them with the only thing more powerful than Santa, pizza.) As it happened, our cars were close to the start of the parade route. We got a great view of a tow truck pulling up tow away Santa's broken down float.
I shoulda have thought quickly and told the kids that Santa wouldn't be able to make it to anybody's house this year. I think a few pizzas under the tree would have been a fantastic gift.