I Love a Parade, and So Does Emma!

[caption id="attachment_231" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Emma and the Vulcan Krewe"][/caption]

Emma, Max, and I went to the Woodbury Days parade today. When I mentioned yesterday to Emma that we would be going to the parade today, she insisted that I check the weather first. The last time we went to a parade, the Cottage Grove Strawberry Fest parade earlier this summer, we got caught in a downpour. We left that parade early and all the way home Emma cried that she never wanted to go to a parade again. Checking the weather, I told Emma that there was a very small chance it would rain, but she was fine with that, so we went.

[caption id="attachment_232" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Max enjoyed the parade."][/caption]

I was very impressed with Emma at this parade. With every other parade we have taken her to, she had been terrified by the sirens from the police cars and firetrucks that invariably begin the parade. So when I heard the sirens off in the distance this afternoon, I braced myself to deal with her asking to go home. I was pleasantly surprised though when Emma didn't react to the sound at all. She watched the emergency vehicles drive by with their lights on and sirens blaring. I am so happy that she seems to be done with that phase. Max has never had problems with the noise, and today was no different.

[caption id="attachment_233" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Emma and Petey P. Cup"][/caption]

Emma also seems to have gotten over her fear of dogs as several dogs went by within inches of us in the padare. Emma liked the dogs this time. Both kids had a good time. I let Max have a few pieces of candy, mainly a package of Smarties and a Tootsie Roll or two. And he didn't get at all cranky sitting in his stroller for the parade which lasted at least two hours.

Of course the highlight of the parade for Emma was when she saw her favorite mascot, Petey P. Cup. She was super excited when she saw him coming in the distance. She gave him a nice big hug. I do not think it will be difficult getting her to go to any parades in the future.

[caption id="attachment_234" align="aligncenter" width="225" caption="Emma ended up collecting a little candy at the parade."][/caption]

A Daddy Weekend

Mel went to Cedar Rapids this past weekend to visit a friend. This left me home alone with both kids. I got the kids put to bed alright Friday night, although Max did get up twice to be fed during the night -- at 10:00 p.m. and 12:30 a.m. He ended up waking up at 4:40 in the morning, followed by Emma waking up at 5:20. Emma wanted to go somewhere Saturday morning. She ended up asking if we could go to the Mall of America so she could ride the merry-go-round. So, I decided to take both kids to the mall. Taking a three-year-old and a seven-month-old to the Mall of America by myself was a lot more challenging than I thought it would be. The hardest part was when we were in the middle of eating lunch and Emma told me she needed to go potty. Well, she is too young to go by herself, our food was only half eaten, I was trying to feed Max, and there was no one to take her besides me. I ended up telling her to finish her lunch first, and then we would go to the restroom. We finished up and went, however Emma apparently didn't actually have to use the restroom. I guess my gamble paid off. Emms ended up riding the carousel three times during our visit to the mall before we headed home.

Yesterday, we all went to the Woodbury Days parade. That is one really long parade! I think it lasted about two hours! Before it was over, Emma was ready to go home. It wasn't because we were there for so long, but instead because she was frightened by the fire coming from the RE/MAX hot air balloon basket that was in the parade. The loud noise was bad enough, but when they fired it up near us, I think the combination of fire, intense heat, and noise pushed her over the edge. It took several minutes to calm her down. She ended up with quite a bit of candy. I don't think she will be able to go through it all by Halloween even. She also ended up with a lot of political stickers on her shirt. Somehow though, the stickers from the Republican candidates ended up being covered by the stickers from the DFL candidates. Hmmm, I'm not sure how that happened.