This Is Why.

It seems crazy that even with the temperature hovering around 101 degrees yesterday afternoon as we made the drive to the city, that we would still go through with the parade. But we did.

It cooled down a lot (80's) by the time the parade actually got going and we all had fun.

M is not a big fan of the heat. At all. And as we drove downtown to the parade she asked why I loved this parade so much.

I couldn't really give her a definite answer but on the drive home I knew better.

It's the staying up late and eating ice cream treats on Hennepin Avenue. It's seemingly breaking all the rules of life and bringing home filthy, exhausted kids and moving them to their beds with popsicle stains running down their arms and black speckled feet from the street.

It's letting the kids draw with sidewalk chalk on what's otherwise a street full of businesses while we await the start of the parade. Knowing that the next day as city dwellers await at their bus stop or walk to their office, they'll look down at the drawings a child made the night before.

It's watching the sun set over the city and dancing with the marching bands. Pushing the littles forward to gather as many treats and candies as they can in their little bags.

It's watching my littles excitement when the clowns come over and give high fives or the horses march by or even the gymnasts start doing their flips in front of them.

It's simple and it's fun and it's a welcome part of our summer. We wouldn't miss it.

Heat advisory or not, I'm glad we went.

***On another note...

Sometimes I feel like when it rains, it pours, in Blogville. {Or in the words of Steph at Adventures in Babywearing, it's feast or famine!} It's true! This month has been the feast and next month will probably be the famine. 

I've got information on a Stonyfield Farms event this weekend in Minneapolis and giveaway {open to anyone in the US} over here. 

The Noodles giveaway goes through Sunday.

And I've got a Minnesota Zoo giveaway coming soon too!