The day after New Year's, Chris, Kate, and I made our second annual visit to the Tournament of Roses Parade Floats. They were parked next to Kate's favorite park in Pasadena. The weather was cold and gray, the exact opposite of last year (see two photos below). And that was just fine by us.
Don't know who this guy was. 
Kate had her nuclear holocaust shades on last year.
This was Trader Joe's 2009 float, a cool display of monsters from classic sci-fi movies. 
The grown-ups liked it, and at first Kate was really excited and dragged Appa to take a closer look.
But then Godzilla suddenly spat out smoke, startling Kate and Lucy. They were not pleased.
Chris and Kate got caught in Godzilla's breath.
"I don't like the scary monsters!" 
So we moved on to the friendlier Sesame Street floats. Abby Cadabby was done really well. Big Bird was more like Little Bird. His beak and his body could've used a few more inches.
The doggy couple at the drive-in was impressive.
Especially the accessories all around it. According to the rules, everything on the float has to be vegetative. The hot dog was made of roses, and there was a creamsicle made out of dried mango slices. Vegans everywhere would've been proud.
The people in the white suits talked about each float with great pride. We were curious to know who these people were and how they got into this.
The town of Sierra Madre (where Kate took swim classes this summer) did a "Bollywood" float. A pleasantly surprising choice for a town that is almost completely homogenous.
"Beep-Beep!" The desert scenery behind Wile E. with its winding "Route 66" was very impressive. My elementary school was called Forest Road School and we were the "Forest Road Runners." We even had gym shirts with the Road Runner on them, in violation of federal copyright laws. 
It was crowded. All Americans west of the Missisissppi seemed to be there that day. To passersby, it might've looked like a rally organized by PETA. 
Lucy was still a little spooked by Godzilla and kept her hands over her ears for a while.
How Chris might look on a dollar bill. Or a commemorative plate.
Lucy jumped out of the stroller to ask Kate if she wanted to come over to her house and watch a movie with her. Kate's answer was "Yes!"
Sometimes Kate does her Ray Liotta-crazy laugh if she's in a very good mood.
Kate said this was her favorite float.
The Wizard of Oz. Dorothy was made of live, human flesh, and marched in the parade the day before.
Hilary and Kate admiring a robot rock band float.
This was a beautiful float -- a rabbit carrying a wheelbarrow of garden vegetables, on his way to the fair.
A Mad Tea-Party.
This was maybe Float Number 42, and everyone was getting a little tired.
After viewing 46 floats, it was high time for lunch and ice cream. Chris decided to give his biceps a workout.
Kate and Lucy wanted to try Hilary's peanut butter-chocolate ice cream and pass germs to each other at the same time.
The beauty of being 3 1/2 is that you can have fun anywhere. Even on a set of giant, orange balls outside a supermarket.
Especially when Appa is hamming it up and letting them slide...
Maybe next year we'll skip the floats and just play outside the supermarket. 
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