thanksgiving morning....

Thanksgiving morning we were up at 5:00am, so we could get down to the parade. Our check-in time was 5:45, with rehearsal at around 6:10... ugh.

Jeff and I were pretty groggy... but Alex was pretty bright-eyed....
And then it was time to rehearse in the dark.

Here's Jim, getting ready to start the number...

Rehearsing...


After a quick run through, it was time to go back to the "green room" on Daley Plaza to wait. I took a quick snap of the tree there...
We hung out for about an hour and a half (thank goodness I had put some "board games" on my phone that the kids could play) and then it was time for the actual broadcast.

Hanging out in the holding pen...

.... it amused me... it was an actual corral this year.

And then the broadcast began with the Barnum and Bailey group...
Another act followed then, and then it was our turn.

Getting ready to begin...
The toy soldier....
Raggedy Andy...
The gang of Santa's toys...
And now the kids....
They ran in and danced a circle around Santa.... but this year there were sooooo many people out where the there were only camera men last year that it was nearly impossible to get a clear shot. You will see random people in every single shot I took (plus you'll see them in the broadcast too.... ugh).



The End! :-)

After grabbing our gear in the green room, I took a couple of quick pics of Alex in his Jake costume in front of the tree....


And then it was time to head home for a big breakfast and a low key day before heading to dinner with friends later.

Here's the video of the performance...