Macy's Day Parade

Waiting for the train with our cute girls.

Jane all snuggled up.
On the train into the city.
Picking up some bagels and cream cheese. My first real New York Bagel, it really was different and really yummy.
Just a picture of the crowds of people waiting for the parade. I can't believe they just stand there all packed together for hours and hours. At least they stay warm.
First glimpses of the parade.



Our favorite Balloon of the parade--Buzz!
Santa Claus!
The very end of the parade with "Believe"
After the parade, walking back to the train station Buzz was coming down the street.
The Macy's Marching Band playing at the post office.
A lot of the signs and Marquee's said Happy Thanksgiving. It made it kind of fun.
Ethan being silly. I think he looks kind of like an elf with his hat.
Waiting at the train station to come home. Kate was looking tired by this point.


Thanksgiving Day we left the house about 7am to meet the train. We made it with plenty of time to spare and were so excited. The train ride was smooth and it really wasn't too crowded until about 2 stops before NYC. Ethan as usual happened to make a great little friend and they chatted the whole way. When we got to the city it was so fun! When we came out of the train station there were people giving away free newspapers, and free kettle corn and everyone was wishing everybody else "Happy Thanksgiving". It really did feel surreal. Next comes the only tricky/challenging part of the day. Due to the parade many of the streets were blocked off and we had to walk a certain way to get to Rand's office. Normally the walk from the train station to the office in Time's Square is about 15 minutes. That day due to different instructions we were given and all the crowds it took us about 1 hr. The kids were total troopers and only started to get really whiny about 10 minutes before we arrived at the office.

It was amazing to see So. Many. People. I couldn't believe how many people are willing to stand 20-30 people deep to watch this parade. It was cold, probably the low 40's but not unbearable. I must admit that I like the crowds of people. Crowds, at least around the holidays make things feel more festive for me. This was a dream come true.

When we got to the office we quickly warmed up the kids with soup and goodies galore that everyone helped provide. My favorite thing about the day was probably when the kids looked out the window the first time and saw the parade coming down the street. There were audible gasps because they were so amazed. I felt like I was watching them come down the stairs on Christmas morning. It was so fun to see them peering out the window at the parade below.

The kids really did watch the whole parade other than snack and potty breaks. It really was so fun to do something that I've wanted to do since I could remember. I don't think that this is something we will do every year but we were really glad that we did it.

On the way back to the train station, for just a moment it started to very lightly snow. It was the first snow that we have seen of the season and it made the whole experience that much more magical. The kids were so excited and stuck their tongues out to try to catch the few snowflakes that fell from the sky. When we got back to the station the Macy's marching band was across the street at the post office playing Christmas songs. It was really fun.

As well as an fun and exciting time I really felt like we were very blessed. I was admittedly a little nervous to take the kids into the city with just two adults and all those people. We knew that the experience could be disastrous with delays in travel and other things. We prayed that morning before we left specifically for safety and also in detail to make sure we were safe, made the train and even that we would be able to all sit together and find room for the double stroller. Our prayer were answered. When you are in the train station you have to find the train you want and then the platform is not announced until about 10 minutes before it departs. So everyone just stands around anxiously awaiting the announcement and then literally runs to the platform. We had no idea which platform it would be so when platform 9 was announced and that was the once very closest to where we were waiting we started to run! Our family was the first one down the stairs, all kids in tow to the platform. The conductor was yelling for everyone to go to the front of the train for seats. I could see that the train was empty and about half way down the train told Rand that we should just jump on. We just happened to jump into a car that is a handicapped car and had 6 seats all together facing in and room to fold the stroller beneath our feet. The train coming in had seats just two by two and they are often too full to sit together even for two people. We knew our "luck" was a direct answer to prayer. It was a neat reminder on Thanksgiving day that Heavenly Father is aware of us and wants to bless us even with the little Things. We also prayed for good weather and although the forecast said rain in the afternoon, it did not start raining until about half way home. We did walk home in the rain but with the station being so close and all our rain jackets we arrived home safely and dry without any incidents. It was a great Thanksgiving.