An afternoon in downtown Mobile

Today we drove to Mobile to watch the afternoon Mardi Gras parades with our friends Aaron, Bobbi, and her son Keegan.

It was so crowded that David and Aaron dropped us women and children off a block away from the parade.  Look at that tree.

It reminds me of Toomer's Corner after a football game, except it's covered in Mardi Gras beads instead of toilet paper.

Anyway, Bobbi and the kids and I caught the end of the parade while we waiting for the men to find us. 

About 15 minutes later, David and Aaron finally found a parking spot and met up with us.  Then we all waited for the parades to come back by.

Grace climbed on the railing in eager anticipation of the "puh-aid" (parade).

So did Keegan.

Before the parade started again, police officers on motorcycles rode up and down the streets doing tricks.

This guy got a monkey on his back as a treat.

Soon the parade started again.

There were many beautiful floats.

And pretty girls in antebellum dresses.

There were clowns and marching bands.

The kids had a great time catching and eating moonpies. 

And they loved the beads.

They had a lot of fun dancing to the music and running around together.

Here's Aaron, with his fiance Bobbi, and her son Keegan.  Soon they'll be a happy family.

And here's my family:  my handsome husband, David, our adorable daughter, Grace, and me.  We had a great time at the parade.  Afterwards, we walked around downtown for a bit and grabbed some appetizers at a local restaurant.  Then we headed home so the kids could nap from all the excitement.