January 1st

Emma and I started off the new year by watching the Rose Parade this morning. I love being able to walk over and watch it go by without having to buy a ticket and fight crowds of people to get to it. I was very thankful I had stopped to grab my wallet before we headed over to the parade route. There were vendors selling cotton candy and Emma has never met a stick of cotton candy that she doesn't like. So, being the totally awesome mom that I am, I bought her a stick of spun sugar to eat at 9:30am. I tried to explain to her that it was a special treat and she wouldn't normally be allowed to eat pure sugar so early in the day, but she was too busy inhaling it. We had a great time watching the floats, marching bands and horses go by. The Ronald Reagan Library float was one of the most impressive ones I have ever seen in terms of artistry. The pictures they were able to recreate were amazing.

I took the last picture shown below while Emma was sitting on my shoulders. I've always wanted to watch a parade with her sitting up there so I can finally cross that off of my list. I was wondering what she was doing up there so I tried to take her picture with just one hand. I wonder what she was thinking at that moment since she has such a pensive expression on her face. Is she thinking about her new year resolutions? Is she thinking about what a great Christmas she had? She's probably wondering how she can get her hands on more cotton candy.