The Ross': St. Paddy's Day Parade (2-days late!)

Every year Baton Rouge has a St. Patrick's Day parade the Saturday after and somehow, Ben and I always have something going on. This year marked our 9th year in Baton Rouge (between 2000 and 2011) and we have never made the parade. We made it a point to attend this year.

Ben and Dana hosted a gathering at their house for a couple friends. They live a couple blocks from the parade route, had a bounce house for the kiddos, breakfast goodies, jambalaya after the parade and all around fun the entire day.

We had NO idea how much fun we would have at the parade. It was close to 2 hours long and had bands, dancers, floats, beads, etc. The kids LOVED it.

Our friends Micah and Raychel have a daughter - Julie - who is almost 2 months older than Allie and Evan...she is a doll. Before the parade, Julie and Allie took a stab at getting in the bounce house and teetering around - they are adorable!

We strapped the kids in their strollers, cracked a cold beverage and took off for the 10-minute walk to the parade route. Someone was quite excited to see what was in store for the afternoon. :)

"Super mom" Dana. Only she could man two kids - boys at that - who are at completely different ages with completely different interests. She's one of the best people I know.

I am always the picture taker (love photography!) so I never have any pictures of me and sweet Al. You can tell she was REAL enthused on having her picture taken here.

Ben, Allie, Julie and Micah - awesome and supportive daddy's giving mom's a break! Julie and Allie were "fast" friends and had tons of fun.

The Roy's - Raychel, Julie & Micah

Look how sleepy those eyes are but she kept on trucking!

And she's out!

Raychel is originally from Colorado and we cracked up after seeing this...an Abita Strawberry beer bottle, juice box and sippy cup on the beverage holder of Dana's double-stroller. I love how family oriented Baton Rouge is and the way they always incorporate a party with everything!