Favorite floats

I can't begin the holiday season, or turkey day for that matter, without watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. It's the child in me that keeps me glued to the tube all morning long.

Sometimes I'm too lazy to get out of pajamas, but often, I get up early enough to primp for the day and settle in with a cup of coffee and some kind of breakfast pastry, as opposed to my usual breakfast of bran cereal. Yum.

Prior to moving to Michigan, I could watch the parade on NBC, but since moving here, the local affiliate insists on covering Detroit's crappy attempt at a replica: America's Thanksgiving Day Parade. So, that leaves me to watch CBS' coverage of the Macy's event, which is TERRIBLE.They spend more time with the camera on the two hosts — who talk up visiting soap opera stars — than on the floats themselves, and often pan over to some park for a Broadway song. I meant to write them last year, but never did. And now I'm frantically trying to figure out if NBC will be streaming the parade.

These are some floats that I cannot miss — they're too nostalgic.

If I knew someone with an apartment that looked down upon the parade route, I'd want to watch it from the window, with the play-by-play from the TV on in the background — kind of like my favorite Christmas movie, "Miracle on 34th Street."

The 82-year-old parade originally featured animals from the local zoo. When they added helium floats in 1927 and released them as part of the grand finale, they all burst over the Manhattan skyline. The following year, they designed balloons with safety valves that allowed them to float for days. They even stuck return labels on the characters in case they got away, and offered a reward for the return.

I think it's safe to say that most of the balloons have improved over time ...

... while some have remained parade classics.