BLOOMINGTON - Santa and Mrs. Claus arrived in downtown Bloomington to cheering youngsters who lined the streets for Saturday's holiday parade. | Photo gallery

The North Pole couple rode atop a Bloomington Fire Department truck for the trip from Kingsley Junior High in Normal to Bloomington. A line of about 40 entrants paved the way for Santa's entrance.

Jason Bramley and his 3-year-old daughter Rylee were among the first to line up along the parade route. Bramley has been at work for his daughter's previous trips to the parade, so Saturday's event was the first time he has watched the toddler's excitement as Santa came into view.

The parade is just part of the anticipation the holiday season brings to children, said Bramley.

"She is so thrilled. When the commercials for toys are on, she's watching them more than the shows," said Rylee's dad.

The parade, sponsored by the Bloomington-Normal Jaycess, was met with a light dusting of snow and chilly winds. But the weather was this year a favorable contrast to the ice that blanketed the Twin Cities for last year's holiday parade.

While many families kept their children home for the slippery event last year, others remembered the event as something they would brave again for the opening of the holiday season.

"Rain or snow, we come to the parade," said Andy Sylvester, who watched the parade with his wife, Tammi, and three children ages 7, 5 and 1½.

The parade is part of the family's holiday tradition that kicks off after Thanksgiving, when "the lights go up and tree goes up," said Sylvester.

The couple from Normal acknowledged that their family is fortunate compared to others this holiday season.

"We have stable jobs and we have a Christmas account so we have an idea what we're going to spend. We may not be getting as much as we'd like for the kids, but we're fortunate," said Sylvester.

Lorna Anderson waited in downtown Bloomington for the parade with her family, which included four grandchildren. Grandsons Jake Canfield, 10, and his cousin, Logan Gerwick, 9, shared a folding lounge chair and a blanket next to their grandmother.

"It's a family tradition," Anderson said of the trip to watch the parade.

"I get all excited," said Canfield, waiting for the parade that marks the beginning of the Christmas season.

After the parade, the family planned to return to Anderson's home for some baking, which the youngsters hoped would include chocolate dipping sauce.

Lisa Sweeney's two sons and one of their friends jumped up and down in their fleece blanket wraps as they waited along the parade route.

The 10- and 11-year-olds were looking forward to the candy they hoped to collect from parade entrants.

Sweeney said her holiday budget would be tighter this year.

"We're not getting quite as much," she said.

Electronic game devices were among the items on the Sweeney boys' Christmas list. The family was going to attend post-parade activities at the McLean County Museum of History after Santa passed their position on the parade route.