2012 National Cherry Blossom Festival Parade in Washington, D.C. 4/14

No one rained on this parade. Not even the early bloom and lack of Japanese Cherry Blossoms dampened the day. The sun conquered it all as groups of people took part in the National Cherry Blossom Festival Parade in Washington, D.C. on Saturday, April 14, 2012. This marked the 100th year celebration for the gift of trees.

Kaden and I caught the metro rail to the district to take part in the day's festivities. Thanks to McDonald's DMV, we were given two seats in the grand stands to watch the parade. It was free to everyone, but the tickets allowed us to have a comfortable, up-close look at the parade. 

Here is our day in pictures:

And of course you have to explore the nation's capital every time you get the chance to visit. With the little free time Kaden and I had, we enjoyed the weather and Washington, D.C.

For the first time, the parade was televised and aired live on ABC7/WJLA-TV and NewsChannel8, and nationally syndicated. You can see a bit of the behind-the-scenes action on this footage I captured throughout the parade.

HONORARY MARSHALS: Singer and actress Marie Osmond; Olympians Benita Fitzgerald Mosley and Kristi Yamaguchi; astronaut Buzz Aldrin; Shintaro Ishihara, Governor of Tokyo; and Ichiro Fujisaki, Ambassador of Japan to the United States.

This is only some of all the great entertainment from the day. Entertainment also included:

• Haley Reinhart, American Idol season 10 finalist whose debut album, Listen Up!, is released May 22
• Javier Colon, 2011 winner of The Voice
• Mary Mary, the gospel sister duo of Erica Atkins-Campbell and Trecina Atkins-Campbell
• "We are Family's" Kathy Sledge and Family
• Pop icon Debbie Gibson
• Siobhan Magnus, American Idol finalist
• Tenor and DC-native Nathan Pacheco
• University of Maryland’s Gymkana, from America’s Got Talent
• International dance music icon Kristine W
• Leonard, Coleman & Blunt, featuring Glenn Leonard (formerly of the Temptations), Joe Coleman (formerly of the Platters), and Joe Blunt (formerly of the Drifters)
• Tamagawa University taiko drummers and dancers, returning for the seventh year
• Yamakiya Taiko Club from Fukushima, Japan
• Modern taiko drumming from TAIKOPROJECT
• Miss America 2012 Laura Kaeppeler with state representatives from the Miss America and Miss America’s Outstanding Teen organizations
• Washington Wizard Girls and Washington Redskins Cheerleaders
• Washington Performing Arts Society’s Men, Women and Children of the Gospel Choir
• Blossom All-Star Band featuring 350 members from 12 marching bands across the country

I have to say the parade was the highlight of my weekend; the day was beautiful, there was no chaos and we made more memories.

For more information, visit www.nationalcherryblossomfestival.org.

Disclosure Information
Thanks to McDonalds_DMV for the tickets. The opinions and views are my own.