FISHERS, Ind. — The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is almost here, and once again this year, a family from Fishers will be a part of it.
The Simonett family was chosen to be "balloon handlers" for "Bluey" last year. They called it a "bucket list" adventure.
This year, they'll be back at it. They've been picked again to do the heavy lifting on Thanksgiving morning in New York City.
This time, the Simonetts said they'll be handling the Sinclair Dinosaur balloon, which is the green dinosaur who's the mascot for Sinclair gas stations.
Watch for the Simonetts during the parade on WTHR Channel 13 Thursday, Nov. 28.
How they prepared for last year
After watching the holiday tradition for years, both on TV and in person, the Simonett family from Fishers will be in the parade.
Dave, Kristi and their adult children, Meghan and Jon, will be doing some literal heavy lifting as balloon handlers.
"Oh, it's going to be great! Awesome," Dave Simonett said. "Especially to be able to do this is great as a family."
Turns out, you have to know someone at Macy's to even get a chance at this coveted job.
The Simonetts did, through a friend of a friend.
And, after a subsequent application process, the Simonetts got selected to take "Bluey Keepy Uppy" down the 2 1/2 mile route for three hours on Thanksgiving.
Bluey is the blue puppy in a popular Australian-based kids show. She's a big "get" in the Simonetts' minds, but preparing for leading her through the parade takes practice.
The family had to fly out to the East Coast for a training session in September. They worked on rope techniques, what to do in wind gusts and how to corral and steer a big balloon.
They also learned how to deflate the balloon, which they have to do once the parade is over.
"It's not as easy as you think it's going to be," Dave said.
"No! I think that's why I'm a little nervous," Meghan Simonett said. "That's because our practice – granted, it was the worst weather it could be before they'd cancel the balloons – but it was not as easy as it looks on TV!"
"I was thinking, 'Oh, you're just going to kind of hold the balloon and be waving to people,' and they still say, 'Make sure you wave to the little kids and look up.' But the practice was very difficult," Kristi Simonett said.