All things green and Irish

Green mohawks on toddlers. Green beads on grandmas. Shamrock headbands on pooches.

The Ancient Order of Hibernians St. Patrick's Day Parade today in downtown Omaha proved a festive time for hundreds of people of all ages -- even out-of-towners.

Jessica Froke, 29, of Sioux Falls, S.D., who has been coming to Omaha for the parade the last several years, was making it magical.

She waved her green shamrock wand in the air with one hand and held up her green, fluffy boa in the other. She couldn't stop dancing and grooving to the sounds of bagpipes and local high school marching bands.

"This is so neat," Froke said. "The parade in Sioux Falls is today too, but we drove to Omaha instead. We come down every year."

Folks from Chicago, Council Bluffs and O'Neill, Neb., made sure not to miss this year's parade and weekend-long festivities downtown.

The parade featured World-Herald columnist Mike Kelly as the grand marshal.

Mike Grear of Omaha, wearing tons of beads, orange stick-on sideburns and eyebrows and a green furry top hat, sipped on a cocktail outside a downtown restaurant as the parade cruised by.

"I really like the families coming out and celebrating," Grear said.

His wife Nancy Grear donned a green knitted hat to keep warm in the brisk temperatures and wind. "This parade gets much bigger every year," she said.