Brittney Lohmiller / The Natchez Democrat — Vidalia Lower Elementary school first graders Maycee Allen, from left, Jamaya Frazier and Joshua Bonnette catch beads thrown during the school’s annual Mardi Gras parade Thursday afternoon. The prekindergarten and kindergarten students along with teachers and parents threw beads and candy to the first- and second-grade students. The Mardi Gras parade was started in 2004 by the prekindergarten teachers to add more family projects for the students to do at home. This year, the prekindergarten students decorated vests made from brown grocery store bags.