In this article, Christina Eubanks-Turner and Najat Hajj describe a planning process that they used to create a fun-filled eighth-grade math activity that focused on parade planning. The activity was designed to enhance and supplement the eighth-grade algebra curriculum on linear equations and functions, help students use mathematical habits of mind, and demonstrate the uses of mathematics in future career choices in an engaging, non-traditional way. The activity was completed in one class period, in eighth-grade algebra classes containing twenty to twenty-five students. This interactive, group activity provided the students with a set of questions, then informed them they were on the planning committee for a Mardi Gras parade. Their job was to determine the route for the "Krewe de Fun" parade. Eubanks-Turner and Hajj had students assume that all streets were linear, then requested students analyze givens, constraints, relationships, and goals to make linear functions and determine relationships between linear functions and coordinate points based on certain requirements, challenging students to mathematically justify their recommendation about where the parade should end. This modeling activity gave the students a different view of algebra in connection to a holiday, and to the career field of urban planning. They were able to investigate mathematical problems strategically and logically, fostering the development of mathematical practices and habits of mind. Students also developed an awareness of how algebra can be used to model real-life situations. A bibliography is included.