Born and raised in South Louisiana (though I no longer live there now), so yes, to all of the above. We switched out our door wreath from Christmas to Carnival last Saturday. I make King Cake frequently during the season, we go to lots of parades and parties, and generally revel in the joy of the season. (Visiting family for Mardi Gras is much better than at Christmas; no big meal or gift-exchange expectations.)
Those of us who grew up with the tradition know that the "wild" Carnival events are just one aspect of the season; and are aimed mostly at free-spending tourists. It's very much a family event for the locals (who, btw, are the volunteer force making much of the free entertainment happen); we know where to go to avoid the lunacy and still have a great time.
I'll include an illustration for y'all: this is a family with their parade ladders: they were created to give kids a nice parade view and a safe spot to catch throws, with one of their parents up behind them to balance the weight.. Ladders are placed about 8-10 feet back from the barriers, letting standing adults fill in the space in front. Parade-ladder building is a huge seasonal industry in South Louisiana; almost every family with little kids now uses one when going to parades. You can build the seat yourself, but most folks now buy the seat ready-made and bolt it onto a ladder they already own, though there is also a market for ladder-seat combos with holiday motifs painted on. (The wheels make it an excellent cart for your picnic stuff on the trek to your favorite viewing spot.)
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PS: King Cake has improved out of all recognition since I was a child, when it was nothing but plain brioche bread with some icing dribbled on it. Now they are filled with all kinds of delicious things; I'm particularly partial to praline filling, myself, though I also like lemon cheesecake quite a lot.