Hot air Balloons

Yet another of my childhood memories is the hot air balloon races (well, teenager and adult memories too...but those are different:) In my mind it was sooo early and soo dark and sooo cold when we dared venture to dawn patrol. This year it was still sooo early (particularly since we didn't go to bed till after midnight and then had to wake before 5) and soo dark, but not so much cold. In fact, by the time the sun rose, we had to get our of our sweatshirts fast! Xiana was so cheerful when I woke her saying, "hot air baawoons" as I had prepped her throughout the week. Once we got there, she got a little cranky, but all in all did great considering her serious lack of sleep. Mom and dad were brave enough to join us on this adventure, and I think they're glad they did. Brian's brother and niece also came making this truly a family affair! We filled up on danishes and milk and sat on the grass as we watched the fire-filled balloons enter the sky. It was beautiful!
In my memory there were more than 4 for dawn patrol and they stayed up much longer.... but memory is a tricky thing!
This is blurry, but it's the only shot I got of all four of them being lit up.
One of the most awesome things about this event is that it's free. 50,000 people come enjoy the festivities (which is only half as many as the rib cook off which illustrates peoples' priorities) Mom and dad looking very alert!
The girls were very excited running around the grass exclaiming about the balloons.
This was the first balloon near us to get filled up. It's really fascinating watching as all the balloons slowly raise from a sea of parachutes to genuine hot air balloons.
Going...going..going...
and lift off!!!!

We were fortunate enough to get a spot right next to the headliner...the energizer bunny! You can't imagine how immense this balloon is until you are right next to it. It is taller than the statue of liberty. A cheer goes through the crowd when the bunny begins to lift....it's intense!
Additionally, the bunny has a fan club of sorts. People everywhere were wearing those bunny ears. Pretty funny.
Tony the Tiger is another key feature. Xiana exclaimed "lion... tiger!"
This is right when the bunny lifted. It still had a ton of hanging balloon. It just kept growing and growing and growing.
Brian captured the wells Fargo bees holding hands. They were pretty neat and also gargantuan.
As the balloons lifted in the air, Xiana waved ecstatically yelling "hi...bye..hi..bye" Whenever someone would wave in her general direction she would get so pleased. "Guys wave mommy!"
There were something like 150 balloons that went up that day....astonishing.
There's the energizer in all his glory! So apparently it is not a race to get somewhere, instead the goal is to drop a sand bag on a target. Whoever gets their bag the closest to the target wins. The funny thing is that in all my years of attending this event, I have never once heard who the winner was. One year, when I was a kid, a balloon landed in our cul-de-sac. That was pretty exciting. This year, as we were walking back to the car, we saw a balloon land in the street in a near-by neighborhood. People were running out of their houses excitedly in their robes. I bet that in those parts, they get a few balloons in their streets every year.
Later that afternoon we went to Pyramid lake....for the first and last time. Don't let this picture of Xiana and I frolicking in the water fool you. That was the farthest we made it out into the water! There was algae as thick as mud from the top to the bottom of the water as far as the eye can see. It.was.disgusting. I tried to stomach through it and just take the plunge... but I couldn't. And you all know that if I couldn't go swimming, nobody can! So, we hung out in the back of the truck while Brian caught up on some zzzzz and Xiana and I sang songs and hung out. It was very relaxing and much needed after a sleepless night and morning.



Xiana was all tuckered out on the way home. She slept as Brian took us off road to look at antelope and deer. There were so many of them it was remarkable. With the naked eye, I would never in a million years see the animals, but Brian can spot them anywhere. It is a cultivated talent I'm sure :) We regularly have conversations that go something like this:
Brian: Do you see those deer...8, 9, 10 of them?
me: no where?
Brian: right there under the (fill in blank) by the (fill in blank) or doing (fill in blank)
(not joking...when I can't even see the darned things, he can tell me what they're doing and give me a physical description)
me: I don't see anything
Brian: (handing me the binoculars) right there!
me: Wow... there they all are.

It really is amazing that he can see them. And he is always right... even if I disbelieve him... they are always there.