from the drafts: balloons

from the drafts: april means hot air balloons... but the past two years, it has been cancelled.  it is a good thing my memories are fresh and i have photos galore. they bring me right back to the feelings of joy!
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When my friend Christine knocked on my door at 5:30 am, I jumped up and down and clapped my hands, and she doubled over with laughter. It reminded her of our first trip out to see the balloons, when her daughter told me through her own laughter that I was acting like a five year old! 

I knew I was going out to the festival both Saturday and Sunday, so I kind of planned to just watch and enjoy the balloons... but it seems that I can't help myself, and I got us wrapped up in crewing a balloon.  Christine was such a good sport, as always, and let me have my way!  

 

We went back Sunday with Mom, Bob & Camden. And guess who got to go UP in a tethered balloon?! This was the experience I had dreamed of way back when...

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Christine sent me this poem just a few weeks ago!  Perfect.

A Great Day

I woke right up this morning.

I was up before the sun.

The adventure we were planning would be filled with lots of fun.

We left our house real early.

All of us were in the car.

Driving over to the fairgrounds, it was really not too far.

It was filled with great big baskets, each with ropes hung all around.

Big, huge sheets of many colors lay all over on the ground.

Then hot air balloons were floating.

They rose up into the sky.

Giant, yellow flames were shooting.

They were reaching way up high.

There were blue and green and brown ones.

There were some with big, red stars.

There were shapes like dogs and kittens, and some frogs and balls and cars.

As I watched them flying higher, they slipped silently away.

I hugged my MOM and told her, “Let’s see that again, OK?”