Look! An Entire Post Without Talking About Remodeling!

October in Albuquerque means balloons. The school system has a "Fall Break" day during the Balloon Fiesta, which is really just a thinly disguised way to let all the children go see the balloons without missing school. So, we jumped on the chance on Friday and went out to the Fiesta. Paige has not stopped talking about last year's trip yet, so we knew she'd be excited. (To be perfectly honest, the only thing she still talks about is the bus ride there, but she was still excited!) In her mind, riding a big yellow school bus from the Park 'N Ride lot to the Fiesta was the best part of the experience. She started asking to ride the bus back to our car before the sun was even up!

As part of the Balloon Fiesta experience, we got up at 4:00 a.m. and dressed in several layers of clothes. We then rode the beloved yellow school bus from the parking lot to the field. Then, we dropped a huge amount of money on such healthy food as mini cinnamon rolls, breakfast burritos, and scalding hot chocolate. Then, we tracked down the Darth Vadar balloon and waited until the sun came up. We were not disappointed! Right after 7:00, a van near the balloon opened up and out came a stream of Storm Troopers, followed by a very tall and imposing Darth Vadar himself! Paige was rather initimidated by the whole scene and begged Dave to take her off his shoulders so she could hide in my arms. After explaining that it was just regular people dressed up in Halloween costumes, she calmed down a little, but still refused to have her picture taken with any of them. She did wave at Darth Vadar and tried to get him to look at her balloon card.

Without really planning it, we got boxed into a small space between 3 balloons and were unable to move. As a result, however, we had the best seats in the house! We saw all three balloons inflate and take off. Even though I have seen the Balloon Fiesta for 30-some years, it never fails to be magical. There's something about brightly colored bubbles floating through the sky that just has to make you smile!

Finally, we boarded the yellow bus back home. Paige was so excited to see out the window that she promptly cracked her head on the window frame, and ended up crying herself to sleep in my arms. Maybe the bus ride won't be the highlight of this year's trip!