Spirit of Boise (Balloon Classic)

Well I sure had a rather lovely weekend. Will came home Friday night to a fresh homemade pizza and drinks and I got to listen to all the stories from his (second) week away. Saturday, we slept in and then went out for quite the shopping adventure, enjoying a late lunch at Big City Coffee and a much needed (and delicious) dinner with his folks. Sunday, we crawled out of bed early early early to make some coffee, pack some breakfast, and head down to the park to watch the balloons launch with the sun rise. The Spirit of Boise Balloon Classic is one of my absolute favorite events in Boise every year. It occurs over labor day weekend and always seems like the first cool morning that actually requires a warm jacket; it is the perfect event to celebrate a transition into Fall. Watching the balloons is also rather nostalgic, bringing me instantly back to the River Festival days of my childhood.

There is also something rather magical about seeing all those balloons slowly inflate together and seemingly sprout to life from the green ground. The park becomes a whimsical display of colors within minutes. And seeing them drift off into the crisp morning air and hover their colors above the city, is something else. Unfortunately, the weather wasn't ideal for flight Sunday morning and all of the pilots agreed not to risk it. I was a bit sad, then, that we didn't come watch the day before. But I didn't mind too much; the pilots were great sports and most inflated anyway. They stayed tied to the ground and drifted and hovered around for a good while. They were all even letting kids in the baskets for short little rides. I know my 5 year old self would have loved that (so would my 22 year old self, but I was too embarrassed to ask). Seeing all those balloons together I can't help just feeling instantly happy and thus I having that feeling stick around for a day or two. How could a morning filled with colorful hot air balloons not be perfect?