Sunday, June 20, 2010

Hot-air balloon festival minus hot air

Our late afternoon visit yesterday afternoon to the annual Hot-Air Balloon Festival at Foley, AL, lacked one thing—a sky full of the 44 hot-air balloons scheduled to participate. Winds and threatening rain had grounded the colorful balloons. But here are my top five reasons why the 90-mile trip was great:

Jaxson bounces off backs of trainers to snap up a Frisbee.
Reason #5--My mother-in-law and I snagged front-row seats for a free performance by Frisbee dogs, officially the Disc-Connected K9s. I am addicted to puns, but that one even had me groaning. The dogs really strutted their stuff, though. The canine performers chased and caught the plastic discs, showing off a repertoire of leaps, twists and flips over, under and around their trainers. Their acrobatics were surpassed only by their obvious enthusiasm for the complex game of fetch.

Reason #4--Three teams fired up their vivid balloons for display. The increasingly gusty winds soon had them deflating the balloons and packing up for the day, but I appreciated their effort. There is just something so happy about those balloons, even when they are earthbound.

Reason #3--The pace was relaxed and friendly with families tossing Frisbees, toddlers wrestling souvenir “hot-air” balloons almost as big as themselves, and the occasional aromas from the food booths wafting our way.

Reason #2--My thoughtful husband brought out camping chairs, sandwiches, watermelon and fresh strawberries for a delicious picnic in the grassy field reserved for the balloons that would have been on display had weather permitted.

Reason #1--Clouds and a storm front banished the unusually high temperatures that we have been having since May. Ahhhhh, cool, the ultimate outdoor summertime amenity. Well worth the trip!

2 comments:

  1. fabulous action shot of the frisbee dog!

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  2. When life hands you lemons you make lemonade. Love your attitude and all the fun you had inspite of the weather problems. Great pics. too.

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