Rainbow colored balloon

It has been a long time since I've posted.  I have been so busy at the quilt shop organizing some big events and I started my own web design business.  I have three new clients, so I'm little sick of being online or near a computer when I have free time.  I owe it to everyone to post because I have quite a few updates to my list.  :)  While I was in Arizona in January I rode in a hot air balloon and smoked a cigar.  I bet $100 on blackjack and won!  I also bought a pair of designer boots.  I'm working on individual posts for each of these accomplishments, but I wanted to let you all know that I'm making progress.  I also have some more stories to tell, I will try my best to focus.  I promise at least three posts before the end of the month.  Here's the first one:

My family decided to visit my Grandma down in Arizona in January.  Grandma had told me many times that the only thing on her bucket list is to ride in a hot air balloon.  She asked me every time if I would join her and every time I told her that I'd be happy to watch from the safety of the ground.  Well, I decided to surprise her with a ticket for a hot air balloon ride....and I was going to join her.  She was so surprised and her words "no one surprises me".  After the surprise wore off I told her that we would be lifting off in just a couple days. I knew I had to plan it within the first few days we were there otherwise I'd have too much time to think about it and back out.

The whole family was able to come to the launch site and see our pilot fill up the balloon and of course, it wouldn't be an appropriate balloon for me if it wasn't rainbow colored.  We (along with 4 others) climbed into the tiny basket that was about 4 feet by 5 feet.

As we bounced off the ground a couple times my anxiety flared up.  We were still tied to ground, but I wanted out!  The pilot's assistant untied us and we slowly started leaving the ground.  We were barely 20 feet off the ground when a panic attack started.

I honestly don't remember much about the first 30 minutes of our flight.  I just kept concentrating on my breathing and telling myself over and over again that eventually we would be going down instead of up.  The numbness of the anxiety started the wear off when I felt the balloon starting to descend.  We were about 2,500 feet above the ground at the highest point (that's the altitude at which you see small airplanes flying).

Slowly descending out of the sky I was able to focus on the beauty of the mountains surrounding the greater Phoenix area.  It was breathtaking and unbelievable.  The feeling of floating was unnerving, but peaceful at the same time.  As we got closer and closer to the ground I noticed people staring up at us, waving, taking pictures, and some even jumping in their cars to follow us.

Hovering over people's back yards I noticed dogs and cats going nuts, running around in circles.  The pilot said that the propane heaters that fill the balloon emit a high pitched noise that only animals can hear and it drives them crazy.

 We floated over a golf course on our way to the landing site and I got a picture of our reflection in pond.

We landed with a couple bounces but over all it was a soft landing into a park where some kids were playing.  We all piled out of the small basket and back to the safety of the solid ground.

After the pilot pulled the balloon out of the air, he had the kids run around on the balloon to push the air out.

Most people would call this a once in a lifetime experience, but it is something that I'd like to experience again if the opportunity presents itself.  I do know that I'll probably feel the same anxiety, but that's half the fun, right?