The Tuesday Ten | Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta

This past weekend we headed down to Albuquerque with some good friends of ours to visit some other good friends of ours! Kent and Angie moved last year and we have so missed having them in Cache Valley! When they were visiting a few trips ago they told us about the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta and that made Andy and I decide we had to go visit them and see it! So today's Tuesday Ten is about our experience and trip in New Mexico!

First of all - It's a LONG Drive. We left Thursday after work around 5:30 pm. We drove straight through and made it to their house at about 4:15 am. We jumped in bed and slept until about 9:30 for breakfast! We spend Friday night at the Balloon Fiesta. It was a little windy so we didn't get so see quite as many balloons glow as we'd originally hoped.  We got up at 3:30 am on Saturday to head back to the Balloon Fiesta to see their Mass Assenion. I guess the weather was not on our side because it was overcast and windy. They post pone'd for nearly 2 hours before giving the go ahead to launch. Even then only about 50 balloons launched. We were told usually about 500 launch. Yes FIVE HUNDRED! Man we were jipped! JK. We spend Sunday shopping in Old Town Albuquerque and hanging out with friends. Monday we woke up at 6:30 and drove home. It was a quick trip but lots of fun!

**Some of these photos were taken from Balloon Fiesta and Google Search**

1. Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is in Desert Kaleidoscope New Mexico. It's a HUGE event and runs for 2 weeks! This year marks their 45th Annual Event! Every year during the event hundreds of hot air balloons take flight into the air. Men and Women control or pilot the Hot Air Balloons! More info can be found on their website: http://www.balloonfiesta.com/

2. Balloon Glow / Night Magic Glow - A little History For you. This event started in 1979 on Christmas Eve as a thank you to all local residents. Their website says "The Sight of balloons lite from within at night like giant holiday ornaments is breathtaking" I have to say they hit it right on. This was one of my favorite events we saw! Pictures DO NOT do this justice! 

3. Special Shapes - Balloons are typically made the same shape but in 1989 the Special Shape Rodeo began. Since that year they've been continually adding more and more shaped balloons into the event and it's now the Most Popular event at this Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta. We saw all sorts of shapes from Donald Duck, Penguins, to a fire hydrant, and more! They don't always launch the Special Shapes because they are much much harder to control once in the air. 

4. Mass Ascension - The Launch of all participating balloons is a feature you have to see! During the Mass Ascension the balloons are launched in two waves to ensure safe and coordinating manner. This event is such a sight to see or so we're told. Like I said above we didn't get to see the vast majority of the balloons but what we did see was still so many huge and amazing hot air balloons! We went to the Saturday Mass Ascension. I was amazed at how close the balloons are on the ground while they are blowing up! It was crazy. Every where you looked another balloon was starting to air up. I can't even imagine what it is like when all the balloon launch! We had talked about riding in a hot air balloon but during Fiesta they charge $500 to $600 a person to ride! Crazy!! In the off season it's only about $100 per person. We'd wait at that price!

My Cell Phone Photos: 

5. Pins - Every year the Balloon Fiesta creates about 50 Official pins. I would have never guessed that pins could be so popular at an event like this! Each Pin represents a different aspect from volunteers, field crew, pilots, special shapes, etc. Pin Collectors can now see what pins they are missing and can locate their missing pins online! 

6. Dawn Patrol - Dawn Patrol Pilots are balloons that take off in the dark and then fly until it's light enough to see a landing site.  The Dawn Patrol Show takes place at about 5:45 AM and includes about a dozen balloons who launch set to music and have a choreographed inflation. Super neat, though I didn't see this in person.

7. AfterGlow Fireworks Show  - A fireworks show after the balloon en mass. Spectacular views! Their firework show was in two different spots so we could see them from where we were sitting. A long firework show and actually really fun! I was too busy watching the show and forgot to get my camera out until they were about over. 

8. Vending! This reminded me of a state fair or something. Lots and lots of vendors and oh my, the FOOD! We tried Blakes Lotaburger, Pinon Coffee, Tom Thumb Donuts, Funnel Cake, and more. The Tom Thumb Donuts and Funnel Cakes were my fav. Though I'm sure they weren't super healthy they were quite Yummy!

9. Old Town - Alright, on to more adventures outside of the Balloon Fiesta. This is Old Town Albuquerque. Really fun to see some of the history of this town and the shops, church and people.  

10. Road Trip - We hadn't been on a road trip in a while, well ok me. (Andy went on one the week before to help a friend out). I forgot how much I hate riding in a car long periods of time. BUT when good company it makes the time fly fast! 

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The Tuesday Ten | 1 Year Anniversary!

Today's Tuesday Ten is a special one! It's been 1 Year since Andy and I were married (technically Yesterday was our Anniversary!). I can't believe a year has flown by. Today's Tuesday Ten Recaps our wedding, engagement photos and a couple of highlights from this past year as a married couple.

Happy Anniversary to Andy and I!

1. Our Engagement! I can remember that day like it was yesterday. Kira and Andy asked me to marry them. It was so special. The Ring was to die for. Andy custom designed it himself and I totally love it. It fits me to a T and it's so much more special to my heart knowing that he designed it and spent MANY hours at SE Needham's working on it with them!

2. An Epic Engagement Session. That's what I like to call our engagement photos. If you haven't taken a look you seriously need to! We headed up Providence Canyon and spend a couple hours driving to the top for photos. Our Photographer, Endless Photography, make our vision a reality! I have LOVED our pictures and couldn't wait to get them printed and hanging in our house! Check out more from our engagement session here. 

3. The Wedding. We had both been married before and many times had talked about eloping or doing a destination wedding. We opted out of both those options and decided we'd rather throw a huge party and have all our family and best friends there to celebrate. So, that's exactly what we did. We got married in Bear Lake. I still look back at our photos and love what I see. I loved planning our wedding and couldn't have asked for a better day! More on that Blog Post here. 

 

 4. Our Honeymoon to the Dominican Republic was special and perfect. Relaxing, Beautiful and the perfect amount of time away.

5. My Best Friend. Not a whole lot has changed for Andy and I after getting married. He's my Best Friend, my biggest supporter, and my Love. He is always so willing to help out others and makes my day so much better just being around him. Especially when we smash each other with cake. ha ha!

6. My Rock. Andy is my rock, he's been my rock for years. This past year I've definitely needed him. We've had some ups and downs during our first year of marriage, more downs than I'd like to count. We lost Andy's Grandpa Clark to Cancer, one of my best Friends, Mary, passed away, plus many more emotional days. I sure love that Andy is the one I'm spending those days with. The one I lean on when I need a push or need help staying standing. I am so thankful and lucky to have found this amazing man.

7. Kira. She sure is the light of our lives. She is in 2nd grade, I can't believe it. She loves her dad and spending time with us. She would pick daddy over Stacey every single day and I love it. I love their bond. She holds a special place in my heart. I never thought I'd be a step mom and boy is it hard most days but I also wouldn't trade it for anything. She is growing up to be the most beautiful little lady and has so many talents! Dad and I are so proud of her.

8. Our "Other Kids". You've likely heard me talk about Max and Roxy, our Dogs. We sure love these two. Max is 8 and has been my best bud the entire time. Roxy is 3 and has been with us just over a month! We sure love their personalities and having them in our home. Max was our Ring Bearer at the wedding last year. He did AMAZING and was pretty adorable in his little tie.

9. House Remodels. We've had 2 major remodels at our house in the last year. One by choice, one unfortunately by chance. We remodeled our bathroom this past spring and I am LOVING IT. A month later we found water damage in our spare bedroom in the basement. Our basement has been torn apart since April. 

10. Fun. Life is about living the fullest you can. Giving back, being your all, having fun, making the most of your time with each other. I think Andy and I have been able to do just that. We have fun. All. The. Time. At least I think so. We may have had many battles this past year but I think I'm a better person because of all of them and I'm a better wife to Andy. There's no one else I'd rather ride this roller coaster of a life with than Andy. 

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The Tuesday Ten - Arrgg, Pirate Parrrtyyy!

Today's Tuesday Ten is dedicated to a little lady who turns 7 tomorrow! Kira just happens to be our little gem and we are so excited for her, she is growing up oh so fast and has the cutest personality. Last Saturday we were in charge of her birthday party. We take turns planning with her mom. This year she wanted a Pirate Party. I {Stacey} actually had SOOOO much fun planning this party. I think I have a new calling in life, so if you need help with a party planner - Let me know! :)

1. Invitations 

 I searched high and low until I found an invitation that was kinda girly but still authentic enough for our party.  I got this one on Etsy from PartiesbytheBundle. She was amazing to work with and got back to me super fast. Plus, I just love the layout. I printed them locally through Square One with Kraft envelopes and they turned out perfect. 

2. The Bounce House

 Kira has wanted a Pirate Ship Bounce House since she decided she wanted a Pirate Party. I'm not sure if she saw the bounce house somewhere or what but I found one locally and booked it as soon as I could. It was HUGE but seriously awesome. We got this from Bounce4Kids for a reasonable price for an all day rental, plus they delivered and picked up so bonus. My mom text me the night before when they were setting up since I was at a concert and said "Now I know why you asked to use my yard". It was really big, tall and perfection for our party. 

Birthday girl was not sure of the slide with the water, she clinged onto dad... See below. She really did like it when it was just the slide :) 

3. Photo Booth

I ordered some Pirate Birthday Party Props on Etsy from CrazyFoxPaper and they were a hit! $6 bucks well spent, that's for sure! We always love our photo booth and tend to use it a lot for birthday parties. Seriously one of the things the kids LOVE! Check out all the photos on our facebook page here. 

4. Treasure Hunt

We set up a semi easy treasure hunt around the yard and split the kids into 6 groups so they had a chance to actually find the clues. I think it was a hit! Plus they all loved their grab bags / treasure loot! 

5. Walk the Plank

I had Andy set up a Plank and my sister brought her kiddie pool. It was a hit! The kids loved walking across it and actually tried to get wet by the end of the party! 

6. Tattoo Parlor 

I wasn't sure how this would go over but it was BOMB. My amazing sister in law was our tattoo artist and she dressed up and played the part. Kira's mom brought some girly / pony tattoos, I had some pirate ones and Maria even drew some tattoos. The kids came back for more than one!

7. Food

I had fun coming up with some food to go with the Pirate Theme! We had Fish N Chips, Pirates Gold, Polly's Crackers, Poison, and Peg Legs! I also ordered cup cakes from Macey's last minute because I wasn't sure if we'd have enough cake. Last year we ran out but this year there was plenty! 

8. Parade

One of the best things about the timing of Kira's party was the parade. River Heights was having their annual Apples Day Parade at 4 pm so we ended the festivities and all headed to the parade. The kids FILLED their bags full of candy. A short parade but seriously the best loot ever. 

9. Water SLIDE!

During the party we left the Bounce House as a slide only. I didn't want people to have to bring suits, towels, etc. Once the parade was over and most people had left we decided to turn the water on. It was a completely different slide and seriously a blast! 

10. Presents, Cake and more! 

What birthday is complete without presents? Kira was spoiled. Our families and friends treat us and her oh so well. She got so many things on her list! A talking Parrot, legos, art supplies, finger nail polish, clothes, jammies, and more. Plus Kira's Birthday Cake and Mud pie were super yummy! 

A huge shout out to everyone who helped and attended our Pirate Parrtttyyyy! We arrggg so glad you came. :) 

And Happy Birthday Miss Kira! Dad and I sure love you!

A special thanks to this handsome guy for helping me with the party! He sure puts up with me when I get wild ideas sometimes! 

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