Happy Father's Day!

My big plan for our 10th anniversary was a hot air balloon ride. This was something that Duane and I had talked about doing for a long time. But, although it was a beautiful day, it was too windy. I was so disappointed. So I bought a children's book about a hot air balloon ride and wrote Duane a letter explaining how the surprise was suppose to go. It is so true that everything happens for a reason. I got a call from Mike, the balloon guy, asking if we could go on Father's Day morning at 6:15. Duane was just getting home from a business trip in China that Friday. But I decided that we should go while we had the chance. Well, I am definitely not a morning person! But it felt like Christmas morning. We were so giddy. A high school girl that lives across the street was kind enough to get up at 5:45 am and come over and crash on our couch. We meet the crew at Yankee Park which is less than 10 minutes from our house. The crew was made up of some really interesting and fun loving people. Every one of them was a kid at heart. They would be a great group to sit around a table at a bar with for a few hours. It was a perfect morning. There were a few clouds and lots of blue sky and sun shine. A light fog was just lifting. They layed everything out and started filling the balloon with cool air from a large fan. Duane had always commented on a vibrant balloon that was his favorite. We'll its just so happened that it was the same beautiful balloon that we were taking a ride in that morning. In no time the balloon stood up and we climbed in. Mike hit the burner a few times and we slowly lifted off of the ground. It was the craziest feeling! For the next 45 minutes I saw the world and the place we call home in a completely different light. Words can not describe how calm, peaceful and beautiful the experience was. Aside from the powerful noise from the burner, it was so quiet. There is something truly special about watching the world below wake up and come to life. We flew over Centerville and into Bellbrook. We could see the building in down town Dayton and so many significant land marks. We wished that the girls could have seen us float past, but we were content enough looking down at our house knowing that our babies were sleeping peacefully there. I hate to fly on an airplane, but this was a totally different experience. One that I will definitely have to do again. As we were descending, I got a little nervous when I could almost tough the tops of the trees. But it was clear that we were in very safe hands. We landed in a field next to a church about 20 feet from where the crew had parked. After the crew got everything put back in its proper place, we all shared a bottle of champagne and Mike gave a special toast to us. After that Duane and I went to breakfast and smuggled our own bottle of champagne into the restaurant so that we could have mimosas. This was one of the best experiences of my life. I don't think I'll ever be able to top this Father's Day. It's one we'll never forget. We got some great pictures. We are waiting on one of the members of the crew to email us pictures of us in the balloon in the air. Some of the arial shots were of downtown Dayton and one with our current house and our old house. Pretty cool!