Two moms. Four kids. 24 Hours. This trip was quick and tiring but oh so worth it! We saw dozens of hot air balloons, gawked at synchronized paragliders, watched jets zoom by and marveled at stunt women fastened to airplanes. The Philippines really does have it all, even hot air balloon festivals.

Pleasantly Surprised|

Our expectations for the balloon festival were low key. I thought we would only see hot air balloons so I was pleasantly surprised to see the schedule of events for PIHABF. Our morning started early as we arrived at the grounds around 5 am. We were able to see jets on behalf of the Philippine Air Force. The jets were so fast, literally supersonic, the sound was delayed and we didn't even know they were approaching until after we saw them.

What Wells thought of the sound, once it arrived. "It's so loud momma."

A Morning unravels|

5:00 am. I only wake up this early for international flights and apparently hot air balloons. I recently read that experiences gain value when you have to wait for them and this sentiment expresses perfectly our morning of anticipation. There were some nerves as the field was completely open until about 6 am when the trucks began bringing equipment in. As the process unfolded I enjoyed seeing the balloon process from start to finish. Slowly but surely, one by one, they popped up.

Up UP And Away|

Looking up, this is what we saw from our picnic blanket. From start to finish it took just over an hour and half to blow up the balloons and complete the competition. The wind wasn't as cooperative as the contestants would have liked so the balloons touched down shortly after 7.

Happiest girl in the world. She was so cute and excited calling people on Facetime so they could see also.

Up close and personal. Look at how close we were! It was unreal.

Keeping Busy|

In case you're wondering what we did with four children five and under, here ya go.

Stunts & Extras|

I was amazed at the line up of events following the hot air balloons. There were synchronized paragliders, jets, and the most amazing stunt women, Wing Walkers. Wing Walkers or Aero Super Batics as they call themselves, are harnessed to the outside of the plane where they perform amazing acrobatics in the sky. It was mind blowing! I had never seen anything quite like this. Zoom on the photo and look closely on top of the planes.