Mama's Little Spoon: Balloon Fiesta and A Diamond Ring

We went up to Albuquerque for the weekend to attend the Balloon Fiesta, a friends wedding, have family photos taken, AND had hopes of locking down an Aunt for Little Spoon. Well we accomplished all of it and in a short amount of time too! In true fashion I planned a filling weekend that had us going from one thing to another with no down time. We got in late Friday night and Little Spoon didn't go to sleep until 11pm or so. Pair that with waking up at 5am the next morning to get get out the door to balloon fiesta and everyone was a bit cranky from the lack of sleep. Luckily, we were stuck in traffic for quite a bit and she caught a cat nap which helped out. If you know my kid you know she eats upon waking in the morning which meant I had to have breakfast ready to go when we arrived at the fiesta. 5am is super early to be prepping breakfast but with the help from my mom we got it done. Grandma threw in some animal crackers which were a huge hit because of well.. the ANIMALS on the box!

Little Spoon LOVED the balloons and we were so happy we took her this year. She kept reaching her hands up wanting to hold a balloon. Well once the hunger kicked in she was perfectly happy eating her snacks from her stroller and watching all the balloons and people around her. We met up with my brother and his girlfriend and she even shared her snacks with her Uncle! A first since she has been a bit scared of him until this last weekend. She played with him on the car ride back home and was sad when he got out of the car. My brother had planned to propose on a balloon that morning but it was one of several that decided not to fly that morning. Sadly, it would have to wait another day and we would have to keep the secret one more day..so hard!

After the balloon fiesta we had a wedding to attend so Little Spoon stayed with her Grandma (MeMa as she calls her now) so the hubs and I could have a date night at the wedding. THAT was soo nice, wonderful and much needed! We had a great time at the wedding and realized we need more date nights. I missed the kiddo a lot because I always miss her but I did enjoy myself for sure. We got to enjoy drinks, food, dancing, drinks, uninterrupted conversations, and drinks. Yup, all those drinks (I am talking like 4 which is really up there now that we never get out) gave us each a hangover Sunday morning. Nothing an excedrin and water could not fix quickly! Good thing because we had family photos that day which turned out absolutely amazing.

We all got a text Sunday morning that my brother's balloon was going up! My mom and I were so excited and anxious to hear how it all went once they landed. We knew this was it. Once he was up in the air he would be asking that gal to marry him! We all love Elaine dearly and have wanted her to join the family for awhile now so when he told us he was going to ask her to be his wife EVERYONE was super excited. It was like that feeling of being on the playground in elementary school when you would pick kids to be on your team and you getting the really good kid on your team. Boo-ya, we got her!! Yea, it was that feeling. This girl is an amazing lady and has always been so good to my family.We just love her! So the proposal was a hit, she said YES and we got to meet up with them at my mom's house later that day to see the ring and congratulate them. We are so happy they are getting married. My brother did a fantastic job on the ring. It sparkles in the sun, sparkles in the shade, and I am pretty sure he found the one ring that sparkles in the dark. It's that sparkly. He gave her an amazing proposal that was memorable and had the most complex background story because of all the moving parts, lies, and bumps in the road but he pulled it off! I am glad we were in town to get to see them both and celebrate this amazing day. Now they get to plan a wedding and our little girl has an official Auntie Lainey!!