Freedom Days in Provo during the week of Independence Day has long been a fun family event for us, and this year we decided to make the (6am!) trip to see the Balloon Festival that thousands of spectators flock to every year.

We watched the sun climb the mountains as the balloons filled with air. On our little picnic blanket, we enjoyed the all you can eat pancake charity breakfasts.

I love that my brother’s family was able to join us!

Friday was an awesome day to go, since it wasn’t crowded and we were able to get great seats to see these awesome first Patriotic balloons launch.

There’s something magical and somewhat calming about seeing colorful balloons float into the beautiful blue sky.

Balloon Festival Day 2

We loved it so much, we came back with more family! And we learned a few things about hot air balloons that made them seem so impressive! Did you know they can only control up or down? The fact that they can still maneuver enough to hit targets and use the wind currents to move sideways is amazing!