Highs and Lows

Our weekend has been one of highs and lows.

This morning we got up at 5am and drove up to Prosser for the Great Balloon Rally. We were skunked by rain last year and had high hopes for this year. Below is a shot of Mitch and Bryan watching one balloon fill with air.

Low: Unfortunately, the wind was blowing and that was all there was to see. No luck. Our balloon viewing was a bust for the second consecutive year.

High: We got to spend the morning with the Staggs, meet their newest addition, enjoy breakfast and a walk around town. Perhaps next year we'll have better balloon luck.

Yesterday my parents came down to help us organize in preparation for Baby 2.

High: We got closets cleaned, desks moved, furniture reorganized, and the bedroom set up for the impending arrival of the baby. It was a huge undertaking and a major relief to have finished. We could now feasibly bring another kid home to a clean house, with closet space no less, tomorrow. We're hoping that won't happen for another 6-7 weeks, though . . .

Low: This is the lowest. We found out today that my Dad's cabin in Alaska was destroyed in a windstorm this week. This is not merely the loss of a building. It comes on the heels of another fierce storm this spring courtesy of some ignorant and careless new neighbors who cut down all the old growth trees that acted as a wind barrier. The outbuildings were crushed and my dad and friends and family spent the summer rebuilding. Now it has happened again, and the damage is worse and irreparable. The photos are too sad to share. Suffice to say that the haven of my father's for the past 24 years, and the place we all loved to share, will never be again. We're so sad.