We woke up bright and early on Saturday morning (6am) to go be a part of a hot air ballooning crew. Jeremy's boss (Mike) and his wife (Gigi) are both hot air balloon pilots. They needed to do 3 take-offs and landings each to keep their licenses current. Jeremy, Emmy, Claire, and I rolled out of bed and went to help. They take off near the Spanish Peaks, which is about 30 minutes west of Alamosa. It was really a cool thing to be a part of. The first thing Gigi said during our "training" was - "Hot air ballooning is an inherently dangerous sport"! Made me feel 
pretty comfortable with the events that were to unfold that morning :) Jeremy helped hold the throat of the balloon open to "blow it up" with the cold air from the fan (see picture to top left). I helped hold the grounding rope at the top of the balloon to slowly let it rise in the air; if there is not enough tension, the throat of the balloon will burn from the flame and be ruined. Mike and Gigi did their take-offs and landings. They then took up two other crew members for a short ride. When they landed, we told Claire and Emmy they could be next (figuring we would go after them or come again). They went up higher than the others and came down harder than the others. They had a pretty rough landing, skidding across the ground curled up in the basket. This picture shows what we saw when we made it to the grounded balloon, which was 
slowly deflating in the open field. (Note there are three people in the basket - look carefully for all their heads, or hair!) Because the wind was predicted to pick up at 9am, we didn't re-inflate the balloon to take anyone else up; Jeremy and I will just have to wait until next time. We went out the the crew and the pilots for a great breakfast in Monte Vista. There were some neat people that came to be a part of the crew. We are realizing that around here people live a long way away and consider it no big deal to drive a distance to get to work, activities, or church.Claire, Jeremy, and I went on from there to Pagosa Springs to use the free tickets I had to 
Springs Resort. This is where lots of people go to enjoy the natural hot springs. It seems to be a pricey resort in general; tickets just for the "hot tubs" were $17 a day. They had many pools fed by the hot springs and nestled alongside the river. Each pool was labeled with a nickname and the approximate temperature. We started in the 102F pool, moved to the 103F pool, and settled at "Clouds in my Coffee" pool with 101F water. We liked this last pool the best because it set higher than the other pools, and we were pretty much alone to talk, soak, and observe other guests. I 
personally thought all the pools were very hot! I sat with a majority of my body out of the water most of the time, but it was also relaxing. Before we ended our time at the pools we tried the "Lobster Pot" pool which has a heat estimated to be 113F. I could only put my feet and calves in before removing them quickly. It felt like I was being boiled! Claire and Jeremy submerged themselves up to their chest, but then didn't move because it stirred up the water and made them too hot! I included a pic of Jeremy in the Lobster Pot with the sign in the background. We left after showering. 
Showering was pretty much a futile thing though because the smell of the sulfur had soaked into our skin - even today I still smell it on my body! We traveled home via the southern route through Chama and then to Antonito and La Jara. The Chama-Antonito route is a spot for a tourist train. The aspens, had they not already lost their leaves, would have been gorgeous! It definitely would have been a more colorful route than the train we took to La Veta. Because of all the hot water soaking, our muscles felt like jelly as we rode home. We drug our bodies into the house at 6pm and felt like it was bedtime. Jeremy turned on the Indians game, hoping for a perfect end to a great day. He was fed up by the end of the first inning and resorted to watching the Michigan (yes, you read that right) vs. Illinois football game by the 4th inning.
Springs Resort. This is where lots of people go to enjoy the natural hot springs. It seems to be a pricey resort in general; tickets just for the "hot tubs" were $17 a day. They had many pools fed by the hot springs and nestled alongside the river. Each pool was labeled with a nickname and the approximate temperature. We started in the 102F pool, moved to the 103F pool, and settled at "Clouds in my Coffee" pool with 101F water. We liked this last pool the best because it set higher than the other pools, and we were pretty much alone to talk, soak, and observe other guests. I 
personally thought all the pools were very hot! I sat with a majority of my body out of the water most of the time, but it was also relaxing. Before we ended our time at the pools we tried the "Lobster Pot" pool which has a heat estimated to be 113F. I could only put my feet and calves in before removing them quickly. It felt like I was being boiled! Claire and Jeremy submerged themselves up to their chest, but then didn't move because it stirred up the water and made them too hot! I included a pic of Jeremy in the Lobster Pot with the sign in the background. We left after showering. 
Showering was pretty much a futile thing though because the smell of the sulfur had soaked into our skin - even today I still smell it on my body! We traveled home via the southern route through Chama and then to Antonito and La Jara. The Chama-Antonito route is a spot for a tourist train. The aspens, had they not already lost their leaves, would have been gorgeous! It definitely would have been a more colorful route than the train we took to La Veta. Because of all the hot water soaking, our muscles felt like jelly as we rode home. We drug our bodies into the house at 6pm and felt like it was bedtime. Jeremy turned on the Indians game, hoping for a perfect end to a great day. He was fed up by the end of the first inning and resorted to watching the Michigan (yes, you read that right) vs. Illinois football game by the 4th inning. ****
No big news for Sunday. We went to a new church today - Lighthouse Christian Church - that meets in the Senior Citizen Center. We enjoyed the pastor's message and met a very friendly younger couple. It is a faction of the Alamosa Christian Church that Jeremy and I had visited two weeks ago that had just lost their pastor. This is the only thing that holds us back from really liking this church. It is hard to believe how often churches split for reasons that can seem so minor to outsiders; was the issue so big that healing couldn't take place? I don't know what the issue(s) were, but it is just saddening to me. If we were to go, I think that I would like to know why they left because I want to know what it was they believe so strongly in that they would pull away from their church body. I love being a Christian. I am thankful for the grace of God. I appreciate the diversity within the Christian community. I value the Mennonite example of service and peace. But I wonder at the devisiveness of Satan. I question the example we set when we, as Christians, cannot resolve our differences - we may not fight wars with weapons, but we can certainly leave wounds among brothers and sisters. I praise God that He is bigger than what we can comprehend and that when we fail to love, He does not.
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Oh yeah, and it snowed here - real snow flurries, some even sticking to the ground for a brief period of time. I'm planning on running (or walking, whichever I can do) in the Monster Mash Dash (5K) sponsored by La Puente next weekend. Hopefully, I am not running in snow! I'll keep you updated.
