Lantern Fest

Call me Rapunzel but I've always really wanted to be a part of a lantern festival. I've considered one in the past that takes place just outside of Las Vegas...but that meant getting to Vegas, and paying a nice chunk of change to attend.

So when I saw advertisements for the Lantern Fest that was out near Tooele and a whole lot less bucks to boot, I jumped on it. I decided to not even ask the kids if they wanted to go or not and made an executive decision that this was to be a family adventure.

I happily counted down the days and when we got within the week, started keeping my eyes on the weather. And then got a little nervous. Because it was supposed to be really windy. As everyone knows, wind and lanterns don't really go together. The organizers promised to make the final call within a few hours of the launch as to whether or not the event would cancel or proceed as planned. They decided to chance it, and so we all piled in the car, with a picnic dinner and lots of blankets in tow, and made the drive. It was still windy. Windy enough that I was concerned that the drive would be for naught and they'd still end up canceling. Plus, oh my was that wind freezing cold!

But we settled in around one of the many bonfires to wait for dark, listen to the music, eat our dinner, and try really hard to stay warm. We made s'mores and wrote on our lanterns with the markers they had provided. And listened intently to the weather updates that were interspersed amongst the music throughout the evening. There was still a lot of uncertainty as to whether or not we'd actually be able to launch our lanterns.

The launch was delayed...but it happened! There was a slight break in the wind that the organizers quickly took advantage of. After some instruction to do with how and when to get those lanterns lit and floating, they started playing "I See the Light" from Tangled and then moved to "To Where You Are" by Josh Groban. Julianne was rather delighted with their perfect "rising music."

It was slightly more difficult than expected getting our lanterns to float, but float they eventually did and, just wow. Who could've guessed the overwhelming feeling in your chest watching those lights float up and around in the sky above your head? It was nothing short of incredible.

The drive home was horrific...such amazing amounts of traffic trying to get out of that small area. And the wind picked back up bringing in one of those famous Davis County wind storms that knock over fences and trees, power and semis, as well as rip siding and shingles from houses.
Our lantern launch was in the small little calm before the storm. We lucked out that we were able to take part in "the most beautifulest thing I've ever seen"...according to Lilian.