Sam's Blog

Let's See....where did I leave off....

So, we get to the airport and the kids are a little grumpy from lack of sleep (and, to tell the truth, so are we). We get to the check-in counter pretty early but the flight is over-sold by 7 seats and they can't move anyone around - we have to see if they can do anything at the gate... So, we grab some lunch then go back outside to get all the luggage. At this time it's about 105-degrees... We check the luggage in and I head off to return the rental while Lisa watches the kids.

I return the car quickly and hop on the shuttle back to the terminal. It's 105 outside but luckily the shuttle has no air conditioner so it's only 120 on the bus... Lisa calls me just as I arrive back at the terminal...lack of sleep and a busy weekend is catching up with the kids...and now they're breaking-down.....

We found an uninhabited spot in the airport and let the kids run wild (almost) while we took turns with some downtime... Luckily, although the planes were full throughout the night, we were able to get four seats in the same row...2 on each side of the isle. Unluckily, th plane was delayed - but only for 1/2-hour. We took advantage and fed the kids...and got a beer for dad...

The plane ride was a nightmare. The kids were VERY tired and VERY grumpy. We pulled out all the stops trying to contain them. Like the wedding, I always had a perception of parents and kids on airplanes...I now have a different perspective, which has changed my perception... To make things a little more interesting, the old lady in the seat next to me had the widest shoulders of any lady I've ever sat next to. Furthermore, her elbows were in my side the whole flight (no kidding). To add to my displeasure, she decided to try to sleep the second half of the flight so her hips were halfway into my seat as well... Meanwhile, across the aisle, Lisa was having similar issues with a headache and a tired kid who needed constand attention...

We made it back to Seattle in one piece (barely). We headed down to the baggage claim area and waited for our luggage. The tired kids wanted to be held constantly and were making a scene in the airport...again. We waited for around 1/2-hour when I saw a couple of people from our flight with their luggage....they moved our baggage claim area without notification...our luggage was spinning around the carousel...but where are our car seats?... Walking back towards Lisa, Aly, and Mitchell, I just happen to see a sign for irregular shaped luggage (or something like that). Sure enough, there were our two car seats.

We headed home and almost immediately, things went back to normal..........*whew*......I'm still tired...

I wish we could have arranged to take the kids to see some of the family in Sacramento but I think most of them were up visiting my brother in Yreka. With the ticketing issues, we wouldn't have been able to stop anyway... As soon as my on-call schedule is published, Lisa and I will probably start planning a trip...

posted by Sam @ 9:04 PM