The trip was a last minute plan that almost didn't happen. Here's what happened. I had known my parents were headed down to their time share in Oceanside last weekend. About a month ago we had tried to get me and all three kids out there but we just couldn't work everything out so I put the idea out of my head until the Monday prior to their weekend there. My mom and I talked on the phone and she mentioned my grandma and how she was doing and after we ended our conversation the idea popped into my head that maybe Janessa and I could go down.
I have been wanting to get down to see my grandma for some time now. She had yet to meet my sweet baby Janessa and I wanted her and my Grandpa to have that opportunity. Every day is a gift here on this earth and I wanted to make sure we got to see them sooner than later.
Anyways, after our phone conversation and my new thought, I got on the computer to check when flights were available. I knew my parents were planning to head down to Southern California Thursday after work and come home late Sunday evening so that left my only options for flying in on Wednesday night and flying back home Monday night. 5 whole days gone from my older children and husband... was the trip worth it? So I called my mom back with my idea but with great hesitation on my part. I have never left my McKenzie girl. She is attached at my hip and needs her mommy, how could I leave her for 5 whole days and on top of that how was I suppose to explain to Zeke and Kenzie that Janessa and I were going to see Papa and Grandma (my mom and dad) without them?!! Not to mention that I would need to find someone to watch Zeke and Kenzie during the day on Thursday, Friday and Monday while Nate was at work.
My mom was so excited at the idea that she kept encouraging me forward in seeing if I could make the trip possible. My first stop was to ask Nathan if I could go, yeah, that's definitely the place to start. He didn't have a problem with it as long as I could work out all the details. Yeah, he's the most amazing man ever!! He loves spending time with his kids and didn't mind having Zeke and Kenzie all weekend. So Tuesday morning I started making phone calls, lots of them.
First I needed to see if I could get a stand-by flight down there, thanks to our friends who work at Allegiant and are willing to share some of their tickets with us I was able to get my name on the flights that I needed. Then I started making calls to see if any of my friends were available and willing to watch my kiddos. A HUGE thanks to Lish who ended up watching them all three days. Nathan dropped them off early in the morning on his way to work and picked them up on his way home.
Thankfully I had done laundry the day before so all I had to do was clean the house, get clothes set out for my older two to make it easier on Nathan, one less thing for him to worry about, and pack for Janessa and I and make sure everything was in order.
Oh and I should mention that I did sit down with Zeke and Kenzie and make sure they understood the plan, as much as they could, and make sure they were okay with everything. Thankfully they were totally excited to be going to their friends house and that helped.
It was a bit of a crazy few days getting everything worked out but it all came together and Wednesday evening we headed to the airport. That's when things got a little interesting. From the time I talked to Scott, our friend who works for Allegiant, to Wednesday evening the flight had sold out. Every seat was sold and I was flying stand-by. That meant that the only way I was getting on that flight was if someone didn't show up! After all that planning it was going to be a bit of a bummer if it didn't work out! So I had to wait until every one had checked in, I waited and I watched as person after person kept coming in and getting into line to check in. I kept thinking 'there is no way I am going to make it on this flight.' Finally it seemed as though the last person was in line so I made my way towards the counter, then some guys walked in and I had to let them get in front of me. This happened a few times. Finally, after about an hour and a half it was my turn and I made it up to the counter to ask if any seats were available. There were! So she began to write me a gate pass to get through security because at this point they still had 15 minutes to check in. I could just pay at the gate after the 15 minutes had passed, if a seat was still available. I had to ask how many seats were still available... the answer was 4. Just as I asked a man walked up to the counter to check in... 3 left. And just as he finished checking in 2 more people walked up to check in... 1 seat left!! And they were already boarding the plane and I was still at the main ticket counter! SO I hurried through security, as fast as you can hurry through security with a baby and I made it to the counter at the gate....
And that 1 ticket was still available for me and my baby (who sat on my lap) I could hardly believe it! As soon as I paid I was rushed onto the plane to face the pleasant glares of people who don't want me and my baby to sit next to them, oh the joys of an open seating policy. Thankfully I found a friendly mom (with no kids) who was kind enough to let us sit next to her.
We settled in at 9 pm and just as we were about to taxi out the plane completely shut down. My first thought was 'good old Allegiant'. Yeah, this is not new for them. The stewardess assured us things would be up and running again any minute. Yeah, not so. Everyone had to de-board the plane, electrical problems. Oh great, at this point I'm wondering if I should even be on this flight. And my baby has had about enough of this craziness and was totally ready for bed. And let me tell you, there are no answers from Allegiant. For all I knew we could be there all night. Well thankfully that didn't happen and within an hour we were all back on the plane, in our original seats and ready for take-off. Let me just tell you that flight was covered in prayer! I was really hoping we'd make it in one piece.
We landed in Las Vegas at the lovely hour of 1 am. 3 am North Dakota time and while my baby did great on the flight, she was not happy about being awake at that time of hour and she let the whole airport know it on our way to the car.
And that begun our mini vacation to Southern California to visit my Grandma and Grandpa.
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| Totally awesome contraption if you're traveling with a baby, check in out here. Your carseat just attaches to it and off you go through the airport pulling baby with one hand and your suitcase with the other! |
Exciting and scary at the same time? Can't wait to hear part 2!
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