SacMomsClub.com

Let me start off by saying that we had a GREAT time up north. The boys had so much fun with their Grandma & Gido, and Auntie and Uncle were a big hit as well. It was getting there and back that was so not fun. At all.

We woke up bright and early on a Saturday morn to catch our 7am flight. Big Man and I were up at 4am, the boys were up a bit later and we were out the door by 5am. We had used web check-in, so we dropped our bags, scooted through security and pre-boarded with ease. Things were looking great! Then they had to de-ice the plane.

We sat on the tarmac for over an hour, waiting for the de-icing truck. This must not happen too often at SMF. We took off at the time we were supposed to be landing, so we resigned ourselves to the fact that we were going to miss our connection.

But lo! The connection was delayed! So we sprinted (with Lee and the stroller, and Bee screaming like a maniac) to the connecting gate only to find out that we missed the cutoff by thismuch. Literally, less than 5 minutes. Bummer. Over to customer service we go to find out what flight we'll be on next.

The next flight leaves 3 hours later. We're on standby. Bee is hysterical, we try to comfort him. The crowds, the noise, the lights - it was sensory overload. We calm the situation with french fries and head over to see if we're on the flight. There are only 2 seats available - we need three. Bummer.

The next flight leaves 4 hours later. We're on standby. So we wait. We walk - alot. We eat - alot (the kids got all the french fries and gummy bears they could eat - yes, we are bad parents). The flight is delayed 30 mins. Then another 30 minutes. Then they announce there's a mechanical problem with the plane. I told y'all I'm afraid to fly as it is, right? Then they announce they're getting another plane. Big Man asks every hour if we're getting on this flight. Lucky for us, a family of four has cancelled and we're on the flight. Woohoo! We board the flight almost 5 hours after it was supposed to leave; Bee finally crashes (he'd been up for about 16 hours by that time).

We land. Bee and Lee are so over this flying thing. They scream through baggage claim. They scream through customs. The airline lost one of our bags. They scream through customer service. They scream through installing the car seats. Grandma & Gido left us the truck, along with a goodie bag of cheese sticks, raisins, crackers and juice. The boys calm down. Big Man and I drive the snowy road in silence.

An hour later, we arrive at Grandma & Gido's. Everyone was kind enough to wait up for us - it's now 12:30am. We were supposed to have arrived 12 hours prior. But it doesn't matter now - the boys are happy to see everyone, and everyone is happy to see them.

Like I said, the visit was wonderful. It was a visit that was long overdue, and we enjoyed spending time with people we love so much. We had so much good food, we all got amazing gifts, and the boys had fun playing in the snow. Big Man did not enjoy shoveling the snow.     :)

The return trip went well - our three hour layover turned into 30 minutes, as our flight was delayed (quelle surprise) and we had to go through customs, security, and change terminals. Just enough time to eat - you guessed it - french fries and take the boys to the bathroom.

We all slept the sleep of angels as we made our way back to Sacramento. As much fun as we had on our trip, all of us were relieved to have made it home.

Lessons learned: book longer layovers, and never fly a certain airline ever again.

Hope you all had nice holidays, and Happy New Year! All the best to all of you in 2008.