Oh What a Week!

I am, self admittedly, not the best traveler.  I mean, I don’t cling to the airplane seat or have a death grip on the person sitting next to me.   But I don’t enjoy flying.

On Tuesday morning I left home and headed to Hilton Head Island for a business conference.  Now you may be thinking along the same lines as Fadre….

Yes, Madre.  It is a hard life.  Don’t forget to knock the sand off your laptop when you leave the beach!

But Ha!  I didn’t even see the beach, let alone touch some sand.  My view from the meeting room was a nice, asphalt paved parking lot.  But I must say, the palm tree landscaping was beautiful.

But this is how my trip went:

1. Get to the airport 1 hour before the flight leaves.  I am so proud of myself for packing for a 4 day trip, with my work, all in 1 backpack.  ONE backpack!!!!
2. Wait for plane to arrive at the gate - 30 minutes on late.
3. Circle the Atlanta area for 15-20 minutes due to back up of air traffic from bad weather.
4. MISS my connecting flight to Hilton Head.  Fine!  When is the next flight – 8 pm?  That will have to do.  What do you mean it’s booked and the following flight doesn’t leave until 8:25 am?????
5. Savannah will have to work, I guess.
6. $86 for transportation from Savannah Airport to HHI.
7. Finally I check into the hotel at 10 pm.  Get my 2 room keys and head upstairs.
8. Neither key works!
9. Back down to get two new keys.  At least this time the Front Desk Clerk came with me to make sure they worked.
10. Work in the hotel room until the wee hours of the morning.
11. Conference, work in hotel room, conference, work in hotel room.  Rinse, repeat.
12. Leave the hotel at noon for the airport to see if I can catch a flight before 6pm.
13. Arrive at airport at 12:45.  Last flight left at 12:25.  Next flight?  6 pm!
14. Work, work, work.  Pro:  the airport is pretty.  Con:  the only food available are those items found in the vending machines.
15. At 5:15 pm – a storm comes in.  Not kidding!
16. The flight leaves about 40 minutes late.

It’s a small plane.  Single seats on the left side of the plane, two seats on the right.  Across the aisle was a father travelling with his 3 year old daughter.  She was cute as a button.  I was a little tired, so I took a cat nap.  I awoke to this conversation across the way:

Dad:  Can you hold it for a few minutes?  The man is coming down the aisle with the beverage cart.

(I didn’t hear the girl’s response, but they didn’t get up.)

About 5 minutes later I heard:

Dad:  Did you wet your pants?

Girl:  Yes, just a little.

Dad:  Are you finished?  I’m not going to change your panties until you’re finished because I only have one change of clothes for you.

Girl:  No.

About five minutes later, when the beverage cart was finished, Dad got up and got a handful of paper towels from the bathroom.  He did not take his daughter.  He came back, put the towels in the seat and continually asked if she was finished yet.  He was waiting for her to finish IN HER SEAT!!!!  And when she had, he changed her pants there in their seats and went about the rest of the flight as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

IN HER SEAT?!?!?!?

Gross.

So while I am trying to ignore the conversation from across the way, I pulled out the camera to take some pictures for Bean and Bug.  Bean has never been on an airplane.  Bug has made 2 trips, but was only 14 months old for her last trip.

It was a beautiful flight.  I just love to look out and see all those white, puffy clouds.

   

We are starting our descent.

 

Engine still there?  Check.

 

Propeller working?  Check.

 

Closer.

Closer.

 

Yes!  We made it.

And even though we were running late, I still managed to catch my flight home.

Although I started my journey started at 12:45 pm, I didn’t get home until just after 11:00 pm.  But I’m home, safe and sound, and glad to see the family.

DUDE!

This is one of my favorite photos.  It shows every ounce of love Bug has for her aunt. 

And…a nice view of someone’s elbow?!?

This is my baby sister.  I was 17 when she was born.  It was a little like having a real-life baby doll.  It was FUN to get up in the middle of the night and feed her a bottle back then.  But of course, that’s because her mother was there as a back up in case I didn’t want to get up or didn’t hear her.  With Zman, Bean, and Bug it was totally different.  Something about if I didn’t get up they just starved because there were no bottles at our house.

Anyway…I called her Dude.  What can I say?  It was the 80’s. 

My father hated it.  She’s not a boy, he would say.  Fine…..DUDETTE!  I would reply.  And then I would continue to call her Dude behind his back.

Dude was about 18 months old when Fadre and I began dating.  She was his first introduction to “babies”.  She taught him:

• Small children will mimic you.  She wore a baseball hat from the time she was about 4 until she was 12, just like him.
• You CAN train a toddler to go get her own diaper and wipes when it’s time to be changed.
• “If you don’t behave, you’ll have to come home and spend the night with us” is not a THREAT to a young child, but rather an INVITATION!  He learned that one quickly and never made that mistake again!

She’s tough.  She’s played Tball/softball since she was four.  The bruises and battering she’s suffered over the years would leave me on the floor, writhing in pain, begging for the Lord to come quickly and save me from my suffering.

She’s cool, relaxed, has a good sense of humor, and does not suffer from lack of self-esteem!

She loves all of her nieces and nephews and has a very different relationship will all of them.  In fact, Zman is closer in age to Dude, than iNik is to Dude, or iNik is to me! 

This August she’ll graduate from college.  A couple of weeks ago it was Senior Day for the softball team.  There were roses and a plaque.

My parents are so proud!

Here’s the whole gang.

And a cookie cake in her honor!

And even though it was a big weekend for her, Dude and her dude took time after the game to fly kites with Bean and Bug.

One of the coolest things that happened that weekend?  While in line at Wendy’s for lunch, Bean, Bug, and Almost Mine yelled out – Look!  It’s Dude!  And sure enough.  There was Dude – on a university poster – in the restaurant!  Four athletes on the poster and she’s one of them!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DUDE!