It's a Wonderful Life: February 2009

Rosie and I are home today, doing laundry and getting caught up after a fun few days in Seattle. Ron was recruiting last week in the Northwest, so Rosie and I flew up for the weekend to join him. We got to spend a fun weekend with our good friends, the Rozemas. I will tell you all about our adventures... but first, I have to tell you about our flight.
I was VERY anxious about flying alone with Rosie. We've flown a bunch of times but never just the 2 of us. Rosie is in that stage where she doesn't want to sit, be carried, or ride in her stroller. She is constantly asking, "DOWN??" So, naturally, I was afraid that we would both be frustrated at the end of the day.... and make the poor soul seated next to us completely nuts. I polled my friends with kids and got some great ideas about how to keep her entertained on the flight. I was armed with tons of snacks, new toys, favorite books, Apple (Rosie's beloved stuffed pig), a HUGE bottle of milk, and ehhmmm.. don't judge me, a bag of suckers. It was my mom's idea.. and let me tell you, it was a great one. So Rosie and I settled into our seat after going through the Security Nightmare. Whoever came up with that process obviously didn't have children. Let me get this straight.. I have to take HER shoes off too? What am I going to do, place a TINY bomb in her TINY size 4 shoe? Luckily, my dad walked us to security and helped me shlep all of our gear onto the belt.
God certainly gave us traveling mercies that day, and we had the whole row in the plane to ourselves. There may have been someone originally seated next us, but as soon as he saw us coming, he promptly pushed the flight attendant button and asked to be moved. I don't blame him. We're not exactly low key passengers.
So, Rosie and I settled in and we pushed away from the gate.... and then stop. Our pilot came on the intercom and announced that Seattle was fogged in, and that all planes were grounded until further notice. I don't know much about Air Traffic Control, but HONESTLY?? Nobody new this information before they loaded us all on the plane, like cattle? At least Rosie and I could have been running laps around the airport!
2 hours later.... let me say that again in case you missed it the first time: 2 HOURS later, we took off. I had gone through most of the snacks, all of the new toys, all of the books, and all of the milk, plus a little extra that I begged the flight attendant for. I broke down and pulled out the suckers and gave one to Rosie. She put it in her mouth, looked at me and raised her eyebrows and said, "MMMmmmmmmmmm." A few minutes of calm.
Overall, Rosie was a gem. She did the very best that she could. I had a package of stickers that I had intended for paper, but when Rosie started sticking them all over the seats and tray table, I didn't stop her. When we left the plane, it looked like a war zone. There were ground Goldfish and Graham Crackers on the floor, stickers on the seat, and bits of shredded paper everywhere. It was a disaster. I think I heard one of the flight attendants mention something about a power sprayer.
Once we got to Seattle, it was a total blast. We drove up to Anacortes to see our friends, the Rozemas. They have 2 little ones and Rosie was in heaven. We loved the gray days and the time spent with good friends. We took a fun walk to the beach on Sunday morning to let the kids run and play. We got some great pictures of the fun. We watched the Superbowl with Jenny and Dirk and a few of their close friends. It was a great time together. The tough flight was well worth it.
Wouldn't you know it? Rosie fell sound asleep on Ron's lap on the flight home. I guess my little escapade didn't need a reprise! Whew! Thank you, Lord, for taking good care of us!

"Welcome aboard flight 523 with nonstop service to Patience and Deep Breaths!"