Sometimes traveling runs like clockwork, especially when one travels alone, and sometimes it doesn’t. Monday, the boys and I excitedly drove one and a half hours to the Eagle airport expecting to see Grandma in Florida by late evening. NOT! It was beautiful weather and we were on time but alas there were mechanical problems with our aircraft. Axel looked at me and remarked that we shouldn’t get on a plane that had problems. Right he was.
Four hours later we heard something to the tune of, “I’m sorry for all of you who are on flight 2378 to Florida but you’re all screwed. Please come subject yourself to our patronizing and harassed, psychologically challenged, staff members at the front desk.” As I waited another hour in the line amidst fellow grumblers, I kept glancing over at the boys to make sure they stayed put. At one glance they had spread out all of our specially prepared food, made by yours truly, on the disgustingly dirty airport carpet causing Brevitt’s eye to swell up in an allergic reaction. Next glance they were immersed in another group of children who were camped out in the airport waiting to continue on to their preaching conference. They were teaching the boys card tricks which I’m sure were imbedded with little messages from God. When we left I was handed a pamphlet which I graciously refused telling
them I had found God in my Blogging.
With nine hours remaining until our delayed flight took off to Chicago, we rolled back to our car parked miles away while Brevitt taught us his made up song called, “I’m a Receiver Not a Giver”. We recommended that he switch the words around in the title. Off we went to discover the lazy town of Gypsum. We found a park with a mercifully well-equipped playground and I watched as their imaginations created a war between good and bad guys. I fell asleep in the sun as they ran around the park shooting each other with imaginary projectile weapons that would grind up their body parts when they got hit. As I
slept the assimilated sounds of machine gun fire seeped into my dreams. I awoketo three soft little heads lying on my stomach. They were ready for my undivided attention. Brevitt and I threw the football as Tucker and Axel became “fat men” filling their shirts with the pea gravel from the playground.
Dinnertime finally came and since we have not gone out for dinner since December I was determined to find a pleasant restaurant for us all to enjoy. The children are used to my relentless desire to have worthwhile experiences while traveling and they laughed at me as I interviewed the locals in search of the
only family restaurant in town. I sent my three ragamuffins to wash up in the bathroom and than observed them as they dined to see if they had progressed at all in their manners. They did remarkably well aside from each one of them dropping their silverware on the floor.
As the day went on Tucker turned from sweet and adorable singing boy to grumpy little pain in the bottom. He would neither let me listen to any of the airport announcements nor have any conversations with any adults. We received coos and smiles from other passengers as they passed our little tank grumpily strolling his bag down the concourse with his long shaggy hair and big blue/green eyes. We were not so charmed and were careful not to smile when he said something funny or he would scream “Baba Sheep” at us. When we all had enough of him he would start chanting, “I love Mommy, I love Mommy”.
Finally we arrived in Chicago at midnight and took our shuttle to The Holiday Inn. I warned them that there would not be chocolates on their pillows such as they were accustomed to in our lives pre-Madoff.
I plunked my three dirty rascals into a warm bath and than pleaded with them to stopjumping on the beds and go to sleep. Six hours later I woke them to start it all over again hoping that this day would move forward more quickly then the last. One can only hope.
Chicago at 6:00am seen from our hotel window
Nice!! I’m glad you discovered the Gypsum playground. The Recreation Center is pretty neat, and the library is right there too. Traveling alone with the kids can be a real “adventure”. I get plenty of stares when I travel with mine. I try to ignore them, usually. Traveling from Cancun, Mexico to Little Rock, AR was pretty interesting on Wednesday…
what a day!