Deep Sigh of Relief
We have returned to the bounty that is the land of milk and cheese.And football and beer.
We have returned home to the crunch that is the holiday build-up. But, before I get into all of that, a quick (or not so quick) post on our travel adventures.
Last Tuesday after work, I drove home, picked up Bunny Boop and Prince Charming and the luggage, and turned around again to drive us all to Milwaukee. We stayed there in a hotel overnight because our flight out of General Mitchell International Airport left really early Wednesday morning.
Likely because of this super-early departure, getting through check-in and security was a breeze. We ended up waiting at the gate for an hour and a half, but no big deal. We flew Midwest Airlines on our flight from Milwaukee to Dallas. This was heaven!
If you haven't flown Midwest, let me tell you how things were. The seats are extremely roomy - like First Class seats - only in the entire cabin. There is an armrest between you and your seat mate that is five or six inches wide and the seats are a leather or a leather-ish material. There are even foot rests that extend down from the seat in front of you. It was a delight, and a particular joy considering the extra room meant Bunny had plenty of room in which to wiggle over the two hours we were in the air. She was able to sleep in our laps, with her head cushioned on this large armrest, quite comfortably. The in-flight service was also nice. It was an early flight, so there was a full complement of beverages and complimentary granola and fruit bars. Just right. Moreover, the flight staff was especially accomodating about our traveling with an infant. They spent extra time with us going over our specific emergency procedures and made sure we knew they were there if we needed assistance. We didn't feel like cattle at all!
Navigating the DFW airport was easy with the aid of that skyway tram thingy. I swear, a monkey could do it! We had an hour layover and then boarded the American Eagle flight from DFW to Amarillo. Not as nice accomodations, but the flight was very short so it wasn't too terrible. Bunny did not sleep through this flight, there was too much going on. Instead, she busied herself with the emergency procedures card. I am sorry to say that it did not stand up well to the episode.
We arrived in Amarillo early and bustled off to the baggage claim. This is where things went to hell. Prince Charming's bag (his clothes and Bunny's food) arrived safely. My bag (with Bunny's and my clothes), on the other hand, was nowhere to be found. Bunny was on my lap sleeping there at the baggage claim so I handed her off to grandpa while I wrangled with the baggage claim authorities. Actually, there was only one person. Her name was Jennifer and she was perfectly lovely and helpful. I was just frustrated because this always happens to me. My luggage frequently gets stuck en route, and sometimes when my route doesn't go anywhere near Texas, my bags still go to Dallas. People who know me have heard the stories and my suspicions about the reasoning. Anyway, there I was with only the clothes on my back.
So we went out for lunch and hit the mall for some undies. Then we made the 4 hour drive home to the farm. An hour after we arrived, we got a phone call. A courier was 30-minutes away with my bag and looking for directions to our physical location. Gratefully, we instructed him to save himself an hour's drive time and drop the bag at the police station in town and we would pick it up. And we did. Eureka! I was really worried for most of the afternoon and evening, but thankfully the contents were intact.
We had Christmas that evening, opening gifts and having a good time. Prince Charming was particularly pleased with his gift and has already begun choosing books with his Barnes & Noble giftcard. Bunny and I were equally pleased for him.
We woke early Thanksgiving morning, thanks to Bunny, and began preparing the food for the big meal. We had ham and turkey leftovers (long story) and a full compliment of traditional holiday dishes. The meal was good and the company better as we played cards until 1 am. Early that morning, Bunny took her first steps - something I'll remember long after the meal has left the recesses of my instant recall. We are very excited.
Friday brought some R&R and a trip to the nursing home to visit my grandmother. She is still with us, much to everyone's surprise. She played with Bunny and we snapped some pictures before finally departing. That evening we did some laundry and played with Bunny. Saturday morning we did some sewing and packed up for the return trip to Amarillo. Before leaving, we made another visit to the nursing home to say goodbye. Upon arriving in Amarillo, we had supper at the Texas Roadhouse.
This would have been great if not for the fact that on a Saturday night at 7 p.m. they had run out of mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes. If they aren't careful, they are going to drive away the customer base.
We stayed in a hotel that night and were back at the airport at 5:20 am on Sunday morning. We encountered no trouble at security or check-in, though I will note that the Amarillo airport is vastly more thorough in their security procedures than any other airport I've been to in a long while.
Our trip to Dallas was easy and our connecting flight back to Milwaukee was wonderful, if a tad bit late. We were again treated to the lush accomodations of the Midwest Boeing 717. On this flight, however, we received an even better treat. Midway through the flight, the flight staff delivered 2 warm chocolate chip cookies to each passenger. I'm telling you, the chocolate chips were still wet and gooey. It was sublime! Traffic back to Madison was light in our direction and we were home by 3 pm on Sunday afternoon. We ordered a pizza and started putting things back in order.
All in all, our trip was enjoyable but we are glad to be back. Now, however, I have half a million things to do. Time to make a list...
