Trip to Texas

Last week Justin was going to be gone all week at a conference, so I decided, to take my dad up on his offer to fly me and the kids down, so off we went. My sister and youngest brother were going to be there for some of the time too so I was really looking forward to seeing them as well.

They offer direct flights to Houston from Rapid City in the summers, so the plan was for my friend to drop me off at the airport and my mom would pick us up in Houston, no changing places, just a quick 3 hour flight. No biggie, I could handle it.

Until it became the worst traveling day of my life.

Ever.

I have flown on planes a lot, I don't get anxious about traveling (except for the packing part, I have pre-trip psychosis, ask Justin!), and the kids are used to it as well. We've dealt with our share of delays, cancelled and missed flights. But we've dealt with them...together. Me and Justin, we are a team, we are awesome together. Yes we are outnumbered now but we manage...together.

On this trip, I was the lone mother with a 20 month old strapped to my front in the ergo carrier and a 50 ton backpack, a 5 year old with an equally large backpack and a 3 year old dragging his backpack with one hand and his other used to expose his private parts for all to see...everywhere we went.

It has taken me 2 weeks to process and digest all that went down that day. I almost begged my parents to let me stay with them and enroll Josiah into school there so I didn't have to travel home!

Let's start at the beginning...

Saturday morning I realized I needed Leah's birth certificate to prove she was under 2 so she could sit on my lap. Realized I never picked up her birth certificate at the court house.

Monday morning...7am....kissed Justin goodbye as he headed to the airport to his flight to Dallas. We wouldn't see each other for a week. ...8am...  dropped kids off at my friend's house down the street, drove quickly to downtown to get Leah's birth certificate. Road construction blocking parking lot entrance, drove around like a crazy person looking for a parking spot. Sped home, threw car seats in friend's car, drove home, got bags, left car/house keys on counter, set alarm on house, ran of out garage as door closed, jumped in friend's car... left keys on counter.

Arrive to airport, deposit all bags and carseats at check-in desk. All is well... until Paul realizes they have taken his carseat behind the counter. He wants it back. I see his blood boiling and the anger rising in his eyes. Fear begins rising up in me. Sweat begins streaming out of every gland in my body. Paul is screaming the blood curling scream so loud my ears are ringing. I literally drag him to the elevator, then we find the bathroom. He is ballistic. Screaming, yelling, throwing his body all over the place. There is no rationalizing, no coercing, no bribing, no disciplining that will work. Tried it all. He wants his carseat back, he wants to go home, he doesn't want to get on the airplane, he doesn't want to go to Texas, he wants to go home now. 30 minutes pass in the bathroom with him screaming. Ladies come in and out giving me looks of empath, asking if they can do anything to help.

9:30....we have to go through security or we'll be late. I grab Paul's arm with a death grip and we exit the bathroom. He is doing an alligator barrel roll the whole way, as we wait in the security line, still screaming. If I let go, he runs. Leah is getting cranky from being in the carrier, I start to get a cramp in my from holding Paul, I am sweating buckets, and Josiah is covering his ears with both hands. The stares, oh I hated the stares from all of the people. I did not speak I just stood there in line. Tears were too close so I couldn't use words.

Finally we are getting bags onto screening table. 3 nice TSA ladies come to help me. I drag Paul through, he's out of control. They suggest I go into the private security screening room. I gladly oblige. They get all of our belongings for me. They close the door. The tears flow. The ugly cry begins and the nice lady gives me a hug. We had not even made it to the gate yet, I was so overwhelmed with frustration, my patience was long gone, I was embarrassed, and I just wanted to help Paul get a grip on his emotions but nothing was working. I felt so helpless. I quickly asked the Lord to be my strength because I was poured out, and hung to dry. All I had to give was gone. Only He could rescue me this day.

After composing myself and Paul calmed down enough to leave the room, the nice agent helped me carry my bags to the gate...we were just minutes from boarding. As we walk up, an announcement is made. "Flight# (my flight) has been delayed 2 hours".

Lord have mercy.

We find a place to make camp. Paul is calming down and I start shoving gummy bears at him, since he loves them. Somehow the gummy bears made him forget about the last hour and in a few minutes he was his happy self again. (Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde)

Ironically, I look up to see two familiar faces, the church planters who live 45 minutes away are there, trying to get to the same conference Justin was going to. I plugged in a movie for the kids and I chatted with the church planter's wife for a while. 1.5 hours in to the delay, and after we had eaten almost all of the snacks I brought, the dreaded announcement comes across the speaker..."Flight #(my flight) has been cancelled. Pick up your bags in baggage claim."  No reason. They just cancelled the ONLY direct flight to Houston that day.

Panic. Full body sweating. FEAR.

Church planter and I get on the phones immediately, we don't even go down to get our bags yet. His wife watches the kids while I figure out how to get to Houston...that day. 30 minutes later, I am booked on the 5pm flight to Denver, then 7pm flight to Houston. Not too bad.

They help me get my bags outside and I call my friend. She is on the complete opposite side of town and drops everything to come get us. She is such a great friend. Since I left my keys on the counter, I cannot go home so she graciously lets us crash at her house ALL DAY. I know she had stuff to do, but she sacrificed her whole day for us. Leah gets a nap, and the other kids all play together for a few hours.

I check the status of my flight just before we leave. It's delayed 1.5 hours. REALLY?! So we order a pizza, eat, then head to the airport. This time my sweet friend went with us all the way to security to make sure Paul didn't have any more freak outs. Her daughter sufficiently distracted Paul while we checked his carseat at the check-in. The TSA agents recognized us (I'm sure it was a frightening deja vu for them!) coming through security and marveled at Paul's happy demeanor this time.

As we get to our gate I notice they are boarding a plane to Houston, it was the flight earlier than mine but it had also been delayed. I asked if there were 3 extra seats. Hallelujah there were! I was glad since I wasn't sure we were going to make our connecting flight in Denver. Getting on this one made it certain that we would. The kids did mostly ok on the plane. Leah did not want to sit in my lap, it was like wrestling a bear.

We arrived in Denver, with all of my kids in tow. No stroller this time since it was supposed to be a direct flight, so I was nervous about losing Paul. We spent a considerable amount of time in the family bathroom since there was no where for them to run in there and it was big room. Gross, I know, but I was desperate not to chase Paul all over the place. Then we grabbed milk shakes and dinner and popped a squat at our gate to eat and watch a movie. Thank the Lord for portable DVD players. It totally saved my life.

Our flight in Denver was also delayed. It was about 9:00pm by the time we started boarding. Paul was getting wild and excited and I'm sure he was tired so he was turning into "crazy Paul" at which time his behavior could not be controlled, contained, or predicted.

We give the ticket agent our tickets, and walk down the jet bridge to board the plane. The line was long and slow. Paul was moving fast and furious. A 60 year old man was at the end of the line and Paul was headed directly toward him. I was trying to tell him to stop running without screaming at him, but he couldn't hear me, he was clearly in his manic phase. The next thing that happened was so unexpected I was left in momentary shock....

Paul reached the man and raised his arms into the air and hit the man's butt cheeks, one hand on each cheek, and he was hitting them like drums, while happily and loudly proclaiming, "BOTTOM BOTTOM BOTTOM!! HA HA HA HA (insert evil laughter sound)"!

Lord have mercy.

I could have died if it had not been so funny!

The man turned around, looked Paul in the eyes and said. "If I didn't have grandchildren of my own I would have been rather upset that you did that." And turned back around.

It was torture trying to get Paul to stay still. He kept sneaking in between people trying to get further up in the line whenever I would turn my eyes away from him. If I grabbed him he would start screaming. I was torn on what to do. He kept exposing his private parts as well and saying "peeeeenis" in a loud whisper that EVERYONE could hear because no one else was talking or making any sound. There are no words to describe my inner turmoil and embarrassment during those 15 minutes on the jet bridge.

Once in the plane, and walking to our seats...Paul, still behind the same man, begins to loudly sniff the man's bottom (yes you read that right) and then exclaiming, "EWWWW, stinky!!" He kept doing this the whole way down the airplane. Our seat was # 28... for real. The people in their seats watching Paul do this were getting a kick out of it.

At 10pm the plane finally takes off and I plug in a movie and wrestle with Leah to get her to go to sleep. Josiah passes out almost immediately when we get in the air but Paul does not.

20 minutes before we land he falls asleep.

By the time we land, and get to the gate, lights are on and people are exiting, I am getting worried because Paul is out cold. I get everything ready and I wake him up. He is crazy mad, instantly. A nice lady who I had talked to in Rapid City and in Denver who was on the same plane offered to help me get the kids to baggage claim. I gladly accepted her offer of help. I knew God had been placing people in my path all day to help me so I knew she was another.

30 seconds later, Paul starts throwing his body around as we are getting into the aisle to walk out and he busts his nose on the hard arm rest. Blood immediately begins pouring out of both nostrils. POURING.

Josiah gags.

I hand Leah to the angel lady.

Yell for flight attendants to grab me some rags.

Paul is screaming and flinging blood all over. I pick him up, press the rags to his nose and we high-tail it out of the airplane.

Sitting right there as we walk out of the jet bridge is a cart with a driver. I get on immediately and we go to baggage claim. The nice lady helps me find a place to park our crazy train of 2 screaming kids and bloody mess while I wait for my mom. I hugged the nice lady and thanked her for her kindness.

It was 1 a.m.

We arrived at my parent's house at 3:30am. By this time all 3 are crying, tired, and emotional. I pile them all in the bed with me and I heave a sigh of relief. It was good to be home and to have my own mom close. At 30 years old, there's still something about having my mom close that causes peace in my soul.

As I reflected on all that happened over the course of that day, I realized that even though the circumstances through out the whole day were stressful and wearing on my patience and downright hard...I was never alone. I cried out to God in that security room not to make things smooth sailing but I cried out to Him in desperate need of Him to be my strength. His power is made perfect in my weakness. I was humbled that day. My "I can handle this on my own" attitude that I all to often have (pride), was shattered that day. When I let go of my pride I was able to see all of the little ways He was helping me through the difficulty, and when I let go of the pride, I felt peace and the resolve to go on. As much as I wanted God to remove the obstacles, He instead lifted my head, gave me strength, and helped me put one foot in front of the other as I sloshed my way through that day.

"Perhaps only when human effort had done its best and failed, would God's power alone be free to work." - Corrie ten Boom, The Hiding Place 

Being at my parents house was sooooo fun. The kids had a great time! We swam twice a day, ate ice cream (I ate almost a gallon of Blue Bell), played with toys and legos and old toys from when we were kids. The kids love my sister and brother. Paul drug Stephanie all around the pool calling her his "little lady". My parents are so gracious and kind as we trashed their house! ha! My mom taught Josiah how to swim. Josiah is not graceful or a natural in the water, he tends to swallow lots of water and choke/gag a lot. She taught him to hold his breath, glide, use his arms and kick his legs at the same time and to swim down in the water to get something. He was doing very good by the end of the week!

Leah napping at my friends house during our delay.

 Paul is a natural in the water.

There is no such thing as vacations when their are small children with you. They are merely trips.

These kids don't sleep when they're not home.

They were awake soooo much at night, and Paul and Leah were awful at going to sleep. It took 1-2 hours each night of crying/flighting it, to go to sleep. 

 Josiah slept great though. 

He covered his ears a lot from all of the screaming from his siblings. 

Payback from his first year of life.

 Who does Leah look like?

Her Nana of course!

Instead of calling my dad, Papa, she started calling him, Pop. It was so cute! Even still, when I show her a picture of him, she says, "POP!!!!"

My dearest friend Staci and I met halfway between my parents house and her house. It was the first time we'd seen each other in 4 years. It was SO wonderful. Talking to her does my heart good. I am so blessed and honored by her friendship.

 Watching the planes as we prepare to go home.

 Josiah was a wonderful help! 

 Paul and Leah taking pictures of themselves to pass the time on the plane. They were wild! 

Here are some videos of the kids swimming! 

Thank you Mom and Dad for an absolutely wonderful week!! The children have not stopped talking about all of the fun they had. Josiah asks almost every day when we are going to take him to a pool! We love you and are thankful for all of the ways you show us how important we are to you. Thank you. :)