home again

Phab time in Phoenix. Will report more later. Kids are awesome travellers. Husband and I do the 'travel dance' well and rarely get tense. Today was our first ever 'cutting it close' airport experience. We missed our exit and were already 'under the wire'. We couldn't find a gas station close to rental returns. We got in the WRONG (slow) line in security. My husband's bag got searched for the Prickly Pear jelly we were given as a gift. My son had to go pee so badly during our long security wait. We 'high tailed it' to our gate (in time) to find that they had changed the gate from A29 to B10...needless to say, those gates ARE NOT CLOSE TOGETHER (kids were troopers). We made it in time and the flight was non eventful except my daughter got one of those awful sinus pains as we were landing. This is not her first and it is so frustrating as a mother to look at your seriously pained child and tell her that I understood her pain but could do nothing about it. She is getting better about dealing but it truly is a frustrating experience.

A side story: At the front of the plane a dad and daughter were FIGHTING with the bag handler crew about how their luggage NEEDED to fit in the overhead and that he would not give the luggage up (they've recently changed the size requirements). He was yelling and screaming and was then pulled out of line. Then the young daughter started screaming....security was summoned. We were able to get on the plane but my kids were wide-eyed and my husband made a wise statement...."That is an example of a BAD role model for a kid". The man and daughter made it on the plane in the end (I was a tiny nervous that the 'plane rage' would continue during flight...but it did not). When we had landed he said to his daughter...now we have to deal with the US Air MORONS again...what father thinks that is appropriate language and behavior to model to his daughter....UGGGGHHH!

Anyway...off to bed.