The Eagle Has Landed

Holy Cow.

We're really here.

Let's start at the beginning.

I got about two hours of sleep Friday night because I was afraid we wouldn't wake up in time.

But we did.

We got to the airport and unloaded our ten suitcases and the dogs. Kerry had to go turn in the rental van, Ben guarded the dogs, the girls guarded all our carry ons and I started the check in process.

Because none of my manly men were nearby, I had to lift each suitcase up on the scale, let them tag it, and then drag it over to the security area to be screened. I flagged down one of the ladies behind the counter and asked her what to do with the dogs. She said she would check on it for me and I never saw her again.

Finally I got someone else to help me. She looked over and said, "That's the biggest kennel I've ever seen in my life." I proudly informed her that it is the largest kennel made.

They had to bring over security guards to check the dogs to make sure we weren't smuggling bombs in their cages. We had to take the dogs out of their kennels and they inspected the entire inside of the kennels as well and their collars and leashes, dishes and bag of dog food. I was wondering if they were going to do a proctology exam but I guess they have to draw the line somewhere.

The bad thing was once the dogs were out of their kennels, they weren't wild about going back in. Rigger went in all right, although he wasn't pleased. Ringo tried to jump over the kennel rather than go inside it. When we grabbed him and tried to stuff him back in, he spread his legs out like a little kid trying to be too wide to go through the door. Once we got them in and started down towards our departure gate, we could hear him barking all the way down the terminal. It was heartbreaking! I hate knowing that they didn't understand why we were doing this to them.

We decided to buy some sandwiches to tide us over. They charged $61 for sandwiches and drinks! We didn't even get side orders!

Our first flight was only an hour. Katie got sick (we think it was the sandwich). We couldn't find an airsick bag fast enough, so Kerry held his coat out and she threw up on it. Good thing we won't need it for the next few years!

We got to watch the sun come up from the plane. It was really cool to be high in the sky watching a sunrise. Katie was thrilled by everything. She doesn't remember ever being on a plane before and every little thing was exciting to her. Except for the throwing up, I mean.

Our second flight was nine hours. Thank goodness they now have a TV in the back of every headrest and you can choose from dozens of movies and watch whatever you want whenever you want. There were also some TV stations you could watch, music channels you could choose, games you could play, and maps you could explore. They even had a map showing our flight path with a little plane showing where we were. I liked to switch over every so often and see how far we had to go. Those little TVs are an absolute life saver when you are traveling with kids.

But....they don't just serve you lunch because you are traveling and have no where to go to eat. You have to buy your lunches, cash only, if you want food. Drinks are free.

We finally landed in Hawaii and collected our luggage........................

... except for Kerry's main suitcase which didn't show up. We're hoping it will arrive soon. My suitcase was stolen once and I am very nervous now whenever a bag doesn't arrive with us.

They don't meet you at the gate with leis these days,

but they do push a cart around and you can purchase your own lei.

The girls each picked out one.

We aren't picking the dogs up for a day or so. We have to make arrangements to kennel them. My friend Jennifer met us at the airport and drove us to get some dinner while Kerry's sponsor drove him to the hotel. We were so exhausted, Kerry went to bed at 7:00 and I went to bed at 7:30 (which was like 11:00 or 12:00 to us because we are still on Central Time).

But right now we are on Hawaiian Time.

Holy Cow.