We tried hard to schedule our flights for times that would not interfere with naps and would give us the maximum time in Boise while still having enough time to unwind at home before the next day. So our alarm was set for 5am Friday morning, but Matt & I both actually woke before it went off. Etta woke on her own early too and was in a good mood, so that was nice. Addie was very excited when we woke her and rushed into her clothes so we could get in the car and to the airport.
Our timing worked great. We were one of the last to board the plane, which is better in my opinion when you have young kids who don't really want to be buckled down. We borrowed a CARES harness from a friend and had Etta in it and Addie in a regular seatbelt, so we did not have to worry about lugging car seats around. The girls used their Trunki cases as their carry-ons and we got lots of smiles as they pulled or rode them around the airports.
An hour long flight is a wonderful length of time in my opinion. The time saved compared to driving makes it worth the money when you have young kids. Except I started to question that when they both threw up on the plane. Everything went well until the end. We had some small toys packed to entertain them. They people-watched. They asked lots of questions. They got excited about the beverage cart and snack as soon as it was announced. So there was the anticipation of it, the watching it get closer & closer to out seats at the back of the plane, the enjoyment of the snack & drink, the waiting for them to come back & collect our cups. Plus the bathrooms that had to be visited. Which were so small that they had no sinks. Which were so small that on the return flight I let Addie go in on her own since I was worried I would not fit with her. And then I had a couple seconds of panic when I realized that the plane was going to be starting the descent soon and Addie had slid the door into the locked position and was turning the knob and getting frustrated because it was not opening and if she started panicking I would have very little luck of talking her through unlocking the door. She stayed calm, I told her what she needed to do, and all was well.
Anyways, back to the throw-up. As we were starting to descend into Boise, Addie told me she did not feel good. I pulled out the airsick bag and tried to make sure she was not too hot, she was breathing calm, etc. She put the bag to her mouth & started breathing into it. I thought she was kind of faking not feeling good because she sometimes likes to joke about throwing up. But she did, in fact, cleanly throw up right into the bag a few minutes later. I removed that bag & got her a new one, but she announced that she did not need it because she was done throwing up. And she was right. Five or so minutes after that I looked behind me because I heard a distinctive noise and I saw Etta throwing up all over herself. She did not give Matt any advance warning. Honestly I am trying to remember if she has ever thrown up before in her life. She might not have had any understanding of what was coming. So she made a mess all over herself and matt and the seat. I got them sickness bags & handed matt wet-wipes and paged the flight attendant. Who was as helpful as she could be at the time considering that we were minutes away from landing and she was supposed to be strapped down too. At landing the lady behind Matt & Etta was saying "oh, you poor thing!" and trying to give our puke-splattered daughter a hug. Even I was not trying to do that!
So we were the last to exit the plane due to clean-up and Etta's need for a clothing change. We all slowly started walking away from the plane only to have the flight attendant run after us. oops! We had left behind the slightly puke-smelling CARES harness.. Those things are like $80 to buy new and it was not even ours so we wanted it back, gross smell & all. We spent some time in the clean & nearly vacant airport bathrooms doing additional clean-up. Over the loud-speaker we hear announced that boarding fr a flight is being delayed due to the need for additional clean-up. Sorry folks, I hope you are not sitting in row 18!
We were thrilled to see Mike, Becka, Ellie & baby Bennett at the airport waiting for us. But we were a little hesitant to give hugs. We were pretty sure it was the flight that made the girls sick, but nothing says "stay away" more than the flu.
We went to grab our bag off the baggage-claim carousal and the entire room was eerily deserted. The Boise airport definitely sees less travelers than Seatac or pdx!
The girls did not get sick on the flight back to Seattle, even though it seemed to hit slight bits of turbulence. One of the flight attendants was really friendly and had a puppet he introduced to the girls and their "woof-woof" and "lion" lovies. So the girls had fun with that. We warned the flight attendants about the girls getting sick on the first flight, and they gave us extra air-sick bags but thankfully they were fine on this one.
of course the weather has been perfect since you left. figures. loved having you all here and appreciate you making the treck out!
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