WHY DO WE TRAVEL?

Every other year Eric and I travel to Utah for Christmas. I was raised in Utah and all my family still lives here. This will be be our last Christmas in a long time where we will all be together. This upcoming year my family is spreading across the country, so it was really important to me to come this year.

Two years ago when we came to Utah I decided last minute to fly out a week earlier than Eric. So when he came out he had a lay over in Denver. Well, right before he was going to board the plane the flight was delayed and delayed and delayed. The airport closed down and no one was allowed in or out. Four days later Eric and a friend he met at the airport escaped from the airport and drove home on Christmas Eve. He never wanted to come out again.

Now this year. We decided to fly out of Birmingham, AL because it was a total savings of about $600. Eric's sister lives their so she drove us to the airport at about four in the morning. We arrive and their is the LONGEST line ever in front of the counter. Soon we found out the plane never showed up and the flight is cancelled. The counter lady tells she can give us a voucher and we can fly again after the holidays. NO! So she looks and looks and looks. Nothing. She looks at other airlines and she can't find a flight for all three of us (Caroline is still a lap child). So I told her what if I say Garrett is a lap child. So a new airline and forty-five minutes later we finally get a seat. But the flight leaves in ten minuets. We have to hurry.

The security line is starting to fill up so I run over to save us a spot in line when Caroline's diaper is too full and she pees all over me. DISGUSTING! Finally Eric meets up with us and we make it to the front of the line we have about 5 minuets until the flight leaves. But guess who they picked for the security screening ... our whole family because we really look like terrorists! They put us in this closed off section. We take off all our shoes, jackets, sweatshirts, I am starting to wonder why I got dressed in the first place, our belts, ect... Then they look more closely at our tickets and notice that they did not specify we had lap children. SO Eric has to run back to the ticket counter have them verify we have two lap children so we can go through security. He comes back and the security guy disappeared for about four minuets. Keep in mind our plane is leaving. The gate agent comes over to security and tells us they are holding the plane for us. Thank Goodness. The security man finally returns and makes us all spread our arms and legs pats us down. He then turns to Garrett and tells him to stand up and hold out his arms. I'm thinking is this really necessary. Garrett's face is pure terror. I told him he was just checking his muscles. That helped a little. The main security guy comes over and tells him he doesn't need to check children. Now I am staring to get frustrated. I look over to where they took our diaper bag to search through it and notice they took EVERYTHING out and put in a plastic tub. Now I am UPSET. As any mom knows diaper bags for airplanes are so carefully packed so everything can fit in there. He hands us the tub with all the contents taken out, all of our clothes ect. and the gate agent comes over and tell us to hurry!

So we drove to Birmingham flew back to Atlanta had a lay over in Dallas Fort Worth, and ended in Utah at 6pm. Now we are defiantly not coming back to Utah at Christmas time.:)