The Day We Left for Boston

So today was day 1 of our 10 day trip to New England.  We were up and getting ready to leave at 2:55 a.m. (after going to bed after midnight) – Kyle and I felt like zombies but the girls were bouncing off the walls they were so excited.  Katelyn couldn’t even go to sleep the night before because she was looking so forward to the trip, Brooke slept great but she followed Katelyn’s lead and got her crazy on as soon as we woke her up.

We left the house about 15 minutes later than planned and missed the exit for the airport.  Fortunately, in Spokane that is not a sizable detour and we arrived without further incident.

Once we were checked in and through security, I thought we were set.  The girls were happy and I knew they were tired so I figured it would be smooth sailing… they would be perky and excited and then pass out from exhaustion.  Right?  Wrong.

Brooke had been saying for days that she didn’t want to go on the airplane.  I didn’t think much of it, but as we walked down the jet way and she saw the open air entrance to the plane she panicked.  She did not want to get on that plane, but I convinced her quickly and she seemed ok, just a little nervous.  She asked lots of questions and wanted to know what it would be like during take off.  That’s when I realized that her issue with airplanes was part of her PTSD from our trip to Lagoon… she was preparing herself for another amusement park ride that would scar her for life.

The plane was mostly full of businessmen commuting  (hence the 5 a.m. departure time) and the guy sitting across the aisle from us looked like he wanted to die when we sat down.  He actually made a face that looked like our mere presence caused him great pain.  He immediately grabbed his earplugs and jabbed them in ears.  Here’s the best part… he needed those ear plugs, but not because of us.   The guy in front of him started talking to the guy across the aisle the minute he sat down and he never took a breath.  At one point, grumpy business guy actually slapped his hands over his ears to try and buffer the noise.  Brooke on the other hand, never made a peep… she made something else though and his ear plugs didn’t save him that time.

With about 15 minutes left in the flight, Brooke told me that she needed to “go potty so bad.”  There was turbulence so the seat belt sign was illuminated and I explained to her that she would have to wait until the sign went out, but that we could go as soon as that happened.  Then, she looked panicked and said, “But I don’t want to go potty outside!”  Clearly the ins and outs of air travel were quite foreign to her, so I assured her that the potty was inside the plane and proceeded to distract her with the “Sky” magazine and thought we were in the clear.  Moments later, she started looking really uncomfortable and telling me that she really needed to go potty.  At this point I was alarmed but not panicked.  She’s done so well I was sure she wouldn’t have an accident.  I was right, sort of.

Just as I leaned over to find something else to distract her, I suddenly felt her lean against me and then it was really warm.  Too warm.  That’s when I realized the importance of the barf bag placement on airplanes.  I instantly grabbed the bag and shoved most  of her face inside in one swift motion.  It worked for the second wave of the attack, but the first wave resulted in some casualties… her outfit (jacket included), my jeans and WHITE coat (coat for the trip), and seats 14A and 14B on the plane.  The most traumatic part for Brooke was that Blankie (her super soft pink elephant blanket that she has loved since birth and always sleeps with) was also a casualty.   Next time grumpy business guy flies, I bet he wears a haz-mat suit.

Our flight to Boston was barf-free and didn’t crash and was therefore, in my opinion PERFECT!   The surprising part was that the girls never went to sleep.  Not even for once second and with as tired as they were from our early departure I couldn’t believe it.  But they did great so I didn’t have to medicate anyone… myself included. 

We enjoyed a great dinner at Kyle’s favorite restaurant in Boston – The Chateau.  It is amazing Italian food!  I have been so sick lately that I usually pass on dinner, but I went to town and this place – it was UNBELIEVABLE food.

Our final destination took us two and a half hours further down the road to North Conway, New Hampshire.  Even though it was dark, everything was so picturesque.  Every town looks like the New England you see in the movies.

Despite the late hour and long travel day, arriving at our hotel re-energized the crew so it was no problem for me to do a load of laundry.  Blankie was cleansed and my coat is now wearable again.  Eventually everyone went to sleep – it was a long but good day and we are excited for the rest of our adventure.