My nephew Ranger (sister Jane's boy)
My brother David and Ranger
Jane and Weston with Ranger
The day we flew out was a full day. I woke up early and finished packing our suitcases - 4 big ones plus a carseat, an umbrella stroller, Emma's backpack, my computer backpack and my purse! Seems like a lot, and it was, but it was manageable. At 8am I went to Clayton's studio to preview the photos of Emma, which were amazing. I grabbed a coffee on the way back to Lori's and spent another hour or so with her while Emma and Olivia played. We left their house and drove to Jane's house in Loveland where my dad and brother were waiting. My dad had loaned us one of his extra cars during our stay in the U.S. and we were so grateful! I can't imagine what renting a car for 3 weeks would have cost!! So he and my brother drove to Loveland together so one of them could drive dad's car back to his place. I was happy to get to spend a little more time with him. For some reason, I had in my mind what time our flight was supposed to leave Denver. I didn't think to confirm the time until I was driving to meet my dad (which, by the way, is something I attribute to living in a culture where people just don't plan ahead of time. It's totally rubbing off on me!). I pulled out my itinerary and realized I was off by two hours! Fortunately, the two hours were in my favor! Instead of being in a hurry, we were able to eat lunch with Jane's family and Emma got to play with four more cousins. (After Clayton did Emma's photos, he cleaned my dirty camera for me. I've been trying to get that done for the last year and haven't been successful!) While Emma was playing with the three older girls, I got to play with Ranger. He's a very happy baby and I loved getting to meet him for the first time on this trip! While David went shopping with Jane, my dad drove Emma and me to the airport. Actually, I drove. I used to get so irritated when I'd drive and my dad would sit in the passenger seat. After several years of driving, he would still tell me which lane to be in and where to set the cruise control and whether or not I could pass. The last few years have been different. Regardless of my age or experience, he'll always feel the need to give me advice and even though I don't always listen to him (OK, I totally tune him out when it comes to driving), I don't get irritated. I wait for it and I smile when it happens. In addition, because he's 80 now, I feel much more comfortable getting advice from him, knowing that at least I'm the one driving!! On our way to the airport, Dad and I talked a lot about the Bonhoeffer book. He was already halfway through it and I had just given it to him 5 days before! I loved that last hour in the car with him.
We made it through security with plenty of time to spare, so Emma and I walked around the airport and rode the moving walkway a few times. We visited a few stores and picked up some English magazines and a book. A new habit I've acquired over the last few years is to pick up a new book or two at the airport bookstore. I always get something by an author I've never heard of and with a subject that seems interesting but not familiar. This time I picked up The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin. I'm about halfway through it and I'm loving it. I love her writing style and her candidness. Pretty sure we could be friends:) She's even from Kansas! Anyway, after picking up my new book and other goodies, Emma and I boarded our flight to Dallas. We arrived in Dallas and made our way to the international terminal, stopping at Starbuck's for one last American coffee on the way. Kevin called just as we made it to our gate and I smiled. First class and business class had already boarded and within a few minutes, our group was called. I smiled because if there's one thing I've learned from living here, it's not to freak out. We made it to our gate with a few minutes to spare. I knew we had a tight window between flights, but the thought of missing our flight never occurred to me. We made it to the back of the plane and settled in for the overnight flight. In the row of five seats, I was right in the middle. Not a fun place to be if you need to pee a lot, but it was fine. Emma sat on my left and to the left of her was a Brazilian man. We spoke for about the first hour of the flight. I found out he was from a large city in Brazil, but two years ago he had moved to Des Moines with his family. Funny, I told him, because I lived in Ottumwa and moved to Brazil with my family. I asked him who he worked for and he asked about Kevin. Turns out he works for Firestone, a company that supplies tires to John Deere. We had a great conversation and then we had dinner and everyone went to sleep. When I woke up, we were over Brazil. Home, sweet, home.
