Calgary Bound and Back - The Finale

I was feeling pretty optimistic about our trip home. We made it through customs with very little effort; they didn't even want to see our visas. We arrived by the gates with plenty of time to get lunch at Harvey's and to sit a bit before we boarded our plane. The kids even had a chance to pose next to a huge stuffed RCMP Moose.

The first segment of the flight went by pretty quickly. I took some pictures of the kids to capture their plane ride experience, we had a few more snacks (mostly to lighten the load of Kezia's carry-on; goodness we certainly weren't that hungry), and the kids slept a bit. At the end of the flight, Kezia peeked behind her seat and started to chat with the lady. She asked the lady where she was going, and she replied, Fresno. And Kezia smiled and said, "We're going there too!" I then joined into the conversation and found out the lady was flying from Calgary to Fresno and had to run to make her connection in Denver. I envied her, she was going to be in Fresno by 9 p.m. Hmm...maybe I could fly standby....oh nuts.....our van is in Sacramento. I didn't ask her what she paid for her ticket, but I told myself she probably paid at least $100 more. That thought made me feel better.
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We got to Denver and I checked the departures screen. I saw there were departures to Winnipeg, I wished I was going there. And then I saw the departure to Fresno, and I wished I was going there too. There was an earlier flight to Sacramento, but it was leaving in 30 minutes. Oh I wished I was on that plane, but then the kids wouldn't have enough time to eat. Sigh. I told myself that we would make our way to Domino's for supper and that we would get on the plane to Sacramento at 8:50, just like we planned. After supper, we found a place to spread out and play and to kill some time. A flight attendant was sitting close by and after watching us for a while asked me if I was by myself with all three kids. And I said yes. She said that my kids were so well behaved and it was amazing to see one parent handle three kids. She said that she's seen two parents who can't even handle one. That made me feel better about not being home already, and feeling pretty blessed at having such great kids.

Well, at 8:30 we were suppose to board the plane, but there was a bit of a delay. I sat there waiting to line up, Asha was fussing because she was so tired, and Joel and Kezia were running around and giggling. Better here in the terminal than on the plane, I told myself. We didn't board until 9:10 and by this time, all kids were tired, but thankfully quiet. A flight attendant came by and asked us what we wanted to drink even before the plane was off the runway. I told Joel and Kezia that once we got into the air, she would bring us our drinks, and then we would all go to sleep. And so we waited.....

And we waited......

And we waited.....

Finally, I asked the lady next to me what time it was. It was 10:00 and we hadn't even taxied down the runway. An announcement came on saying we were in line to get de-iced and that it would be another 15-20 minutes before we could take off. Poor Joel and Kezia just wanted their drinks so they could go to sleep. And at this time, Asha started to holler because she was delirious with exhaustion. I was a bit tired at this point too.

Finally at 10:15 we were in the air, and by 10:23 we had our drinks, and by 10:31 both of the older children were sleeping. Asha was still hollering.....

10:42, Silence from all Heppner Children.

We arrived at the Sacramento Airport about 11:40 local time and I quickly called the hotel shuttle to come and pick us up. It would take about 30 minutes. So we got our luggage and proceeded to the entrance to wait for our ride. That's when Joel started to cry and say he had to throw up. Oh no. So I raced with the carts to the bathroom only to find that it was closed for cleaning. I spotted a garbage can and told Joel to puke in there. Well, he was a bit surprised at the alternative plan and decided that he could hold his puke down. We stood there for a while to make sure, and then made our way slowly to some seats. Kezia and I enjoyed some raisins (not like we were hungry, but hey, it's something to do), while Joel chatted with a Grandma from Stockton who just flew in from Texas.

Our shuttle finally came to get us at 12:30 a.m. (1:30 a.m. Calgary time). I loaded up the kids with a little help from some nice Delta flight attendants who were coming with us. They complimented me on my bravery and skill to travel with three children. One of them mentioned that Asha's outfit was terribly cute. And not a second later, all bright eyed and bushy tailed, Kezia points out to them that she has very pretty nice shoes. That's my girl :)

We got to our hotel and I quickly loaded up all the luggage into our van, except our overnight bag. I got the kids to our room and Joel and Kezia were sleeping even before they hit the pillow. Asha on the other hand, wanted to chat for a bit longer. I was so tired, I thought I would throw up, but finally at 1:50 a.m. she fell asleep.

I woke up at 8:00 a.m. and got myself ready. I got the kids up and considering they were totally sleep deprived, they weren't cranky. We had a hot breakfast at the hotel (yummy) and left for Fresno by 9:00. I was so thrilled to be on the road and had to control my lead foot. But thankfully the flow of traffic required me to travel a bit faster than the speed limit....the spirit of the law as opposed to the letter of the law, as Grandpa would say it!

We pulled up to the seminary at 11:58 and we all jumped out of the van. Kezia insisted on pulling her carry-on bag to our apartment. We were reunited with Carl and it was so good to be home. Joel jumped on his Dad and immediately started chatting about the plane ride, and doing exercises, playing video games, snow, his uncles......Kezia kissed Carl and headed straight for the dress up box and Asha just looked and looked before she gave Carl a small smile. Man, it was so good to be home. I kissed Carl and fell straight into my own bed. Our adventure was a success!