I do have a very good excuse for not updating lately. The girls and I left (yes, poor Mark had to stay behind to make money and go to school) to go on a little vacation to California! I figured I better go soon so that I could still fly and it was nice to go while it's still cold here in Utah. I got to have a break from cold weather and enjoy the ocean breeze of my old home town. The girls had a blast just getting to my parent's house. Mark drove us to SLC airport and found out that Delta no longer gives out security passes to those who need to help passengers to their gates. We were both really ticked off when we found that out. Mark has always been able to get a pass to go through with me to help me with the girls to the gate and help keep them entertained while we wait to board the plane. Delta's new rule is that they don't do that anymore. So, we are boycotting Delta from now on. They are the only airline with that rule now. I was even more mad when, after I went through security, I found out that I had to walk all the way to terminal E and then all the way to gate 26! If any of you have ever been to SLC airport, terminal E is the absolute farthest terminal where all the small planes go in and out of. You have to walk the entire length of the airport, then go downstairs. So, here I am, pregnant, with two little kids trying to get to our terminal. And have you ever felt like you going against the flow of traffic? Yeah, it seemed that every single person walking in the airport was heading the opposite direction I was in. And why are people so rude? I guess I just assume most people who are walking directly at me will attempt to move to the side so we can squeeze by. Once again, pregnant woman with two kids. Nope. The girls and I got shoved over to the wall and pretty much had to wait for a gap to get by. By then I was really hating Delta and wishing that Mark was able to walk with us to the terminal.
We finally get to terminal E and thankfully only have to wait 20 minutes to board the plane. We wait the 20 minutes and then go through the door to get to the gate...and have to walk half a mile to get to it. The girls and I have to walk from gate 1 to gate 26. Um, can someone get me a wheelchair! We finally made it on the plane and the girls were so excited.
We flew on a really small plane so there were only two seats on each side. I worried about that but the girls did great. I sat across from them and they loved having the freedom of mom being just far enough away that they could do almost whatever they wanted. When we landed in Burbank I had 30 minutes to get our luggage and walk to the train station that I didn't know the location of. I found the train station and actually had to wait almost 20 minutes for the train.
The girls loved the train. I even had a good time. We got a car almost to ourselves and were able to get seats that face each other with a table. It worked out great so the kids could watch a movie when they got bored. For some reason they really enjoyed going downstairs to the snack shop and buying food and then bringing it back up and eating while watching the ocean. After we passed the L.A. area we were able to ride along the coast for the last three hours of the train ride. I was tempted to rent a car knowing that the train ride would be 4 hours vs. a car ride being just under 3, but I'm glad I decided to do the train. We all had a great time and I didn't have to worry about changing movies while doing 70 mph in L.A. traffic and keeping my eyes on the road!
I really enjoyed watching the scenery. I forgot how much I miss the ocean and the beaches and the smell of the salty air. We arrived at Surf Beach station and my parents were there waiting for us. The girls were so excited to see Papa and Nonna and I was glad to finally be done with the traveling part of my vacation.
5 comments:
Your vacation sounds terrific! I just love it that the girls got to take the train -- how many kids get to do that now?
Honestly, I think Utah is just about the worst place in the world for people with kids...everywhere else I've traveled people have been very kind and helpful, but in Utah? Nope. Pretty sad.
Your traveling sounds very tiring. I traveled to Virginia to see Keith and I was by myself and was worn out, I can't imagine being pregnant with two little ones to boot. You should get a medal. The train sounds way fun. I am glad you had a good time.
oh man, you are brave to have done that adventure on your own. i hate flying. it always seems so much harder with kids. i hate that you have to take everything off of them to go through security. don't even get me started. way to go though! you're the best!
Oh man, the picture in the train with the ocean in the background is awesome! As far as people in Utah generally being unkind, you never know if those people at the airport were from Utah or not, and actually I have had the worst experience in Texas with rude people. But the airport in general, is a terrible place in regards to people helping other people. Everyone is always in a hurry. I also discovered they don't do passes anymore when I wanted to help my 84 year old granny to her terminal. She was horrified knowing she had to do it herself. It is dumb.
You are super brave....looks like you had a good time. You should tell your parents hi for me...
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