Go West Young Men! (And Mom!)

After being away from the beautiful state of Idaho (not Iowa!) for far too long, the boys and I flew out west to visit friends and family. It's been over two years since we last were in Boise, so our visit was overdue.

Because of the complexities involved in moving to a new state, trying to sell a house, and de-ickifying the 1900 House, I didn't know that we'd be able to go until one week before the trip. M. bought our plane tickets on a Sunday, and we flew out the following Sunday. (My poor parents! Only 1 week's warning!)

The boys have all been on a plane before, more than once. But Braden was the only one who remembered the trip. So for the littles, this was all new. Everything was exciting! On our first leg of the trip, Colson got to sit next to the window. As we began speeding down the runway to take off, Colson excitedly (i.e. loudly) said, "Look! Look! We're doing it! We're flying! The people down there all look like ants!" As the people around us chuckled I didn't have the heart to tell him we hadn't taken off yet.


We survived two layovers in Las Vegas. One three-hour layover, and one four-hour layover. Let me give you a tip: If you ever have to spend hours of time with small children in Las Vegas, take the shuttle to B terminal. It's quiet. Dramatically less crowded! Cooler. And there are more food choices. Plus- they have a moving sidewalk. You can entertain boys for a LONG time on a moving sidewalk. :)


As we waited with M. for boarding of our first flight to begin, I got a coffee at Starbucks. I think I had 2 sips from it before I threw it all over myself. I didn't intend to throw it all over myself. That's just the sort of thing I end up doing, I guess.

That's how I roll, baby. Well-Caffeinated.

I sort of knocked the cup out of my hand (imagine sort of a volleyball serve, but with a venti mocha instead of a ball), and while trying to catch it (ha! Ha!) I ended up making it flip. Coffee sprayed all over my front before hitting the floor.

M. cleaned up the mess while I went to the ladies' room to clean up. I blotted, and blotted, and blotted my t-shirt and the button-down I happened to be wearing. Both were a mess.

As I stood in front of the hand dryer, I asked a woman who was eyeing me strangely for her opinion. "What do you think?" said I, trying my best to look both winningly friendly and somewhat sane. "Should I wear the button-down shirt open and show the t-shirt with the coffee stains? Or should I button up the button-down, and display all the water spots? "

She said, "I think when people see the coffee stains, they'll understand the water spots," which really wasn't very helpful at all, I thought.

"At least I'll smell kind of nice, though. Sort of comforting and mocha-y. Right?" I asked.

Next time I'm packing a spare shirt in my carry-on.