Worst travel day ever!

Well, as most of you know, our family is in Germany for the Christmas holiday to visit my parents who live in Frankfurt Germany!  Because of certain circumstances (to save money,) we chose to have me fly to Germany with the girls a few days before Tyson because he had a final to finish.  I have had my fair share of traveling alone with the girls via airplanes and so it didn't really intimidate me to do this INTERNATIONAL trip alone.  Well, here is my story...my worst travel day ever...

I arrived early in the morning at the Austin airport.  Girls were excited, healthy, and happy to be on our way to visit Nana and Grandpa finally!  We checked in, and after a glitch with getting Hannah as my lap child, went on our way smoothly through security and on to the boarding of the plane.  The flight was not full so I got my own row to corral my girls during the first leg of our journey.  I decided to give Hannah some benadryl so that she would take a long nap on our way to Atlanta.  Just as the airplane is pulling out from the gate and Hannah is almost asleep in my arms, the pilot announces that a major mechanical error has occurred and we will have to get off the plane.  No other airplanes are available till 4 pm...(my flight out of Atlanta left at 3:30 pm...not good!)

So they rebooked me on a flight that left a few hours later and went through Newark New Jersey on Continental airlines and then on to Frankfurt on Lufthansa.  So we spent a few hours in the Austin airport...Tyson was studying for his last final so we decided not to go back home and wait.  The girls were pretty patient in the airport considering we were stuck hanging around in the terminal by our carry on bags.  Tyson came and met us for lunch and a nice security lady let Tyson come through to hang out with us at the gate till we boarded.  Finally we fly, four hours to New Jersey.  But they put us in a holding pattern to land because of the beginnings of the big storm that hit the east.  We finally landed 45 minutes later.

As we got off the airplane, it was just starting to be bedtime for the girls.  Alissa was getting wired and Hannah fussy having only one good long nap for the day in my arms on the airplane.  They told me that I have to leave security to get to the International gate in a different sector of the airport and the only way to get there is via train.  I only had an hour to travel through the airport, get my new international ticket via Lufthansa, go through security again and board my plane...all at a three year old walking pace...(things were not looking up.)



I get to the gate and they tell me the flight is over booked and they do not have a seat for us on the airplane.  So I lost it...tired, two tired kids, and just tired....I pulled out my pathetic Mom look, started to cry and they must have taken pity on me because they called me by name over the intercom and got us on the airplane.  The only problem was that Alissa was seated behind me on a different row!  Well, there was no way that I was headed on a 8 hour flight with my almost 3 year old sitting behind me.  So again, I beg for them to change me to another seat and they did, although very rudely letting me know how much of an annoyance I was to them.


I get on the airplane and they did not seat us in the bassinet section even though I had paid for it.  (Bassinets are available by request only on international flights, which was one major reason that I knew I could do this by myself.)  Now that I wasn't in a bassinet section, I was not so sure I could handle the girls all night alone.  So again, the tears came and the flight attendants took pity on me again and asked two gentlemen who were sitting in the bassinet section if they would trade me spots.  (Why did they need to be assigned there anyway?!)  Whatever!!


The 8 hour flight went well.  The girls both fell asleep in my arms during take off, seeing as though it was 11 pm Austin time...well beyond their normal bedtimes and that it had been a long day of travel already.  Hannah slept well in the bassinet and Alissa slept intermittently in my arms, on my lap, on my shoulder, all the while kicking the man next to her.  I did not sleep.  Not a wink.  Legs cramped and bum sore.  Longest flight ever.  But all I was grateful for was that my girls were quiet, sleeping and that we were  finally on the last leg of our flight.  Girls woke up as the flight attendants served breakfast even though it was about 3 am Austin time.  They did not eat or drink, you could tell they were extremely confused.  We landed in Germany at 12 pm local time, 5 am Austin time.  We made our way through passport control and onto the baggage terminal.

What else could go wrong?  What else would I cry over?  Well, we waited and waited, still no bags came...no car seats...sheesh are you serious?!!!!   We went to the Lufthansa service desk, they tracked our baggage numbers, but the computer said they had left Austin but hadn't arrived anywhere else.  I lost it...tears flowed again...I was tired, going on no sleep in about 24 hours and with two tired, and crying kids at this point too--I could see what a sight I was--a pathetic American Mom!  I told the baggage lady that I needed to go find my Mom.  We had no cell phones or ways to contact each other, and it had already been an hour and a half since my flight had landed. 


I go out in the freezing snowy Frankfurt weather, stand on the curb for 15 minutes...no sign of my Mom.  Again, I start to cry, feeling totally hopeless not knowing who I can ask for help when I don't speak German.  Well, I go back into the airport and go to the information desk to see if I can use a phone to call my Mom.  The man asks "Are you Kristina Smith?"  I could have died..."yes" I say half crying again.  He says "I have been paging you over the intercom...your Mother is looking for you."  I look to my left and see my Mom running toward me with open arms. Alissa ran to her and after the excited exchanges of hi's,  I felt so relieved to have finally made it to Germany!

Well, our bags and car seats arrived at my parents home in Frankfurt 2 days later...just 12 hours before Tyson arrived.  Looking back, we laugh thinking...why do I have to have everything bad happen to me when I am traveling with the girls by myself, and Tyson travels by himself and has no hiccups along the way!  Oh well, it was an experience.  I thought I would struggle with the girls, but no, they were the ANGELS.  Giving me love and encouragement when I felt so frustrated.  They were perfect on the flights and did the best they could have done considering the hiccups we had on our way!  But we made it and are already having the time of our life in Germany and enjoying a winter wonderland here!!

 

Alissa was giddy to finally be in Germany!

 

The girls watching the snow fall from Nana's window!