The Long Journey Home ...

What I had expected to be a much shorter trip home than usual turned out to be a much longer one. I was so excited that for the first time, I found flights that would get me home from Haiti in one day, rather than having to overnight somewhere. We left GLA at 6:30 in the morning on Thursday. Daphney and I were flying till Winnipeg, and then there were 2 Dutch families who were on our same flight till Miami, so we were quite the little gang. I sure was happy we had 1 baby in our group because then I could just take us all to the front of the check-in line. Benefits to having babies!!! Our flight till Miami went very well. Customs also went well in Miami. However, that is where the "wellness" ended. Our flight kept being delayed more and more, and finally we left Miami 3 1/2 hours late. Apparently there was a lot of fog and also rain in Chicago, and so they weren't letting any flights leave that were supposed to land in Chicago. So, by the time we got to Chicago, I was sure we would have missed our connection flight to Winnipeg. Although, I did have a bit of hope that the flight to Winnipeg might have also been delayed because all flights were. So, I made Daphney run through the airport with me to get to the other terminal, and to our gate for the Winnipeg flight. Well, when we got there, there was no sign of that flight. I was convinced we had missed it. Well, it turned out that the flight had been cancelled because the plane that was supposed to fly this flight was stuck in Denver, and so we had no plane to take us to Winnipeg. So, I stood in the United Airlines customer service line for about 2 hours. They finally got us on a flight for the next day, Friday, at 2:55. Alright, so now what? Should we stay in the airport for night, or get a hotel? I was NOT excited about staying in the airport, and so decided we would find a hotel. Well, finally after about 2 hours, our shuttle for the hotel arrived. Yikes!!! We got to the hotel just before midnight, and we were both very hungry, and very tired. We knew we couldn't go to bed without eating something, so we ordered in supper. It took about an hour before it arrived, so we finally got to bed shortly after 1:00. Friday morning, we took a taxi to Wal-Mart to buy some winter clothes for Daphney. I had arranged with the hotel that we would get a taxi back to the hotel after shopping, and then take the hotel shuttle back to the airport. We didn't have our suitcases with us, so all that we had were our backpacks, and so brought them to Wal-Mart with us. Well, when we were done shopping, I called the taxi again to come and pick us up. They said it would be about half an hour. Well, after 1 1/2 hours, I called back as I was getting very concerned that we would miss our flight! I had accounted for a bit of extra time, but that extra time was about out. I was getting very worried by now. Well, turns out that the taxi company told me that they were still waiting for an available car to come and pick us up. Great!!! So, there was not even a taxi on its way yet, and they had no idea when one would become available! Now I was starting to panic. I was about ready to ask a complete stranger if they could please give us a ride to the airport. I ran into customer service, and asked if they could recommend a taxi. Well, thankfully they had another company that they dealed with, and they called for me. The disbather said it would be about 10 minutes, and asked if that was alright. Well, I said it was fine ... afterall, I really didn't have many options! Then, while they were still talking on the phone, suddenly the disbather said that a taxi had just dropped someone off at the store, and they were waiting in front of the store. Praise the Lord!!! Daphney and I ran outside, so excited to see the taxi! I didn't want to risk going back to the hotel and having to wait for the shuttle, so I just had the taxi bring us right to the airport. Yikes, what a morning!!! So, we get to the airport, and are waiting for our plane, when after an hour or so, it suddenly changed from leaving at 2:55 to leaving at 5:00. YIKES!!! Well, around 6:00, we were finally on our way for Winnipeg. I don't know if I have ever been so happy to be taking off in an airplane! We landed in Winnipeg around 8:00, exactly 24 hours after we were supposed to have landed. Then, of course, there was no luggage for us when we did arrive. My luggage finally arrived this morning (Monday). I sure was happy to see my suitcase! No other Christmas gift would be needed! I have my suitcase!!! What a trip!