And I'm Back!!! (Part One)

Okay, I've actually been back for awhile but I needed some serious recovery time. In case you're wondering, traveling with seven teenagers (who aren't yours, haven't been away from mom and dad and have never stepped foot on a plane) is EX...wait for it...HAUSTING!!! Even when they're really good; like constantly getting complimented by total strangers good. Moms and Dads everywhere... I bow at your feet in total awe and utter amazement of how easy you make traveling with kids seem! 

So without further adieu, here's my (highly biased) recap of our whirlwind tour of our Nation's capitol on this our Nation's birthday, which is total coincidence by the way!

Day 1: Monday evening Aspen's grandma was kind enough to drive us all down to Salt Lake City where we stayed the night at the ever exciting Baymont Inn (thanks Anna for the suggestion). The kids were thrilled to get in the pool and I was thrilled to have my own room. Lights were out by 10:30 (though because I wasn't specific ENOUGH, Elijah stayed up till 3 watching TV) because we had to be up and ready to go at 5 am. Now, I'm not sure how many of you know this but, as this trip taught me, kids are REALLY hard to wake up that early and once they're up their level of functioning is akin to that of a turnip. This profound insight leads us to...

Day 2: The kids met me in the lobby at 5 so we could grab the shuttle which ended up being 15 minutes late. The kids suggested I give the drive tardy detention; I declined. We get all checked in and things are running smoothly till we get to security (of course, right?). I reminded the kids a good dozen times that liquids are not allowed through security unless they fit in a Ziploc bag... well it appears 12 reminders were not enough because Alexis, dear, sweet would lose her head if it weren't firmly attached, Alexis left her FULL water bottle in her suitcase and to go all the way through security again. Ugh, not what Ms. Miller wants to deal with before her first cup of coffee!!! 

Once the whole water bottle incident was cleared up we headed to our gate, stopping only to grab some, always yummy, Burger King for breakfast. As they called pre-boarding for our flight I may or may have pretended that the kids had never been on a plane before. Hey now... save your judgement. Like I said the kids were not operating at peak levels and didn't think the rest of the passengers would appreciate being held up by a bunch of 13 year olds.

We got all settled in and the flight to Atlanta was a brief slice of heaven compared to what I was about to endure...

And on that cliffhanger dear readers, I'm going to bid you good evening. I'm tired and feel my comfy bed beckoning me!!!