Off to the land of dairy

Because our flight was messed up through sleep deprivation and travel frustration and because it was scheduled to leave in the morning and then changed to the evening, we had the whole day to organize and pack. The girls spent the day with their visiting cousins on the beach. Tom and I ran errands and packed. I, of course, had to pack for three people, which I did all in one suitcase.

When the girls finally got back to the house it was utter chaos in trying to finish last-minute packing details and the packing up of their carry-on bags. The whole day I was restless and nervous which I tend to get on travel days when the whole family is along for the ride. Somewhere in all my nervous nellie of emotions, I made a remark that didn't sit well with a friend of mine and from there, our travel evening took a dive.

• My friend said a few choice words to my daughter that sent her into tears. My husband, who witnessed the exchange, got mad at my daughter which sent her into more tears. This made him annoyed. I was annoyed that my friend couldn't talk to me and annoyed that my husband was annoyed. It was a quiet trip to the airport with all of us even more upset and nervous than before.

• We got to the airport with plenty of time to spare so the girls and Tom set off to find some dinner. I stayed with the mound of carry-on luggage we had waiting for them to return with some menus. They did return, but not with an update of food choices, but with food....for themselves. This sent me into tears.

• Once we were fed we began boarding. This is usually the time I get really nervous until I'm on the plane. This is usually the time where Tom is relaxed and strolling around the airport far away from our gate. Which stresses me out even more. This time, however, our roles were reversed. I was in the zone and took the girls to the bathroom while the husband was jittery and dismayed that I wanted to visit the restroom. He was so jittery that he threw away the sodas we had purchased for the flight. Now the three of us were annoyed. 

• Our 1st flight into Detroit was uneventful and we landed about ten minutes late. We got off and trudged to the next gate to find that the plane we were scheduled to board was late coming in from Boston. We were now delayed until 11:00 PM, and oh, by the way, we had five minutes before the shops closed for the evening if we wanted anything.

• We took off from Detroit after 11:00 PM and landed in Madison 50 minutes later about 11:30 (time change of course). We had to hike several miles to the rental car place which was scheduled to close at 11:30. Because we had called ahead to mention our delay, there was someone waiting for us. Tom took care of getting our midsize car while Madison and I got the luggage. Then we all hiked out the door into Wisconsin. Where it was drizzling. We walked to the rental garage and found our midsized car, which was not midsized at all. It was a Hyundai Accent and we stood and looked at it wondering when the rest of the car would arrive. Tom got behind the wheel and his knees hit his chin. While we can laugh at this now, at 12:45 AM (our time) it wasn't so damn funny. We still had a 45-minute drive to our resort.

• Tom hooked up all his toys, mainly his TomTom GPS, and we set off. The TomTom was too low and we couldn't hear our British woman telling us what to do so Tom pulled off the road to fix it. That took about 15 minutes and once we had it programmed and ready it told us to go back the way we had just come. We did, driving into nothing but blackness with fields on each side of us. We drove this way for several miles until we finally found the highway and settled into our drive.

• Forty-five minutes later we reached our destination (the only time the TomTom has gotten it right the first time) with both girls sound asleep in the backseat, Madison's knees up to her chin because she was seated behind her father. I got out to check into the Wyndham resort and the doors were locked. I thought about crying, but instead, I turned around in a circle and spotted a phone. I lifted it, a human answered and buzzed me in. The human, Brandon, smiled and asked for my name. I gave it and he cheerfully punched something into the computer. Then his smile vanished, he opened some drawers, asked for my ID and disappeared. A few minutes later a woman, Jessica, appeared from the depths of where Brandon had disappeared. Apparently, the reservation was listed under my mother's name and not mine. Once I explained that I was indeed a co-owner of Wyndham vacation resorts then all was forgiven, I was given back my ID, and the checking-in process began.

• While talking to Brandon and Jessica another man entered and informed us that a huge skunk was outside in the bushes at the entrance hissing, near where "those people are standing". I looked out the door to see Tom and Madison standing by the car. Well, that would certainly be a jolly ending to our day wouldn't it? I turned back to Jessica and informed her that if my family was "skunked" they would be sleeping in the lobby. The time was now 2:30 AM (our time).

• We left the lobby skunk-free and drove to our resort building. No parking available. Every spot was taken. We backed up and drove around and around. Nothing. We finally drove to the other entrance, found a spot, parked, woke up Darcy, unloaded our mini car and trudged into the building. Then we lugged ourselves into the elevator, up two flights, and we walked miles and miles and miles down a huge hallway so wide we could have held a concert in it. By the time we reached our door we were all huffing and puffing and were ready to just drop to the floor and sleep away the day.

Then we opened our door.

Our unit was softly lit and soothing music was playing from a CD player alongside our fireplace under a flat-screen television hung on the wall. We walked further in and just stood shocked as we looked at a unit as large and more spacious as the house we had just left in Florida.

Vacation has finally begun...