wendygrace
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Feb 2, 2007
- Messages
- 954
So we get off, and I ask about our gate and are directed to the end of the terminal. No problems. We are a touch early. Usually I don't check in again between flights but my paranoia is starting to ring a bell. I head to the line and try and talk to the guy at the counter. He looks at my tickets and says everything is fine. I question further. Are we on time? "Yeah". And I don't know what caused me to ask but I do...Where is our plane coming from and when is it scheduled to arrive? "Ummm" click click click. "Ft. Lauderdale" Ok. When will it be arriving? click click *sigh* click "Ummmm 9pm". "what?" "It looks like it will be late" what?" click click click "Its weather ma'am" "what?" "The plane is loaded though and it should be departing soon" "what? when will it get here?!" "Ummmmm, 9:30" "What?" "there's nothing I can do ma'am" Grrrrr!!!!!!!!!!!! "we'll have more information soon. I'll make an announcement"
This is not good.
If you haven't noticed, while I was talking to him that plane went from on time to 930pm! This is what we call in the business "oh s$%^". He doesn't seem concerned in the slightest except he's not the slightest bit helpful.
I go talk to Mick and tell him I'll be surprised if we make it out of Atlanta tonight...
We settle in and wait for an announcement...
That doesn't come.
I go back to the guy. What's going on?
The plane is on the tarmac. Ft. Lauderdale is not allowing it to leave due to a storm.
What?! So now what?
There's nothing I can do. I need to prepare for the next flight.
What?
There will be another flight leaving from this gate before yours.
What?!
grrrrrr!
I contact Make A Wish to warn them that we may have a cancelled flight on our hands. They take note.
I head to customer service.
There are people everywhere. Apparently there are delayed/cancelled flights all over the place.
this is not a good sign.
I go up to the nice person, who has been yelled at, I'm sure, all evening. I tell her very nicely that I've been in her shoes. I've done her job in the past. I just want to know a few things. What is happening? what can they do for me? and is there a quiet place for my dear wish child to relax and unwind as he is going to go mad soon with all the noise?
She explains that the plane in Ft. Lauderdale has just left. It is scheduled her in about an hour and they are hoping to turn it over before the storm hits us but she can't promise that will happen. Things don't look good. There are no other flights heading in our direction she can put us on but she can upgrade us to business class. There is no place nearby to take Michael. She looks plum exhausted. I feel bad for her. Thank her for the new seats and head back. It's late and we still haven't eaten. We decide to risk things and go eat.
Off we trudge to get fried chicken. Yum! Anything would taste good at this point! LOL
And we trudge back to our gate. Still no updates but they are loading the other flight at our gate.
We are exhausted.
The plane is loaded. And everything is pulled back from that plane.
And a loud CRACK! is heard. And lightening. And the lights go out outside.
And head towards the gate agent. Soon we hear that the airport has been
SHUT DOWN!
What?!
No planes in our out until the storm blows over. Whisperings are heard that our airplane from Ft. Lauderdale has arrived at another gate. And our stuck on the tarmac.
As is the plane outside our gate.
The airport shakes. Yes, shakes! from all the thunder and lightening.
And so we settle down.
Danae makes friends with a 14 and 16 year old girls who think she's hilarious!
People pull out crayons and paper for the kids.
Danae gets loopy. We are some time after our bedtime.
The boys are past tired.
Danae really gets loopy.
Michael keels over and is asleep!
Danae all of a sudden turns to me and says "Night night" and hits the floor.
It is now 11pm. The airport is still closed to incoming or outgoing planes. The plane full of people is still outside our gate. I feel so glad it is not us and feel so bad for those people. They spend about two hours in that plane. The Ft. Lauderdale plane is worse off though. They spent time both in Ft. Lauderdale and in Atlanta. And if they have connecting flights...who knows what will happen to them!
Finally the storm passes and we see lights and movement outside. They are preparing the plane out in front of us to move. We don't know when it will leave though as who knows where they are in line for take off.
And all of a sudden, out of the dark, we see the first plane in over two hours take off in front of us.
And a cheer goes out!
The plane at our gate is pushed back and another takes its place.
We request to load first to get the kids in their seats. Mick takes Michael and the two carseats. I will follow in a few minutes, hoping that Mick has been able to install both seats before I get there. I load up with the bags.
Thank goodness we shipped some stuff home!
Danae never budges.
Michael, OTOH, decides that he has to see the plane take off and land! Wheee!
I fly home with Michael this time, by his request. Mick rests with Danae.
I promise Michael that if he naps, I will wake him for landing. He crashes.
I relax. yeah! We are on our way home. As we approach landing, I keep my word to Michael and shake him. He continues to snore. I call him. Nothing. Nothing I did could wake that boy. He was out!
We arrive safely at our destination. As we are loading to get out of there, Michael and Danae both wake up and are able to semi-walk, semi-crawl out. The airport is quite creepy at 3am, btw!
We make it down to luggage, find out bags and contact the limo service. The are waiting outside. Yeah!
We get in. See how loopy they are?
And on the way home.
It has been a long trip but it is not over. While we were gone, our neighborhood has come together to surprise us.
If you are here just for the Disney trip, it is over. You may go on your merry way. Thank you for joining me on our magical Disney trip. I hope you have enjoyed it as much as I have enjoyed writing it.
If you want to know how are magical week ends, stay tuned for...
What did they do to my house?!
This is not good.
If you haven't noticed, while I was talking to him that plane went from on time to 930pm! This is what we call in the business "oh s$%^". He doesn't seem concerned in the slightest except he's not the slightest bit helpful.
I go talk to Mick and tell him I'll be surprised if we make it out of Atlanta tonight...
We settle in and wait for an announcement...
That doesn't come.
I go back to the guy. What's going on?
The plane is on the tarmac. Ft. Lauderdale is not allowing it to leave due to a storm.
What?! So now what?
There's nothing I can do. I need to prepare for the next flight.
What?
There will be another flight leaving from this gate before yours.
What?!
grrrrrr!
I contact Make A Wish to warn them that we may have a cancelled flight on our hands. They take note.
I head to customer service.
There are people everywhere. Apparently there are delayed/cancelled flights all over the place.
this is not a good sign.
I go up to the nice person, who has been yelled at, I'm sure, all evening. I tell her very nicely that I've been in her shoes. I've done her job in the past. I just want to know a few things. What is happening? what can they do for me? and is there a quiet place for my dear wish child to relax and unwind as he is going to go mad soon with all the noise?
She explains that the plane in Ft. Lauderdale has just left. It is scheduled her in about an hour and they are hoping to turn it over before the storm hits us but she can't promise that will happen. Things don't look good. There are no other flights heading in our direction she can put us on but she can upgrade us to business class. There is no place nearby to take Michael. She looks plum exhausted. I feel bad for her. Thank her for the new seats and head back. It's late and we still haven't eaten. We decide to risk things and go eat.
Off we trudge to get fried chicken. Yum! Anything would taste good at this point! LOL
And we trudge back to our gate. Still no updates but they are loading the other flight at our gate.
We are exhausted.
The plane is loaded. And everything is pulled back from that plane.
And a loud CRACK! is heard. And lightening. And the lights go out outside.
And head towards the gate agent. Soon we hear that the airport has been
SHUT DOWN!
What?!
No planes in our out until the storm blows over. Whisperings are heard that our airplane from Ft. Lauderdale has arrived at another gate. And our stuck on the tarmac.
As is the plane outside our gate.
The airport shakes. Yes, shakes! from all the thunder and lightening.
And so we settle down.
Danae makes friends with a 14 and 16 year old girls who think she's hilarious!
People pull out crayons and paper for the kids.
Danae gets loopy. We are some time after our bedtime.
The boys are past tired.
Danae really gets loopy.
Michael keels over and is asleep!
Danae all of a sudden turns to me and says "Night night" and hits the floor.
It is now 11pm. The airport is still closed to incoming or outgoing planes. The plane full of people is still outside our gate. I feel so glad it is not us and feel so bad for those people. They spend about two hours in that plane. The Ft. Lauderdale plane is worse off though. They spent time both in Ft. Lauderdale and in Atlanta. And if they have connecting flights...who knows what will happen to them!
Finally the storm passes and we see lights and movement outside. They are preparing the plane out in front of us to move. We don't know when it will leave though as who knows where they are in line for take off.
And all of a sudden, out of the dark, we see the first plane in over two hours take off in front of us.
And a cheer goes out!
The plane at our gate is pushed back and another takes its place.
We request to load first to get the kids in their seats. Mick takes Michael and the two carseats. I will follow in a few minutes, hoping that Mick has been able to install both seats before I get there. I load up with the bags.
Thank goodness we shipped some stuff home!
Danae never budges.
Michael, OTOH, decides that he has to see the plane take off and land! Wheee!
I fly home with Michael this time, by his request. Mick rests with Danae.
I promise Michael that if he naps, I will wake him for landing. He crashes.
I relax. yeah! We are on our way home. As we approach landing, I keep my word to Michael and shake him. He continues to snore. I call him. Nothing. Nothing I did could wake that boy. He was out!
We arrive safely at our destination. As we are loading to get out of there, Michael and Danae both wake up and are able to semi-walk, semi-crawl out. The airport is quite creepy at 3am, btw!
We make it down to luggage, find out bags and contact the limo service. The are waiting outside. Yeah!
We get in. See how loopy they are?
And on the way home.
It has been a long trip but it is not over. While we were gone, our neighborhood has come together to surprise us.
If you are here just for the Disney trip, it is over. You may go on your merry way. Thank you for joining me on our magical Disney trip. I hope you have enjoyed it as much as I have enjoyed writing it.
If you want to know how are magical week ends, stay tuned for...
What did they do to my house?!
Then there are time he becomes Frddy Kruger---it can be quite
It was like a scene out of the Twilight Zone... WHO TOOK ALL THE PEOPLE???? 
The pictures are wonderful,especially with santa.It sounds like you had a rough time getting home and I am glad you made it safely.
