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My nerves were just a-flyin... It had been 15 years since I was on a plane... pre 9/11. Last time I had flown alone I was 18 yrs old. I was leaving my whole family for the first time ever. I was landing in a city that I had not been to in 18 yrs. I was meeting my niece for the first time...
The night before I took off, I was packing like a mad women. Kevin was making fun of me, I was worried I was going to forget something. I was worried that I was going to over sleep (which I ended up doing). I was worried that I didn't have our house in order, school schedules worked out, dinner options ready... the list went on and on. I headed for bed praying that I would sleep.
My flight was early, I had to be to the airport at 5am. I woke up at 4:20am. For those that know me, I take a little while to get ready in the mornings. I was planning on waking up at 3:40... so I was really on a time crunch.
Kevin woke all the kids up and got them ready to take me to the airport. I was crying before I even left the house. Kissing all of my children goodbye was hard. Having Kevin wrap his arms around me, kissing me, and telling me he loved me and to have a good time was heart twisting. I walked away from my family crying.
People probably thought I was a blubbering crazy women. I asked 4 different people where I had to go to check in and check my luggage. After finally figuring it all out, I headed in the direction of security.
After going through security I waited all of maybe 5 minutes before I was boarding the plane. I was shaking and shivering, my heart was beating fast. I was telling myself that people fly everyday, that I would be fine. My phone was kind of my lifeline. I was texting Kevin and Toni until the final second before takeoff.
I had forgotten the feeling of takeoff and how I love it. I had forgotten the feeling of going higher and higher. The darkness that surrounds the plane, that makes you feel so secluded. The sounds of the air blowing out of the little vents in the ceiling. Then as we flew east, closer and closer to the sunrise, the beautiful colors of the morning sky.
It was a smooth flight. It was so cool to descend through the clouds and then BAM, there is the city flying by beneath us.
I was 16 years old the first time I landed at LaGuardia and here I was 21 years later landing there again on an adventure I will never forget. Can you read the words in the picture... Welcome To New York!
I know I am sappy, I know that I cry easily, but after we landed I turned my phone on and the first text I saw was from Tim... "I'm here." The tears started to flow. He had gotten "off" of work, borrowed a car and was parked out front waiting for me.
I walked out of the airport with my luggage, and there he was, waiting to help me load it up, give me a big hug, and then off we went.
It was kind of a yucky day, foggy, sleet/rain. But it wasn't snowing, and there was no snow on the ground, so I was loving it!
This was my first sighting of the Freedom Tower. It would become like my northern star during my stay. It was the focal point that I used to find my way around the city. It was my night-light at night. I went to sleep looking at it and it was one of the first things I saw every morning. I even listened to it make it's eerie whistle during high winds.
We made it to Tim and Melissa's building. I was introduced to the doorman, the front desk guy and then up to the 22 floor we went. Omar greeted us with lots of barking and jumping up and down. Melissa was in the bedroom sitting in the rocking chair holding the most beautiful brown-eyed baby girl in her arms.
Melissa handed her little blessing over to me and I could not stop staring at her. It was love at first sight. She melted my heart with her big brown eyes and her chubby cheeks. Not long after I had her in my arms she fell asleep, so I laid her down and took this picture.
It was early afternoon the first time I got to feed her a bottle. We just gazed at each other. She was probably trying to figure out who this new lady was and I was mesmerized by her angelic face.
More to come...
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