Oh, Baby
Last week was the week before Marisa was taking the twins to visit their Great Grandma in Minnisota for two weeks. So I tried to be available for baby watch when ever they were home because we aren't going to see them for a while. At first only Matthew wanted to come to me, but after a few days, they both did and Matthew got quite loud and grumpy when I left the room.
Anyway I drove Ris and the babies to the airport on Sunday night. We got a great parking space next to the elevators, but we had to go all the way down to the street to get into the terminal and then wait in line to get an elevator back up to the ticket counter to check her bag. The elevators are kind of off to the side in a no mans land, so that it wasn't obvious where we were supposed to go at the ticket counters. We went to one that said "Special Services"--sounded good to me, One mom and two babies sounds like special services are required. Well that was the international ticket counter so we were in the wrong place, but Ris already had her boarding passes, so they said they would check the bag there. Then we asked them for a gate pass so that I could help Ris with the babies while she waited for the plane and they hesitated for just a moment and then they gave it to us.
We went to a security check point that was off the next elevator that we were directed to and it was a special line for families. All the families in line were helpful to each other and even though we needed a lot of bins and the stroller wouldn't fit in the X-ray, we made it through pretty well (I think that Ris has putting the stroller up and down while holding a baby down to a science because that was all done before I even looked in her direction to offer to help.)
We were three hours early for the flight. So I got Matthew out of the stroller to walk him around and let him loose on the floor. He immediately crawled (very very fast) under the line of chairs where I couldn't reach him. So I spent the next hour or so following him and herding him around in the general area of our gate. Another little boy at the airport (named Adam) who was probably four years old did some high kicks where Madilyn could see him and she just laughed like crazy every time he kicked. Well her laughter absolutely delighted him, so he spent the next couple of hours doing everything he could think of to make her laugh again. He'd get closer and closer to her and then his dad would call him back to their seats and then he'd inch closer and closer to the stroller and his dad would call him back to their seats.
After a while, I took Matthew on a walk to see if I could find a diet coke. Nope. When I came back I took Madilyn for the same walk. I don't want to show favorites. They both really liked the moving billboards along the way. About a hour before the flight was supposed to leave the babies were pretty fussy, so we set about getting them to sleep. Ris took Matthew on a long stroller ride and I held Madilyn singing lullaby over and over and over until I bored her to sleep. The guy across the isle looked at me a few times as if to say, really, you are singing that song again. What's it been, about 100 times?
Just as both babies were asleep, they changed our gate. So we packed up the stroller, sleeping babies, two car seats, two carry ons, sweaters, coats and purses and moved to the other gate. Luckily there were three seats in a row open so that we could sit. Ris went to stand in line to get the tags to gate check the stroller and to see if there were any open seats so that she could use both car seats. She was in line a really long time and they were already boarding zone 1 before she came back. They did not offer to allow passengers with infants to board first. She was in zone 4. After they were loading zone 2, a different airline person came on our side of the gate check in and we asked if I could go down the ramp with Ris, so that she could go and set up the car seat and then come back for the babies. The airline lady didn't say anything, she just looked at us really annoyed and then concerned and then she took Ris's boarding passes (two--one for her and one for the baby in the car seat) and said you can board now. So I went with them down the breeseway ramp to the door of the airplane. Ris went in with one car seat and I stayed with the babies. The airline workers came and said they wanted the stroller, but I pointed out that they couldn't have the stroller until we took the babies out, so they really would need to wait.
Finally after a long time, Ris came back and said that there was a really nice man sitting next to them and she thought he would agree to move if there were any extra seats. I told her to wait there until everyone was on the plane so that we would know if there were any extra seats, because otherwise they would gate check her extra car seat. So we both waited by the door for the last passenger to board.
We asked if there were any extra seats and were told tersely that there were no extra seats. So Ris took a baby and I took a baby while she singlehandedly collapsed the stroller (and another stroller sitting there that the baggage guy didn't know how to work). She was ready to take both babies, but I asked, can't I just go on and hand her the second sleeping baby when she's in her seat. I don't specifically remember anyone saying yes, but I know we were at least nodded through, because I went on the plane and kept yelling back to the door, don't close that door until I get off. [I know I was yelling and not a single person was listening in the least.] So Ris got Matthew in his seat and got in her seat and buckled her seat belt and took Madilyn and I ran back to the front of the plane to get off.
WHO ARE YOU? A better dressed airline guy said. "Oh, I was just helping my niece with the twin babies get to their seat." WHAT? YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED ON THE PLANE, YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO THE GATE. WHO LET YOU IN HERE? "I have a gate pass" and I gave it to him. YOU ARE GOING TO SPEND THE NIGHT IN JAIL FOR GETTING ON THIS PLANE. THIS IS A SERIOUS BREACH OF SECURITY. The guy really wanted to know who let me near the plane. I looked at the lady who had been at the gate and who nodded me onto the plane, but she obviously did not want to be exposed, so I said whoever was at the door and I described where she had been standing. I also told him that we had two tickets, two adults and two babies so maybe they thought I had a ticket, but that I had clearly asked for permission to help my niece with the babies. Anyway, he wasn't happy about it, but he let me go after telling me that I should never have been given a gate pass because the babies were not unaccompanied and that the airline staff would have helped her. HA I wanted to say to him. Not a single person at the airport (except other passengers) had offered to help us in the least. They all gave you that labored sigh and avoided eye contact so that they wouldn't have to help.
After Ris arrived at her grandmothers, she sent a picture by twitter of two sleeping babies. They arrived just fine. I hope they are having a good time, but that's not to say that I wouldn't crack a little smile if Matthew and Madilyn are just a little extra fussy in the mornings because they are missing saying good morning to their great Aunt Kathy.
Anyway I drove Ris and the babies to the airport on Sunday night. We got a great parking space next to the elevators, but we had to go all the way down to the street to get into the terminal and then wait in line to get an elevator back up to the ticket counter to check her bag. The elevators are kind of off to the side in a no mans land, so that it wasn't obvious where we were supposed to go at the ticket counters. We went to one that said "Special Services"--sounded good to me, One mom and two babies sounds like special services are required. Well that was the international ticket counter so we were in the wrong place, but Ris already had her boarding passes, so they said they would check the bag there. Then we asked them for a gate pass so that I could help Ris with the babies while she waited for the plane and they hesitated for just a moment and then they gave it to us.
We went to a security check point that was off the next elevator that we were directed to and it was a special line for families. All the families in line were helpful to each other and even though we needed a lot of bins and the stroller wouldn't fit in the X-ray, we made it through pretty well (I think that Ris has putting the stroller up and down while holding a baby down to a science because that was all done before I even looked in her direction to offer to help.)
We were three hours early for the flight. So I got Matthew out of the stroller to walk him around and let him loose on the floor. He immediately crawled (very very fast) under the line of chairs where I couldn't reach him. So I spent the next hour or so following him and herding him around in the general area of our gate. Another little boy at the airport (named Adam) who was probably four years old did some high kicks where Madilyn could see him and she just laughed like crazy every time he kicked. Well her laughter absolutely delighted him, so he spent the next couple of hours doing everything he could think of to make her laugh again. He'd get closer and closer to her and then his dad would call him back to their seats and then he'd inch closer and closer to the stroller and his dad would call him back to their seats.
After a while, I took Matthew on a walk to see if I could find a diet coke. Nope. When I came back I took Madilyn for the same walk. I don't want to show favorites. They both really liked the moving billboards along the way. About a hour before the flight was supposed to leave the babies were pretty fussy, so we set about getting them to sleep. Ris took Matthew on a long stroller ride and I held Madilyn singing lullaby over and over and over until I bored her to sleep. The guy across the isle looked at me a few times as if to say, really, you are singing that song again. What's it been, about 100 times?
Just as both babies were asleep, they changed our gate. So we packed up the stroller, sleeping babies, two car seats, two carry ons, sweaters, coats and purses and moved to the other gate. Luckily there were three seats in a row open so that we could sit. Ris went to stand in line to get the tags to gate check the stroller and to see if there were any open seats so that she could use both car seats. She was in line a really long time and they were already boarding zone 1 before she came back. They did not offer to allow passengers with infants to board first. She was in zone 4. After they were loading zone 2, a different airline person came on our side of the gate check in and we asked if I could go down the ramp with Ris, so that she could go and set up the car seat and then come back for the babies. The airline lady didn't say anything, she just looked at us really annoyed and then concerned and then she took Ris's boarding passes (two--one for her and one for the baby in the car seat) and said you can board now. So I went with them down the breeseway ramp to the door of the airplane. Ris went in with one car seat and I stayed with the babies. The airline workers came and said they wanted the stroller, but I pointed out that they couldn't have the stroller until we took the babies out, so they really would need to wait.
Finally after a long time, Ris came back and said that there was a really nice man sitting next to them and she thought he would agree to move if there were any extra seats. I told her to wait there until everyone was on the plane so that we would know if there were any extra seats, because otherwise they would gate check her extra car seat. So we both waited by the door for the last passenger to board.
We asked if there were any extra seats and were told tersely that there were no extra seats. So Ris took a baby and I took a baby while she singlehandedly collapsed the stroller (and another stroller sitting there that the baggage guy didn't know how to work). She was ready to take both babies, but I asked, can't I just go on and hand her the second sleeping baby when she's in her seat. I don't specifically remember anyone saying yes, but I know we were at least nodded through, because I went on the plane and kept yelling back to the door, don't close that door until I get off. [I know I was yelling and not a single person was listening in the least.] So Ris got Matthew in his seat and got in her seat and buckled her seat belt and took Madilyn and I ran back to the front of the plane to get off.
WHO ARE YOU? A better dressed airline guy said. "Oh, I was just helping my niece with the twin babies get to their seat." WHAT? YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED ON THE PLANE, YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO THE GATE. WHO LET YOU IN HERE? "I have a gate pass" and I gave it to him. YOU ARE GOING TO SPEND THE NIGHT IN JAIL FOR GETTING ON THIS PLANE. THIS IS A SERIOUS BREACH OF SECURITY. The guy really wanted to know who let me near the plane. I looked at the lady who had been at the gate and who nodded me onto the plane, but she obviously did not want to be exposed, so I said whoever was at the door and I described where she had been standing. I also told him that we had two tickets, two adults and two babies so maybe they thought I had a ticket, but that I had clearly asked for permission to help my niece with the babies. Anyway, he wasn't happy about it, but he let me go after telling me that I should never have been given a gate pass because the babies were not unaccompanied and that the airline staff would have helped her. HA I wanted to say to him. Not a single person at the airport (except other passengers) had offered to help us in the least. They all gave you that labored sigh and avoided eye contact so that they wouldn't have to help.
After Ris arrived at her grandmothers, she sent a picture by twitter of two sleeping babies. They arrived just fine. I hope they are having a good time, but that's not to say that I wouldn't crack a little smile if Matthew and Madilyn are just a little extra fussy in the mornings because they are missing saying good morning to their great Aunt Kathy.
posted by KathrynVH @ 11:06 AM
2 Comments:
At April 8, 2010 at 10:13 AM,
KathrynVH said…
I just heard that LAX had closed down two terminals (5 and 6 where we were) delaying a lot of flights for two to three hours because a guy checked a bag and then instead of dropping it at the baggage security, he changed his mind and took it through to the plane. It still went through security, but that was a security breach so they shut down the terminals. Wow, if they had done that for me getting on the plane, that mean airline lady that refused to listen or help us would have been so fired.
At April 10, 2010 at 7:03 AM,
John Beauregard said…
From your description of the airline employees I bet you were flying on United. They are the most arrogant and lazy in the industry and make you feel like an inconvenience. Next time try Southwest, they are the most courteous and helpful (and your cousin David flies for them).
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