kyle and emily: June 2007

I have a story. A long one. But, it is humorous. Actually...it is not funny at all. But I seem to continue to laugh. I think it has to do with the fact that I still cannot believe it is happening. Let me start from the beginning.

6:30am Arrive at Lubbock airport to discover that our 7:15 flight has been delayed until 8:00- crew got in late and need safety sleep. (American Airlines doesn’t believe in having a back up crew to not have to start their day with avoidable delays) PROBLEM #1: DFW --> Miami is scheduled for 9:10. 8:00 depart. only allows about 10 min. to switch. HOPE #1: We were confirmed on the 11:20 flight assuming we would miss the 9:10.
8:00am PROBLEM #2: We are still sitting in our gate area as the crew finally walks in to prepare the plane. (all smiles of course) We finally departed at 8:20.

9:10am We land in DFW and are given HOPE #2: The rain/storms in Dallas have caused the airport to shut down due to lightning so most of the connecting flights were delayed.

9:20am HOPE #3: We got off the plane to discover our Miami flight is still there. PROBLEM #3: We had to fly on a tiny American Eagle that wouldn't let us put a small carry on bag in the overhead bin and required it to be checked. BUT, because of the weather they wouldn't open the ramp for us to get it. And our Miami flight was in a completely different terminal.

10:05am The airport is up and running....our Miami flight shows boarding at 10:10....the airplane we exited from is starting to board people. And NO ONE will let us get our bag or tell us what the heck is going on....and why they are able to now board and check more bags, but we still haven't retrieved ours.
10:15am We finally have our bag and take off as fast as possible to the skylink. HOPE #4: While on the skylink we see a plane in the gate we are supposed to be heading to. Upon exiting the skylink, we run to the gate. PROBLEM #4: The plane is sitting there...but away from the sky cap boarding thing...and no one can seem to tell us for sure that it is the Miami plane...but they can tell us that there is no way they will put it back up to the skycap for us to board. So we've missed our plane.

10:20am HOPE #5: Atleast we are confirmed on the 11:20am flight. That will be pushing it...but it is still possible. So we head to that terminal to get checked in. Due to the weather, it has been delayed to 12:00...BUT we still have hope to make it.

12:10pm We finally fly out from DFW to head to Miami....anxious the entire way to hurry and get there by our estimated arrival of 4:10. (ship leaves at 5…30 min. ride to port from airport)

3:55pm Captain comes on to tell us that we are in the area of the airport a little early BUT PROBLEM #5: A lot of flights have been delayed into the area so we are going to have to circle until we are cleared for landing.
4:10pm We circle once and are cleared for landing. Finally. (HOPE #6)

4:20pm We land and begin slowly driving...forever....and ever. Then, we stop. PROBLEM #6: The captain comes on and tells us that due to weather in Miami, the airport has been shut down. The gate we need to arrive at is occupied by another plane that cannot move until the weather lets up. So we sit.

4:35pm Mike gets off the phone with Royal Caribbean (for the upteenth time) with the news that the captain decided to leave port early, at 4:30, so he could miss the storm.
So it hit me. We missed the ship. And it all started in Lubbock with our delay. And we are trapped on a plane....with 9023 emotions going through my head...and finally I realize that all I want to do is throw a temper tantrum like a 3 year old. It seems to be the only thing that will make the situation better. Instead, I try to sleep.

5:45pm We finally are able to pull in and exit the plane. We go get our bags and meet up with the Royal Caribbean person that is waiting for us. We finally decide to fly to San Juan, Puerto Rico to meet the ship at the first port of call on Tuesday. We get a flight for that night and decide we can do our excursions on Monday or Tuesday AM and then get on the ship at 3:00 when it docks to enjoy the ship while everyone else is in San Juan.

1:05am We finally arrive at the Courtyard Marriott, Island Verde Beach Resort in San Juan. After looking around and seeing the mini replica of the place, we decide it won’t be too bad. We have the beach right out the back doors, a nice pool area, and a casino. We will survive despite missing the entire cruise experience.

Monday we had a nice day at the beach and pool. Later that evening we went to Old San Juan for dinner and look around. We also found the port in that area that the Freedom would be arriving at the following day. It was a very nice day.

Tuesday AM we were going to do our excursion at 8:30am.
8:10am we are sitting in the lobby waiting to be picked up just watching a little CNN news that was on. All of the sudden…a newsflash comes across that says, “Royal Caribbean’s Freedom of the Seas en route to San Juan is ordered to turn around after a man is believed to have gone overboard.” That is how we found out that the ship wouldn’t be there at 3:00. Luckily we saw it…or we would’ve been sitting at the port…with 11 bags of luggage...just waiting. So, the phone calls began.

To make the rest of the story short, (props to you if you are still reading all this mess…) the boat wouldn’t be in San Juan until Wednesday sometime. And since that would cause us to basically miss half of the entire cruise, we decided it would be better to fly home and file insurance to get reimbursed or re-booked later. So we arrived in Lubbock at 11:30 last night from San Juan. All we could really do was laugh at the situation by Tuesday. It is not funny at all that a man has lost his life. But, it was so unbelievable that everything was happening that all we could do was laugh. Apparently, it was not meant for us to be on that ship! Right now we are in a battle with the insurance and Royal Caribbean. RC assured as that A or B would happen. A - full refund B – rebook. But the insurance is saying that our trip began when we stepped foot on the airplane since our flights were booked through RC. They say it is a delay and they will only refund $500 per person, which doesn’t come close to covering the costs. I know it sounds silly…and there are a lot more important things/problems in life in the big scheme of things…but your prayers for Mike would be appreciated. He is having to deal with a lot right now trying to get this all sorted out. And I sure don’t want him to be out all the money if the insurance gets their way.

If the insurance and RC works out…it might work out for the best. The ship this week is losing a port of call at St. Thomas and everyone had to be questioned, etc. about the man overboard. Plus, I can’t imagine the spirit of the people after something so tragic has happened. Also, our luggage was on the 11:20 flight, so we wouldn't have had clean clothes untiL Wednesday in San Juan. HOPEFULLY, this will all get worked out smoothly and sometime we will be on a cruise…normal…and everything wonderful…with everyone on board. We will see. Meanwhile…Vegas was a great trip. Overall, we have had some good, fun quality family time! AND we made a LOT of memories. Below are some pics from our place in San Juan.

P.S. As we were flying out…we saw the Freedom docked at San Juan. Seeing it made it real again. Not making me laugh anymore because it was unbelievable…but making me want to throw another temper tantrum…and that is basically the emotional state I am still in. With a few laughs here and there. And a few punches to Kyle when he says (about every hour)…”Well, if we were on the ship right now, we’d be….”

Our ATV ride through the roots of the rainforest.

The view from our balcony in our room.

The Courtyard Marriott.

My family in Vegas.

Our trip this weekend was to Breckenridge and Abilene. If you haven't picked up the trend yet...we are gone every weekend....and it doesn't stop until we move!!

Our first stop was at my grandpa's house in Breck. His 94th birthday was on Friday so we got to celebrate with him! That is right...he is 94. And he still lives at home...with his dog...and still works around the house!! He absolutely amazes me! His mind is still 110%...in fact he was telling me a story about being on a ship at Pearl Harbor during WWII and he still remembered the names of the guys he worked with! And if it wasn't for arthritis his physical condition would be great as well. I have a lot of Harbison genes in me (my long neck) so maybe I will live this long too. Of course, I want to be this healthy as well!

I thought I would prove that he still works by putting up some pics of him working in his garden. He uses his 4-wheeler to get around because it's hard for him to walk too far. And of course, he had to make somewhere for the dog to ride...and something to keep her from falling out! He can fix or make anything...like I said...amazing. Below: The combine & one of the tractors he still uses.

Next, we visited my dad's side of the family in Abilene. It was great to get to hang out with my aunt, uncles, and cousins!! On Friday we cooked fajitas and a long-time family friend came out to visit with her husband and new baby girl! I forgot to get a picture...but we had a BLAST hanging out! Then, on Sunday, the family took us to eat some wonderful food at the Homeplace. (pictured below) If you have ever eaten at Babe's in the Dallas area, or heard us talk about it, it was similar....except buffet style = I ate too much.