3:25 a.m.

Yep, that's what time we finally crawled into bed last night. The airline Jet Blue has become my arch enemy and the Ft.Lauderdale airport is is a most unfriendly place. Let's review what went wrong, shall we? :

I couldn't find the correct shuttle to take me to terminal one.

I arrived at terminal one and went to get on the security inspection line; without my boarding pass. (Mea culpa!)

Get directions from the nice Jet Blue lady wearing too much perfume. *gag* I go to get the boarding pass. At this point I really love Jet Blue because the check-in process can be done by me in 2 minutes.

Run back to the line only to have Helmut, the stinky salami man, tell me that I am in the wrong check-in area. He tells me to go back up the stairs, walk 12 miles through the snow, uphill, cross the gum drop forest - wait! I exaggerated a bit, there was no snow and the gum drop forest was in elf. What can I say, it felt far. The upside? I got in a good cardio workout.

Get to the correct line with the correct papers and go through security with no problems.

Realize - I'm hungry. Check the time, good, 45 minutes. Get on line for a greasy, nauseating Pizzeria Uno pizza, definitely not what I should have eaten before boarding. Wait on line for 18 minutes and get treated very poorly for not having any bill smaller than a $20.

Proceed to gate 9B, sit and partake of the pizza.

Get nervous because there is no flight information posted. None.

Call Kevin.

Phone rings and rings. He answers. What was he doing you ask? Getting a foot massage at the Chinese market!

Steam comes out of my ears at this point and I begin to babble incoherently about checking flight times and delays.

Hang up with Kevin and call my knight in shining armor, AKA, my mommy, to ask her to check the Jet Blue website for me.

She says, and I quote, "You're not gonna like this." The flight that was supposed to leave at 9:10 has been delayed until 11:25!

I try to remain calm and laugh at the situation and I'm doing well until I realize...

As I was getting my pizza, the one, and only coffee place in that wing of the terminal was closing. I didn't see any cause for alarm while it was closing because I knew that I could get coffee on the plane. With my coffee prospects dimming, panic set in.

I told my mother that Kevin didn't even care that I was stranded here at the airport, in grave peril, for he was getting a foot massage! She reminded me, in the way that only mothers can, that I was not in peril. Then I told her that there was no coffee and she began to see my point. She was ready to circle the wagons and send me dad to bring me coffee. I thanked her but assured her that I would be fine.

Kevin calls to beg my forgiveness for his cruel insensitivity.

Just kidding, he called to make sure that I was alright and update me with the info from the Jet Blue website.

So there I sat, for three hours. I read the Memoria Press catalog and I tried to get into All The Pretty Horses but found it to be a difficult read. Maybe it was the lack of caffeine or pure exhaustion, either one, I can't be sure.

I watched a boy get a nose bleed. Saw a mother give her 19 month old baby a bottle of soda and then beseeched God to make sure they were sitting nowhere near me. The newlywed couple next to me had a fight and some lady fell asleep while talking on her cell phone, that one was funny.

Our plane finally arrived and we were lifting off the ground at 12:03 a.m. I was fortunate to be sitting in row five, close to the escape hatch door. As soon as the flight attendant opened the door I stood up and ran off of that plane, through the airport and out the door to where Kevin was waiting.

Why the delay you ask? High winds. Would I do it all over again just to assure my children's safety and well being? In a heartbeat!

The boys and I did arrive safely and on time. They were thrilled to see grandma and she was equally as thrilled to see them. I thought that Joe would not want to leave me but he looked at my mom and said, "I go in there," meaning his stroller, the indication that he wanted to leave. My mom said, "Say good-bye to mommy, " he held up his sweet little hand and said, "bye mommy." Just.Like.That.

No tears, no histrionics, I did well.

So this ends my story. Today Laurie and I are doing a marathon pack.

Look to the finish!