Atlanta

Thankfully, our 12 our flight from Ghana (where we stopped over for a couple hours) to Atlanta was fairly uneventful.  Unfortunately, Ibrahim, who was flying stand by, was kicked off the plane in Ghana because of weight restrictions and he had a horrible time getting back.  He didn't get home until Sunday evening.

Brandon started having diarrhea on the plane, but again I thought it was pretty normal with the change in water.  He had had a little of it on the way out as well.  I started thinking maybe it wasn't just changes once we landed in Atlanta and a little turned to a lot and didn't stop.

We all got through customs and immigration very smoothly and continued on to the domestic terminal where we just had time for a quick Starbucks drink before Aaron and Stacey had to leave for their gate.  This was when it finally hit me that the planning for over a year and the trip itself actually happened and it was coming to an end. 

The rest of us walked Rachel to her gate shortly after.

Waiting at Rachel's gate while she was offering to give up her seat. 
She ended up leaving but giving up her seat in Detroit instead and getting home on Sunday as well.

We were all a little dazed but thankful to not be squished into tight confines with the kids any more.

After Rachel left we walked to the food court and found two tables that we pushed together near a pillar that had an outlet.  Al had brought a power bar with him (so smart) and so we all charged phones and the DVD player while hanging out.

Al touching base with his family.  Shortly after this they started calling for boarding on his flight to Rochester.  They must not have had very many passengers because they very quickly started calling his name and he sprinted down to his gate, which we weren't very far from.

Cal trying to get the Internet to work on his phone.

I had packed a blanket in our carry-on so Micah could lie on the floor and kick for a while since I knew we had several hours in Atlanta.  He was thrilled with the freedom.

Brandon coming back from yet another bathroom run.

And this is where my pictures end since the next 10 hours became rather intense.  We decided to walk Cal and Christel to their gate, but never made it.  We took the train and then an elevator to their terminal and as we were getting off the elevator Brandon vomited.  I cleaned him up and put another set of clothes on him and we managed to get to our gate without another incident.  Our flight was delayed by an hour so we just laid around at our gate watching airplanes.  Bryan called his dad who was going to be picking us up in Seattle and asked him to bring Gatorade and a bucket just in case.

I was standing in line waiting to get a gate check ticket for the stroller and holding Brandon when he vomited again, all over himself and me in the midst of a long line of people.  Thankfully there were a couple who were very helpful and gave me extra bags and called Bryan over to help.

I managed to just get Brandon and myself changed again when they called for boarding with little kids.  This time they let us go through first.

We settled on to the plane and Brandon vomited again.  We tried getting him to take little sips of water but he couldn't keep anything down.  At one point he went lethargic on us and that scared me pretty badly. 

When we got to Seattle he was so weak he couldn't walk off the plane.  Thankfully I had also packed the sling in our carry-on luggage so I put Micah in the sling and that left the stroller available for Brandon.  It had taken Don four hours to drive from Lynden to Seatac (normally a two and a half hour drive) because of a snow storm so we were looking at a long ride home, too.

I called Brandon's doctor after hours line and was able to talk to a nurse who had me do a couple tests on Brandon.  Thankfully they showed he wasn't overly dehydrated, so we went home instead of the ER like we had been talking about.  He was completely empty by that point and was able to just fall asleep on the trip home. 

Bryan and Don tell me that I was so tired on the drive home that I would start a sentence but never finish because I had fallen asleep.  I think they're making it up.  ;)

We were all thankful to be home again.  Even Micah was visibly more content and relaxed when I put him in his own bed.  He knew he was home.

Sunday we stayed home to relax and rest.  Brandon slowly started to be able to keep liquid down again, though it took him a couple days before he was able to keep everything down.  And it took him a good week before he felt like running or playing at all.  I've never seen him so mellow and disinterested in even rough housing.  He just wanted to sleep and be held. 

Despite the crazy trip back, our trip out and the time we spent with family and friends was amazing and I wouldn't trade it for the world!  The memories are so precious to us and the pictures are a wonderful visual reminder of the incredible blessing we experienced. 

I have one more post.  I've saved the most important for last.

Blessings on your Friday.