Get Those Girls Home! Fall Field Trip '11

Back story: Jillian's two and a half week visit stretched to nearly a month. After learning that she was pregnant while in Spokane for a wedding, she became VERY ill with morning sickness. Fortunately I had returned from Croatia by then. Two trips to the ER later, and now on two anti-nausea meds, she's somewhat stable, though tired (a side effect of the meds.) Her original return home date was moved out a week and we all decided that I should accompany her for the flight home to help with The Cutest Little Strong-Willed Girl On Earth Who Does Not Like To Cuddle Or Sit Still. Her friends and family call her Cadence.  

Update: Our flights yesterday went remarkably well with the assistance of several Delta Airlines beverage napkins. Who would have thought that breaking a napkin into tiny pieces, which were then handed to Grandma, would keep a child occupied for so long? She was so diligent and intent on this task that it kept her quiet and relaxed enough to be content when it was finally time to sit on my lap for our landings, or, on one flight, to actually fall asleep in my arms. Also, kudos to mommy's iphone & the Mickey Mouse Club and the portable DVD player & Finding Nemo. She actually slept the entire last leg of the trip after watching a slow slide show of photos from my phone during take off...the constant drone of engines on the back of the plane didn't hurt either. 

The long awaited reunion with Daddy was all that could be hoped for. No adjustment period necessary after being gone a month...just Daddy's girl from the get go. It was so adorable to watch them play and to hear Cadence bubble over with the giggles that are reserved for him alone. 

And the long awaited reunion of Jake and Jill was great as well. Mom's are ok, but she had so longed for her husband during those nights and days of feeling so sick and distraught. That is as it should be and now they are together again. 

So here I sit, with a mug of hot joe nearby and the sound of jets overhead on this sunny day on the Cadence-acola Naval Air Station, and thank the Lord for His provision for this trip home and for this family. Jill and Jake both said they'll hire me for all of Jill's cross country flights. Haha! While they were at our house we all called Uncle Danny the baby whisperer, but apparently I've got a few skills too. I think it just helps to be able to double-team a one year old who's trapped on a flying metal tube where there's no where to run and play. And I know that the Lord was gracious to us, the first sign of that being the fact that on a "full flight" we ended up with a whole row of three seats to ourselves. 

Jill is resting on the sofa and Cadence is toddling around the house, her little bare feet making happy little slappy sounds on the hardwood floor. She stops by the sofa often for a kiss and a cuddle from Momma. It was a long absence from home for them both. It was an incredibly busy two weeks for me immediately after my arrival home from a three week trip overseas. So today, here in Florida, though there are certainly things to attend to, we choose to rest.