Merry Christmas!

We found some incredibly cheap airline tickets so we went to New Hampshire for the holidays this year. Nathan's family was extremely accommodating and went out of their way to make us fell welcome. This was the children's first time on an airplane, so getting there was an adventure in itself. They were so excited at the idea of flying. The airline charges for all checked bags, so we packed teeny backpacks for each child. They each carried their entire wardrobe as a carry-on and they did so splendidly, pulling their luggage behind them at each stop. Our first flight was delayed for an hour (and we had arrived three hours early), so we spent our morning playing with play dough, making shapes in pipe cleaners, making music, and reading stories in the terminal. We were schocked that we arrived so early. We had anticipated bad traffic and long lines, but there were literally no lines anywhere. We had lots of fun spending time together watching the planes all land and take off outside our window. They also found a bird living in the terminal. The children all handled the loading and take off really well and loved looking out the windows as the city shrunk beneath us.

We brought Christmas cards and candy canes to give out to each passenger on our plane. We signed all the cards and placed a pass-along card in each envelope. Halfway through the flight the children and I passed them out and wished each person a Merry Christmas. The flight attendant was particularly shocked that we had brought enough cards and candy for every passenger. He really enjoyed watching us pass them out. When we reached the front of the plane, he gave the kids chocolates and apple sauce cups from the first class meals. He also drew a little Christmas card for the kids to keep. It was really fun for them. At the end of the flight, he came on the PA system and said, "We'd like to thank the Kingsley family for their Christmas cards and candy canes and we'd like to wish them a Merry Christmas, especially their children Matthew, Sarah, and Daniel." The passengers on the plane applauded after the announcement. That was really neat! I'm glad the gifts were well-received. Sarah and I had prayed prior to handing them out, asking that people would receive the gifts with open hearts and understand the love behind the gesture.

All told, we traveled from 7:00 am until 9:30 pm. We were really relived so see Grandpa Kingsley at the terminal waiting for us.