Stranded in Hawaii!!

We decided to take the family to Hawaii for Spring Break this year. It was suppose to be fairly low key and simple. Boy, were we wrong. Mark and the kids were all going to leave on Wednesday morning, because that was the day the flights looked the best for standby travel. Kenzie invited a friend, Ashley Anderson, to come with us and use a buddy pass. Wednesday everyone but Kenz and Ashley got on. This was our first experience traveling with buddy passes, we never would have thought it would be so difficult! Wednesday the girls missed two flights, no big deal we'll just come back tomorrow. Thursday once again, they missed the direct flight and then probably three or four flights to LA. No big deal, we'll try again tomorrow when Holli could fly with them. After missing the direct flight Friday we decided that Holli and Kenz should go on their own and have Ashley stay home to keep trying to get on the direct flight. After missing four more flights to LA we made it on thanks to a kind pilot who gave up his seat for us. Yahoo!! We were on. Our flight landed in LA and the connecting flight had already boarded and had cleared the standby list. Kenz and I were on and in first class but, we were still sitting on the incoming flight. Mark was in Hawaii watching everything from his computer and called to tell us we had to sprint not jog to the gate or we would be stuck in LA for the night. Holli left Kenz on the flight from SLC to get the carry ons and ran to the gate. When I got there they told me that they had given our seats away because we were no where to be found. For some reason, the people that had been given our seats were still there and were so generous and gave them back. We had bearly made it!! We were so lucky, but we were on our way! Ashley kept trying to get on the direct flight each day to no avail. Finally, Tuesday she and our cousin Hunter made it on!! We were so excited, we didn't think they would ever make it. Our other cousin Marcus, ended up coming over as well. He made it on Wednesday. His mom, Mark's sister Kristy, also works for Delta so he has flight benefits too. We had such a fun time! We snorkeled, swam, surfed, ate, shopped, played in the sand, hooked up with our friends the Koelikers, and just had a great time. Then came time for us to try to get home. Flights looked good on Thursday night so we packed everyone up and headed for the airport. Nobody got on either one of the flights that night, no big deal, we'll just try again Friday or Saturday. We really hadn't planned on coming home for a few days anyway. Friday, we decided to try again, nope, no one got on. Saturday we tried again, nope, didn't get on. Sunday, tried again, no one got on again. We couldn't figure out what was happening. Finally, it made sense. Aloha Air had stopped flying that Thursday, so there were hundreds of stranded passengers who were being protected on Delta. Thus, taking OUR seats. We tried again Monday, and Tuesday and didn't make it. Finally flights looked wonderful for Wednesday. We would finally make it home. We went to the beach Wednesday morning and played on last time in the ocean. The waves were exceptionally big that day and it was a little breezier than normal. We even had the thrill of watching whales jump right out of the water. It was amazing to see! We didn't think much of it, just another day in Hawaii. WRONG! We went home and started packing for the seventh time when there was a knock at our door. It was the cleaning lady for the condo. She informed us that there was a hurricane coming and we needed to prepare. All I could do was laugh. A hurricane? You have got to be kidding!! She told us not to worry because the last time this happened the airport was ONLY closed for four days. NO, no, no, I was freaking out! This could not be happening. We had to get home! We finished packing and I told Mark that we were just going to go to the airport and check it out. We did and things actually looked okay for us to still leave that evening. We hung out in the city for the next few hours and went back to the airport. The hurricane didn't seem to be a problem and at about 10:00pm we were on the plane to LA. Not 30 minutes into the flight, you hear the pilot come on the intercom and ask for any medical people to come to the front cabin. I was dying. Half the family was in first class and I was sure that someone had gotten hurt or worse. Mark came and found me in the back and said that a man had collapsed right at his feet and they were working on him. At this point all my unsympathetic mind could say was," they had better not turn this plane around and take us back to Maui." I know, how rude, I was just so done. I was desperate to get home. Luckily the man was okay, and they didn't need to take him back. We made it to LA, where everyone but Hunter and I made the flight to SLC. We stuck around and made the next flight, a few hours later. Now we have been home for three weeks and I could use another two weeks stranded in Hawaii. Our trip ended up being 15 days instead of the original nine. Talk about a crazy and eventful Spring Break! We won't be going to Hawaii next year for Spring Break. That is for sure!!

Junior Prom for Kenzie

Last weekend was our first experience at the McDonald household, with Junior Prom. Kenzie went with a very cute boy named Zach Gardner. We have known the Gardner family for years. Mark even grew up with Zach's mom Shelly. We were very excited that he had asked Kenz to go with him. For a girl, other than being asked, the most important part of Prom, is what she will wear. Kenz and I looked and looked and didn't find much that we loved. One day last week, I got off work early and decided to take Kenz to LA in search of the perfect dress. (Gotta love those flight benefits!) We had a whopping four hours to find the dress. We flew into Burbank and headed right for Beverly Hills. All Kenz could say was "why don't we live here?" Let's just say she was in heaven. We looked in some ridiculous stores like Chanel, Juicy, Tiffany's, Ferragamo, Fendi and Donald J PLiner. I must say I was a little more concerned with finding Sprinkles, the cupcake store, in the beginning. Once I had conquered that I could focus on the main task. We ended up at Saks Fifth Avenue, and were determined to find something. After searching and only purchasing perfume, I found it. There was one lone dress on the rack. It was Kenzies size and the color she wanted. I grabbed and took it to her in the dressing room. She put it on and fell in love with it. We had done it, we found her "perfect dress!" She looked very pretty and had a great evening with Zach. A group of the girls came over and got ready together. They all met for a brief minute at Sam's house to take photos together, then dispersed to their own homes to be picked up. It was a great evening for Kenz. Thanks Zach for a great night!!