12 hour layovers....

Thank all the Gods it's not me with that kind of a layover! I'd go crazy if I had to sit in an airport for that long! Especially since the airport in question is LAX.

My oldest granddaughter is the unfortunate child stuck with that layover. Now, why would my 16 year old granddaughter be in LA? Because she has had her first of many "once in a lifetimes" adventures. She's returning from a 17 day trip to China. She was part of the Young Ambassadors tour, in which kids are selected by their teachers both because of their grades and their personalities to represent the US abroad.

Her itinerary sounded fantastic, and I'm thrilled that she was able to raise enough money to take the trip, and also I'm envious as can be!

Robert and I are going to go to the airport along with Vaughn and Patrick to welcome her back. Her flight gets in at 8 a.m. tomorrow. I'm sure she'll be exhausted after a 17 hour flight and a 12 hour layover, but we not only want to see her and make sure she's back safely (worrywart grandparents?) but we also have a darker motive.

See, this is the point of summer where the kids spend six weeks with their biological mother in a nearby town. Vaughn and Pat got a call from "mom" (lower case is intentional) telling them that there was no need for them to pick Isabelle up at the airport - that she could do it since it was *her* six weeks. Pissed Robert and I off, it did. After all, "mom" didn't contribute a single penny to the apprx. 5K that Isabelle had to raise to make the trip; And, she didn't bother to see Isabelle off on her trip, so why does she feel she needs to hurry up and get her before V & P have a chance to welcome her home? Understand, none of us mind that her mother wants to pick her up, but what irks us is that she'd rather that V & P have to wait for two weeks to see her.

Something happened on the trip that Vaughn and Pat know about, but they want Isabelle to tell us about herself. All we know is that the word "hero for a day" is in the description, and Isabelle should be very proud of herself. I'll let you know what it was about when I find out myself!