The Akins Family: January 2011

Monday, January 24, 2011

Coming back was much easier

More chips and dip at Moe's!

Excited to be flying

The plane was not packed so Matthew got to sit in his own seat!

Friends

Our sweet friends, Brad and Cristie, came down to visit for a day! It was SO SO good to see them and see Cristie's little Baby Bump! I can't wait to see pictures of Miss Addison in a few weeks!

What we do at Nana and Papa House

Riding ponies

and Papa

Playing with trains

Making cupcakes

with Brother's help

Mmmm

Playing outside

Riding with Papa

Pulling Brother

Sitting at the big boy table

Cuddling

Going to the park

And just having F.U.N!

Big Gma's boys

These 2 (especially the oldest) are my Gma's heart! She is 89 years young and was SO SO excited to get to see the boys. It had been since April and I think she began to wonder if she would see them again. She experienced a stroke in not long after our last visit and has made it a long way to get from hospital to rehab and back home. I really wish we were able to see her on a regular basis, but thank goodness for phone calls and Skype!

These pictures are SO SO precious to me!

We will hold onto these until we can visit again and pray we have many more pictures with one another!

Uncle Dee Dee & Aunt Ro Ro

My boys LOVE their Dee Dee and Ro Ro! And they love my boys too, just like they are their own!

Christmas Again

I may NEVER fly again

At least through Atlanta when an ice storm is coming anyway!

We were to leave for NC on Monday, but flights began to cancel, so we chanced it and booked flights out Sunday evening hoping to make it. Well we lost! We left KS and the snow was coming down hard and by the time we got to Atlanta it was already snowing there too! We thought we would be fine if our flight could make it out in time (NC was to get the storm the next day). But then we saw "DELAYED"! UGHHH We knew this was not a good sign. Fewer and fewer planes were taking off. My husband tried to keep me positive as we strolled the airport with 1 year old and a 3 year old. Then it hit "CANCELLED". OUTSTANDING! I was in tears - it was now 11pm - my kids were still up - and we were spending what thought would be one night in the airport.

We stayed Sunday night in the USO, finding a couple benches to sleep on with our kids. Our flight was to leave at 1:30pm Monday.....then we saw it again "CANCELLED". We made the most of Monday, riding the tram (also known as the train to Jackson). We decided to tough it out one more night in the airport since out next flight out was the following day. Surely we would get out then. Not to mention the hotels were booked and the roads were too icy to drive on.

We found an empty end at Delta and let the kids run wild!

If we ever make it on that plane....Matthew fits as a carry on!

We had little to NO sleep Monday night. Matthew didn't get to sleep until 1:30 am. David and I were cold, but we ~~stole~~ borrowed some blankets from Delta and of course covered our kids with them. Not to mention the loud speaker would go off every 15 minutes.

So we woke Tuesday encouraged that our mini vacation in Atlanta was over. Our flight soon became "CANCELLED" and I was D.O.N.E! I told David I didn't care what it cost us, but I had to have a hotel! He found one and I was SO HAPPY! We took the shuttle over and we got in early to our room. We had 2 beds, a tv, and ahhh a shower! I had spare clothes for the boys, so they got baths first. Then to learn that the Hilton didn't have a washer/dryer (just dry cleaning), I proceeded to go downstairs and buy 'under' items for WAY more than they should be. But at his point I didn't care. David on the other hand washed out his clothes in the sink and dried them with the hair dryer. Then we ate at the buffet that cost us an arm and a leg, but by now who is counting how much money this trip is really costing.

We did get a good nights sleep and were up and at em for our flight out the next morning. We got to the airport to find out we were "DELAYED" this time. It was only for about 40 minutes and low and behold we got out of Atlanta and made it to NC before lunch time!

All in all it was not horrible....as I write this in the coziness of my own home, as my kids are asleep in their own beds, and I have had a shower today and am wearing clean clothes!

Do I want to do it again - NEVER!

Things I did learn:
-AirTran is really customer friendly - we had meal vouchers and everyone was very helpful.
-The Airport Hilton needs a washer/dryer, but the staff were all super nice as well.
-Airports are freezing as night!
- Always bring MORE diapers (formula if needed) than you ever thought you would need! I had packed enough for 4/5 days for Matthew and it is a good thing I did bc I saw 2 diapers for sale in the WHOLE airport! They just don't sell them I guess!
- I will always bring a change of clothes for the kids and me when flying from now on!

Happy Flying Folks!

Little Cowboy

Saturday, January 1, 2011

Our 2010 in Review

What a great year 2010 has been for us! If they keep flying by this quick I will have grown kids before I know it!

We were able to see family several times throughout the year (mostly them coming to us, but taking a trip to see both sides once). We also were able to meet up with friends we hadn't seen in some time....lots of them passing through on their way to another base.

It is so bittersweet to look back at the year and see how much our kids have grown and changed. Can I just freeze them where they are?

So here is a snapshot of our Year in Review!

The boys at the beginning of the year!

We survived another Mustache March!

The boys and I took a trip to NC (flying with both boys was quite an exerience) and we were able to take Matthew to the beach for the first time!

We also got the chance to meet up with some college friends and their girls! I hadn't seen them since Jackson was a baby!

I had the priviledge to see what my husband does most days. This was a Spouses Flight in the KC135 RT.

We survived 2 deployments and 6 TDYs! David also received 2 quarterly awards for his squadron (Pilot and Junior CGO).....and rumor has it he may be up for a yearly award! We should find out soon, but are super proud of him!