Family Reunion

Wildfires

SFO -> LAX

LAX -> DEN

Independence Day

Cave of the Winds

Underground

Breakfast at No. One

Garden of the Gods

Royal Gorge

Bowl of Cherries

Masala Tea

Seven Falls

Native American dancers

Broadmoor Hotel

The Creek

Helen Hunt Jackson

Castaways

DEN -> LAX -> SFO

Timber Lodge

Eats in CO

NORAD

Wednesday 3 July 2002

I awake an hour before my Newton is scheduled to rouse us. I pack the geek bag, including my digital camera and PowerBook. Fortified by a good - if not long - sleep I redouble my efforts to add eighty diapers to our two bags, and succeed. Then I start some music playing and the rest of the clan awakes.

The Quake City Shuttle picks us up at 0845 and gets us checked in at the curb (kerb, to you readers across the pond) by 0915. We're scheduled to leave SFO for LAX at 1055, so we have a bit of time to relax and explore the scene. We have an adequate breakfast at the North Beach Café and proceed to our gate.

Isaac and Lila are in pretty good spirits. Isaac was so excited that he bounded out of bed as he woke, and ran around the house yelling something about waiting for the shuttle. This is Lila's second air travel, the first was a trip back east for Thanksgiving last year.

After riding in trains and driving our car, airplanes are Isaac's favorite things. He's really happy to be back in an airport, walking down a jetway ("all by my self"), and being airborne. This trip he's pretty good, albeit a bit tired.

Lila is just starting to walk on her own. She's been walking around the house holding our hands for a long time now, but she's on the verge of cruising. She pulls herself up whenever we think we have a quiet moment :-) Soon she'll be toddling after Isaac, who is excited at the prospect of being able to "play trains" with his baby sister.

Rose always thinks ahead. She's made sure we bought a few new toys for Isaac to enjoy during the flight, and she's stocked up on goodies. Best of breed this day are her Japanese rice crackers. As our ears pop from equalizing the changing pressure this conversation ensues:

Papa: Do you feel it in your ears?
Isaac: I feel it in my penis.
Mama: [laughs so hard she almost sneezes a cracker out of her nose :-]

Lila can't yet eat crackers, but she's very interested in watching Isaac eat his. Or it might be the incredible variety of noises he can make while rooting around in that plastic bag. I'm not sure which.

We're almost at Los Angeles International (LAX) and I'm feeling a bit better. Too little sleep last night, plus the stress of getting the whole crowd and bags along each leg of our trip, uses me up. I admire my last-minute haircut. (Thank you, Cruz!)

The wing of our MD-80...

We begin our descent into LAX, where we miss disaster by less than twenty-four hours.

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