First Flight "Unattended" to Cousin Camp

We sometimes feel like the black sheep on both sides of our family since all my family lives in the same town, and all my husband's family lives in the same general area while we live in a different city.  I'm only an hour from my family, but we're 1000 miles from my husband's family.  We try to fly out there twice a year, but to keep relationships close, the kids need extended quality time with their cousins and grandparents without their parents in the way.  So, it has become a tradition to get all the cousins together each year.  Last year, they all drove out here.  This year, we let our kids fly "unattended" out there.   During check-in, a pair of grandparents stood beside us to get their passes to go fetch their grandchildren, ages 6 and 10, who had been flying unattended for years.  Seeing how well that had worked out for younger children than our own settled my anxious heart and was a gift from God as we sent them off without us.

Daddy checks their bags.

Since they are under age 12, children flying unattended is only allowed for direct flights, so the closest we could get them to Oklahoma was St. Louis, Missouri.

Ready to fly

While we waited for their delayed plane to arrive, my girl and I went shopping for matching t-shirts while the guys went shopping for matching tacos. :-)  It was my way of sending a piece of home with her to Oklahoma.  Everyone was surprised by my impulsive overpriced purchases, especially considering how much I do not enjoy shopping. This mama's heart was feeling especially tender at that moment.

 When it was finally time to depart, I gave them goodbye hugs while a stranger leaned over to photobomb our picture.  Too funny!

As this point, we did not not know whether to cry or jump up and down with joy shouting, "Free at last!  Thank God we're free at last!" :-)   Sometimes an adult just needs to be free of responsibility for a little while.

My husband's devoted parents drove to Missouri to get them.  Their flight delay turned out to be a blessing when their grandparents got stuck in rush hour traffic on their way to the airport.  They were there in time to receive them and all was well with the world when we received this picture over text.

They spent the night just outside St. Louis and drove to Oklahoma the next day.

Some of their favorite memories from cousin camp (which included twin 2nd cousins from Texas) included:

Drive-in movies at the Admiral Twin

 Chocolate Gravy and Butter Waffles

 (our daughter gained five pounds!)

Catching crawdads in the creek for the raccoons

Swimming and skipping rocks with Grandpa at the creek

Family Jam sessions at Mark and Lori's house

Scrabble with Grandpa

Spa days with Kate

Lots of swimming with cousins

We drove out to get them the past Saturday.  Their grandparents drove them to the Nashville area so we did not have to drive all the way to Oklahoma to get them.  What a gift!

 After lots of hugs, we all went out to eat together followed by swimming in the hotel's indoor/outdoor poo.  The kids thought the missing "l" on the sign was hilarious!

We departed the next morning, stopping off in the mountains for a few hours to eat lunch and visit with the Leigh family.  We enjoy that family so very much.

My husband spent much of the day on the phone with work where another major crisis was occurring, and as soon as we got home, he booked another flight to Colorado at 6am the next morning.  His reunion with the kids was short and sweet, and we were very sad to see him have to go again.