St. John - Travel Day (June 25)

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We woke up at 4:45am in Fort Lauderdale, FL and left our hotel at 5:30am. Matthew and Maddie actually woke up relatively easily and VERY happy under the circumstances. The drive was rainy (thanks to Tropical Storm Debby) but non-eventful. We made to our hotel in Ft. Lauderdale by 6:30. We are staying there when we return, but we get to park our car there the whole time we're gone! We took their shuttle to the airport got there by 7:15, got through security painlessly and then grabbed a quick breakfast and ate at the gate. Our flight was, well, a little dicy. Maddie was really nervous about flying, and her nerves mixed with the bouncing of the plane gave her a really upset stomach. She went to the bathroom... I followed... she cried... but never threw up. Finally we sat back down, with a bag in hand, but she still felt miserable. The nice lady next to us suggested getting some alcohol towelettes for her to sniff... it worked! We learned something new! She still didn't feel great, but she made it without throwing up. Whew. We landed in Puerto Rico and had a 4 hour layover. We walked around the airport a while, and then we ate lunch at 'Air Margaritaville'. It wasn't half bad! Then we sat... and waited. We all read some (and Maddie and Matthew played some Fruit Ninja and other games)... and Daddy even caught a couple well-deserved naps. Our flight from San Juan to St. Thomas was less than 18 minutes, and it was beautiful!! We landed in St. Thomas (to which Maddie said, "Thank you, God for this gift and for our safe travel! AMEN!) , took a shuttle to our rental car (whew!) and then rode the car ferry over to St. John (Oh, after buying some groceries on St. Thomas). Jeff dropped us off at Aqua Bistro (a restaurant pretty close to the house) on St. John while he went to check things out and get the house opened up since we were getting there so late. We waited on Jeff for over an hour... bless his heart, he had a little trouble finding the key. At last, though, he joined us and had a bite to eat (and we breathed a sigh of relief - we were getting worried!) Then we headed to the house together. It was a little unnerving navigating the curvy, hilly roads in the dark, but all so familiar. :-) When we got to the house, Jeff had to do some creative climbing(they were in a locked closet that we had not yet found the key to, but there was an opening in the closet ceiling, LOL) to locate all the remotes (for the A/C and the TV/DVD), but he's our hero! Ahhhhh... it's great to be back on the island! Matthew summed it up great: "It's been a good day, albeit a hard one." The kids were troopers... carrying heavy backpacks and helping pull suitcases.....