As I mentioned in the last post, this is a special post for all our 24 friends - hopefully it will not be too annoying to all of you who don't watch it (don't you hate it when friends talk all about a show that you don't watch and you have no idea what they are talking about? sorry, this is one way we have found humor - and adventure - in this crazy ride called International adoption).
Oh! I have to interrupt this post to let you know that a dear group of friends had all gone in together and presented me with a gift certificate for a mini spa day that they were sending me to Friday morning to try to relax and be pampered as they knew what craziness I had been through and also knew as I did that the craziness was only just going to begin once he actually got home!! So THANK YOU to my dear friends for the amazing gift - I thoroughly enjoyed my facial, massage and pedicure!!!! I escaped it all for a few hours and it was wonderful!
So, Tom (a.k.a Jack Bauer) arrived safely at all his destinations after sleeping a few hours in the LaGuardia airport which he informs me is "a pit" (?) Never been there. Now I won't plan to go there. His luggage, however, did not show up in Port au Prince so that may put a kink in the plan if he does have to spend 5 days there. He did, however, have his "Jack bag" so he was still determined to "save the world".
I (a.k.a. Chloe) was poised at home with my computer, phone, and cell phone complete with texting waiting for any information I could get from Haiti and in any form of communication that would work this particular day. After the week we'd had, we had no idea what today had in store for us. (here's where one of the breakdowns in similarity with 24 happen - we really would have loved to have the technology of CTU behind us in this endeavor - believe me, we could have used it many times! Ok, so I don't have the intelligence of Chloe either - I'm closer to technologically challenged than the average person, but I can pretend right?)
When Tom arrived in PAP, two missionary women who run one of the orphanage's houses were waiting to pick him up and they already had Stevenson with them. He ran into Tom's arms so happy to see him. He had already said his good bye's to his friends at the orphanage so Tom did not get to be there for that or get any of it on tape or in pictures. :(
They then went to the Visa Lodge which is a hotel we have stayed at in past visits. They waited there and had a bite to eat and all of a sudden one of the Orphanage staff showed up with his Visa package! It was done - that was it - completed - he could come home!!! So exciting, yet so anticlimactic yet so crazily insane all at once!
At this point, Tom could not get out of Haiti fast enough. The thought of staying even one more night (without luggage or change of clothes, remember) was not appealing to him so therein began another crazy flurry of activity on email and phone, etc.
I (Chloe) was able to get Tom (Jack) and Stevenson (the package) on a flight out of PAP in about an hour and a half! We got them to the airport, purchased the tix cleared up the denial on the credit card b/c it put up a fraud warning as to unusual activity originating in Haiti (glad to see this working) - so they were on their way to Ft. Lauderdale, I found a hotel room for them so they could shower and then a flight the next morning to Chicago. Whew - once again! I was exhausted! still or again, I'm not quite sure which ?
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2 comments:
Totally chaos and it is amazing how well you coordinated it all! As Tom says in your homecoming video - you lost the bag but didn't lose Stevenson!!! So glad it all worked out and what a story to remember!
It's amazing what we are capable of doing in such a short amount of time when we really have to isn't it? I was so excited to run into Tom and Stevenson at Panera! I was shocked to hear then how quick Tom's trip was. I'm so glad Stevenson is home and look forward to getting together with you all soon!
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