Morgan's Trip to Utah

Standing in front of the Lion House, October 16, 2008.

We sent our 5-year-old on an airplane all by herself! Are we crazy or just bad parents? Maybe both, but actually, she did just fine and was so brave. Morgan had decided months ago that this is what she wanted, to visit her cousins in UT and specifically go for the 8th birthday party of Ashley held at the Lion House in Salt Lake City.

So we prepared for weeks and told her what to expect. She was excited and anxious for the fun of it all. Only the night before did she mention that she was little nervous to fly alone. Understandably so, heck, I am too! Then that morning she was great until just five minutes before they were going to board her, I snuggled her onto my lap and she buried her face in my chest like she hadn't done in years! She didn't cry, but she had such sad eyes and I could tell she was trying to hold back the tears. Seeing her like that made it so sad and hard for me to let her go. However, she was so brave and they took her down the ramp without me....sigh.

The flight attendant guy was so nice and kept checking on her and reporting back to me as we waited for her flight to depart. After the first check, she was totally fine and coloring and talking with the little girl next to her. Phew! I knew she'd be okay, just the initial leaving was hard.

So, she had a great time and everytime I called to see how she was doing, she was having a so much fun she hardly had any time to stop and talk to me. Also, when I asked if she missed us, without hesitating, she said, "No!" I guess that's a good thing! I wasn't disappointed, only grateful she was being taken care of so well that she didn't have time to miss us. I think Macy is the only one she may have missed a little.

When it was time to go on Sunday, she cried and cried having to leave them. How sweet. I am so glad she has that kind of love for her family in Utah and that leaving them was difficult.

She made it home safely on the airplane and is now a more confident little girl. I have to say, I'm very proud of her. Special thanks to Julie for all of her sweet effort and hard work. Thanks to Lauren and Ashley for all the fun and entertainment!

Below are pictures from Ashley's party at the Lion House (courtesy of Nancy, thanks much!

Morgan pulling taffy at the Lion House. It's one of the many fun activities that the pioneer children did. The children get to learn about other pasttimes and also take a tour of the historic Brigham Young home. Morgan's great, great, great grandmother lived in that very home, married to Pres. Young.