air show

Daniel and I went to the Air Show at Dobbins ARB in Marietta today. We are still trying to figure out how we feel about attending. We were trying to make it in time to see the F-22 fly and to see the Thunderbirds. We got to the parking lot and got in line about 12:30. We loaded the bus about 2:00! The F-22 was to fly at 2:22 so Daniel was a little hesitant to get on the bus at this point, thinking he might miss seeing it fly. We could see planes flying overhead while in line so he figured atleast from the parking lot he would get to see it fly its demo flight. Against our better judgement, we got on the bus. Surely, it won't take 20 minutes to get to the base. Well, it didn't take but about 5 minutes but who knew we would have to sit in the bus line waiting to unload. That was a 20 minute wait. So, as we sat on the bus, listening to the F-22 fly overhead, not able to see anything, my heart just broke for Daniel. For those of you who don't know, Daniel is an aerospace engineer. His job is to work on the design of the F-22 at Lockheed Martin. He kept telling me it was ok that he missed it but I could tell by the look on his face that it wasn't. However, there was nothing we could have done about it. We had no idea that the crowds and the wait would be this bad. Lesson learned. Daniel has seen the F-22 fly but has not gotten to see it fly its demo flight except by video. He was so looking forward to seeing it in person.

So after our 2 hour ordeal getting onto the base for the air show, we made our way to the viewing areas to set up to see the Thunderbirds. There was an acrobatic byplane flying at this point, which we enjoyed watching. We got to see the whole ritual of the Thunderbird pilots getting into their planes and taking off. Watching the Thunderbirds fly was great! Daniel was trying to hide his giddyness but I could see the corners of his mouth sliding up! It was cool to see them fly in their different formations.

Then, we began our journey back to the bus. We debated when we first got there to just get back in line to leave and watch the Thunderbirds from there but we decided to go and enjoy the show from the viewing area and risk the lines later. Lines there were. It seemed like for miles! The Thunderbirds were the finale of the show so everyone left when they were done flying. We got in line at about 4:20. We got on the bus at 6:20! Needless to say, my feet hurt. We finally made it back to the car at about 6:30. Whew! I'm tired reliving it! One of the good things was that today was a cool day. I wore a jacket most of the time. No stifling heat! Thank you Lord! That would have definitely been miserable. Here are pictures from our day...

On a lighter note, Charlie got to spend the day with Grandma and Grandpa (my parents). They came up to visit for the weekend and kept Charlie while we went to the air show. I mentioned to Daniel somewhere in one of those lines that I really enjoyed spending some time with just him without Charlie. I love my little boy but my time with my sweet husband is lacking. So, thanks Grandma and Grandpa! I called while on the bus to check to see if they had gotten Charlie to go down for a nap. They weren't even home! They were out galavanting...eating out. Charlie was great for them and I am so relieved. I'm so glad they got to spend some real quality time with Charlie. That's a rare thing for them since they don't live nearby. My mom is always bringing Charlie something and this trip was no different. I mean, what else would you expect from a grandma? Here's a picture of Charlie enjoying his Halloween treat bag. Normally being a camera hog, Charlie wouldn't even look at me to take a picture. He was just too enthrolled in his goody bag...especially with those candy corn!