Finally in Moscow

The trip to Moscow was guided by angels all the way. Two wonderful family members accompanied and followed us to the airport so my van would not be stranded in the Indianapolis International Airport for a year or so. They helped us get our 4 checked bags, 2 checked boxes, 4 carry-on baggage, double stroller, 3 children and 3 backpacks to the gate. The airline check-in person (though obviously irritated at the number of bags we had at first) softened when she discovered that I was traveling alone with 3 children ages 6 and under to Russia to meet my husband and 2 sons who went ahead of us by 10 days in order to get us an apartment because the first one fell through, after a delay from a dermatological emergency of sorts. Sooo....she softened, gave my accompanying help gate passes to help us all the way to the plane (through security), and even smiled. Imagine that! :D Since 9/11, I thought it was impossible to get a gate pass if you weren't a ticketed passenger. Cat's out of the bag now!

So, we make our way though security with extra graces from those personnel as well, all the way to the gate where the gate personnel worked to get us seated together (we were in 3 different rows spread out with many rows in-between). Doubtful at first that she could do so in a short time period, within 5 minutes, they announced a delay of 30 minutes because the plane hadn't arrived yet. What luck! She began calling up a few passengers and within minutes, she'd secured the back row of the plane, right next to the bathroom. If I were single or newly married, I may have been peeved about the location. But, with 3 children, it was a gift from God! After gifting me with new seat assignments, she inquired about our flights from Washington Dulles to Moscow (the LONG flight), letting me know that they were separated as well. I wasn't aware of this until that point and was very thankful for her foresight. Right then and there, she went to work and it was work, like watching a rat in a maze, encountering a road-block (exit row....no kids, only 2 together, wrong class of ticket), going back, trying a different way, over and over again for several minutes. Then she got an unforgettable gleam in her eyes, paused in thought, and then started typing with renewed energy. Have you guessed what she did...? Did you guess UPGRADE? A mom, with 3 kids, traveling solo for a 10 hour flight? What would you do? First class and she'd lose her job for sure! LOL! Business class = same result. Economy Plus....yes! Extra leg room for me, closer to the front of the plane (I could smell the mimosas from business class justs 4 rows ahead of me separated by the golden (actually blue) curtain. With a huge smile on her face, she handed me 4 tickets with grace and satisfaction for a good deed done well. I had no idea what she had done until we were on the plane to Moscow 6 hours later. I think that totally counts for Pay it Forward!

The flight to Washington Dulles was pretty short and uneventful, but the de-planing was interesting. We had to go down steps to the pavement of the airport which was wet with recent rain, which had only paused momentarily (for us to deplane I'm sure). We were obviously last off (sitting in the back row) and when we finally made it down the wet steps to the pavement, we were greeted by 2 baggage personnel who had undecipherable expressions. One man asked in a tone of disbelief, "Are you the last ones on the plane?" I smiled and said, "Yes. Where do we go from here?" He pointed to a set of steps up to the gate at the terminal that was about 50 feet away. He asked me if the 4 gate-checked bags were mine, as I was getting my youngest daughters into the stroller. I said yes, he sighed, and time stood still. It seemed like minutes, but could only have been seconds, because how long can they have civilians standing around on the airport taxi area, really? LOL! A lightbulb turned on and he beamed the same gleam in his eyes as the gate attendent earlier and exclaimed, "Come with me and follow closely!" He navigated past vehicles with luggage, pulling ours on his big cart and we shadowed him until he reached a loading area that was signed "Staff Only." He was mumbling over and over under his breath, "I can get in so much trouble for this; I shouldn't be doing this; I could get fired for this; Who left these guys in this situation?; I could get in big trouble for this, but they need my help....etc....etc....." I felt like I was witnessing a verbal battle between the devil himself and the angel on his shoulders. You know what I mean, right? - That battle where one goes back and forth with the pros and cons of doing the right or wrong thing. Well, the angel won out and he overcame the fear, got us through to the staff elevator, took us upstairs, unloaded our bags, and told me I was on my own from here, continuing the internal battle of mumbling about how he could get fired, etc...because he felt badly about leaving me there alone to figure out how to get around with 4 rolling carry-on luggage pieces, 2 girls in a stroller, 3 backpacks, and who knows how far to the next gate (Dulles is a HUGE airport). He turned to walk away and then stopped in his tracks, turned back around and said, "Where are you flying to?" I had to laugh...it was soooo funny! His torment wasn't funny, just watching the whole process was very funny. I know I've felt torn like he was before, but had no idea how it might look to others. Very funny! LOL! I told him we were flying to Moscow and he sighed again, explaining that it is usually on the other side of the airport and could require me to walk down the hall (as far as I could see) to take a shuttle to a different area, where'd have to walk a long way to get to my gate. He walked with me a short distance to the board where gates are posted. We were both shocked to find that the flight to Moscow was directly across from the elevator he brought us up. Seriously! He laughed and was on his way, shining his halo (in my mind). He is a good man, named Matt. I said, "God bless you, Matt." He said,"I could still get in trouble for this..." Ha ha!

So, if you were at the airport, had 4 hours to spend, were at the gate you were going to fly out of and didn't want to move an inch because of the massive amount of precious cargo you had with you, what would you do? Exactly. We found a set of seats along the wall that had a plug for the computer and watched NetFlix, played games on the iPad, and had some 'FaceTime' with brothers and Daddy who were eagerly anticipating our arrival in Moscow. Thankfully a sandwich place was just down the hall within sight of our seats, so we could have lunch without having to move our things with us as Ashlynn stood at the helm. The time flew by and we were on our plane in no time. We discovered our gift from the Indianapolis gate attendant (did I mention her name is Rene?). My legs were VERY thankful for the extra space! The flight was awesome in every way (yes, the food was quite good too). The unknown of immigration and baggage claim was in the forefront of my mind, but given the start we had, I was amazingly calm and sure that all would fall into place.

De-planing was easier this time and my stroller was there waiting for me at the ramp. We made our way through the tunnel and discovered a long set of stairs. I looked at the flight personnel who was sitting in a chair watching the process with detachment and asked if there was an elevator. She flatly replied, "No." This is where I put on my big girl panties and started taking the girls out of the stroller, asked Ashlynn to stay with sisters while I took her rolling carry-on and the backpacks to the bottom of the stairs, made my way back to the top of the steps to find a kind man offering to help me get the stroller down the stairs (which then prompted lazy flight personnel to get up off her rear to offer her help as well). The kind man and newly non-lazy flight personnel carried the stroller down the steps while I held carried Meghan and held Caitrin's hand down the steep flight of steps. After thanking them both and resituating the youngest into the stroller, I made my way to Immigration/Passport Control. A young Russian mother that we met at the gate in Dulles and on the plane (Meghan and her son Timothy played together so sweetly) was coming up just behind me, touched my shoulder and motioned for me to follow her. She went to the front of the very long line and stood there, motioning for me to go in front of her. She pointed at the children and me and for us to go next and that she would go after us. Amazingly enough, there was no riot and we got to go next. :D Yay!!!!

Our passports and visas were a breeze, but fitting double stroller through a single stroller-sized gate was not. The immigration personnel was flabbergasted (apparently never having experienced such a situation), talked with a colleague, came out of his special box around to my side and motioned for me to follow him. He took us through a maze, down an elevator, and then through a place where no one else was allowed to go where we saw a handicap sign (the first and only I've see since arriving here). On the other side was baggage claim. After thanking him, we made our way to the last hurdle before meeting Daddy and brothers on the other side. With 2 luggage carts, Ashlynn and I identified and retrieved all 6 of our check luggage (4 bags and 2 boxes). We loaded carts with the 6 checked pieces and 2 of the carry-ons. Ashlynn rolled one carry-on with her heavy backpack draped on top, making it a bit awkward to maneuver, but she persisted like a champ. Caitrin got down from the stroller to roll her backpack, and I put a rolling carry-on in her seat and one on top of the stroller. Carrying my back-pack, pushing the fully loaded stroller and luggage carts, I spotted the customs check 50 feet ahead of me, knowing we'd find the rest of our family on the other side. Determined to make it the final distance, I figured that Ashlynn could push one cart while rolling her unwieldy top-heavy carry-on with backpack combination while I alternated pushing one cart and the stroller. Just as we started to attempt this coordinated feat, another angel swooped in and offered to help push one of the luggage carts. He went ahead of us, talked to the customs people, unloaded the boxes and luggage from the cart, loaded them back on, and the customs people let the girls and I go without having to unload and reload our cart and other baggage in the stroller. What a gift! I was physically tired and determined not to break down until we reached the other side where my amazing husband could pick up the baton.

As we rounded the corner from Customs to the greeting area, I didn't see them first - Meghan did as she shrieked, "Daddy!!!!!" Gavin and Brendan ran past the "line" that was not to be crossed (for the first time I was thankful for their disregard for a rule) and swooped in to relieve our new friend and Ashlynn from pushing the carts as I pushed Meghan in the stroller to meet Daddy. It was a glorious reunion! Vince had arranged for 2 taxis to take us and our luggage (which fit everything perfectly) to our apartment. When we walked outside, we were greeted by beautiful fluffy white snow covering Moscow, making it a glistening jewel for all to behold - Great beginning of our adventure!