On the last morning in Mexico we slept in a bit later and packed up our suitcases. Ryan and I got a ride to the front lobby and dropped off our luggage. We ate breakfast and talked about not wanting to leave. It's never easy to leave a vacation and go back to the real world, but it's extra hard when you are in Mexico! Don't worry MX, we'll be back...soon!
After we got checked out, we headed to our bus that took us to the airport! 
On the bus we shared lots of laughs with our friendly guide from Apple Vacations. I don't remember everything he said, but at one point he told us not to be afraid of the men holding machine guns because they were there to protect us from the bad guys. We felt so safe... I also had a woman behind me that was tooting and slamming the bus window with her fist...I finally turned around. She rudely explained that there was a fly...seriously! I guess she was sad they were headed home as well!
Jon got his picture made with the Mad Hatter and the Queen of Hearts in the Cancun airport. We then had a super healthy lunch at Domino's. It was not greasy at all (hint of sarcasm)! We looked at some of the shops and made our way on the plane from Cancun to Miami! We were greeted with a friendly woman pilot's voice that told us to enjoy our flight and that we did. I read "Safe Haven" by Nicholas Sparks and was about halfway through at an adventurous part when we landed in Miami.
We had a 2 or 3 hour layover in Miami, so we enjoyed a 5:00 dinner. We ate at none other than a Mexican restaurant (you'd think we be tired of chips and dip). It was not pleasant to pay $8 for chips and dip in the aeropuerto though! Afterwards we found our seats near our departure desk. Around 7:00 we were loading the plane.
This is when I got a funny feeling. It all started when we dropped it off in a not so protected area. Anyone could have taken it and we would have never seen it again. Miami didn't seem as serious as Atlanta is. While we were boarding the plane there were several Agents that were checking passports/IDs in the hallway to the plane. We had also been googling about Air Marshals and trying to spot ours. That was enough to shake my nerves. Then, once on the plane Captain Callahan came over the plane speaker. He announced that we would have a 15 minute delay landing in Atlanta, but he'd keep us posted!
About 8:30 we were greeted with the sight of lightning flashes below us! Then Captain Callahan came over the intercom and said we'd need to circle the ground and wait to land. I noticed the city below us no longer looked like Atlanta and we later found out it was Macon. During this time I tried to read my book and not worry, but it grew harder and harder. We would hit rough patches and people (us included) were bouncing out of their seats and some were literally screaming! It was a roller coaster ride and we wanted off!
After about an hour and a half of getting updates we were told that we needed to get gas before we ran out. I started praying and trying to stay calm. We diverted to Huntsville, AL and arrived a little after 11 pm. I called my sister who was waiting to pick us up with Abby. I felt terrible that they had to hang out in the airport for what was supposed to be 10 minutes and was now over 2 hours. Erin told me the attendant at baggage claim laughed over the speaker when she announced our flight was a bit delayed. We were not allowed to get off the plane, so we sat parked at the Huntsville airport for an hour or so. While we were landed, I walked back to where Danielle and Jonathan were sitting. Danielle was READY to get off. We talked about renting a car although that would not have been a smart idea, seeing as we were exhausted. Why does flying do that to you?
Captain Callahan announced a little after midnight that we were able to land in Atlanta and to prepare for takeoff. By now I was ready to scream. I was honestly thinking we might all die. I know...morbid, but my goodness this was a crazy flight.
I continued reading and FINISHED my book (one good thing from that flight) and we landed safely in Atlanta. Erin and Abby were there to greet us and make us smile! Thanks girls!
We waited until 4 am to get our luggage and finally were on the road home! We laughed and relived our fabulous vacation the whole way to the house! Erin and Abby joined in the story telling.
{Danielle's eyes told it all...we were over this ride!}
{2 am and a bit out of it, but super thankful for a safe landing!}
All in all, we had a FABULOUS trip with memories that will last for years! We can't wait to travel with the Butler's again soon. They are so giving, funny, and Godly. We loved our time!
To check out Danielle's side of the story...go HERE!
