Meeting Finn Talon

Of course, it didn't go the way I expected.

I had an image in my mind. Busy Heathrow airport. People bustling all around. Disembark from the plane. No customs to go through, just off the plane and there they are. Mark, Kathryn, Finn in the pram. Mark and Kathryn and I have a hug and a Madeleine sandwich. I look down into the pram and say “Hello little Finn”. he smiles angelically at me. I gently pick him up and we gaze into each other's eyes.

In fact, it was quite different from that.

A while before I was due to leave, Mark sent me an email to ask, how would I feel if they sent a taxi for me. Disappointed yes. But, my brain had already been thinking about the difficulty of them getting to the airport, on the tube, with a pram. Then coming back with them, me, a pram, and all my luggage. Practicalities interfering with dreams.

So I went with that. In fact it is quite a long way from the airport to their house and would have taken about an hour and a half on the train, there and back. Not fun at all with a grizzly, tired baby, and a grizzly tired Mini.

The flight was delayed, we had to circle the airport for a while before landing. Then there was an incredible queue waiting to go through customs. Tired Madeleine, chatting to a young Australian, waiting to meet her little grandson for the first time.

More delays. Humph!! All I wanted was to get the trip over with and to finally meet little Finn.

I was told that the taxi driver would meet me at the information desk, holding up my first name. So when I finally came out of customs, I saw this wall of people, some waiting for family/friends, others holding up names. Tired from the trip and the long wait in customs, I looked around and spotted an information desk. No man with my name on a piece of paper. Started wandering, looking carefully at each piece of paper, then spotted another row of men (I think they were mainly males), in a line, so started down that line and there was my name.

The taxi driver was not very happy. He had been waiting for ages, so off he went, with me and my short, tired legs trailing behind.

When we got to the parking station, he was even more grumpy with me as well as he had had to pay something like 8 pounds for the pleasure of waiting for me. Kept making comments about me paying for it. I just said something about Mark would deal with it all.

Ages later, we finally arrived at the house.

Then there was the kerfluffle of paying the taxi driver, getting my luggage in, and Finn was asleep. Bugger!! So much for dreams.

Finally the little man woke up and Kathryn picked him up. He took one look at me and started to howl.

So much for the instant bond Mini was expecting.

Madeleine

Thursday, 20 December 2012