A travel tale

[peppier]

What is the name of your state? NM

A little off topic but something to think about.

My ex DIL will not spend the extra money to fly the kids to the airport in the town where my son lives. She flies them to Denver and has a friend pick them up and take them to my son, a good 5 hr drive in good weather.

The friend picked them up yesterday and they drove to Denver and stayed in a hotel. They were late getting to the airport for some reasong and then she somehow got separated from the kids in the airport! My granddaughter is very level-headed and found an airline employee and they got them on the plane which had been delayed for them so it was all a rush and they never saw the friend again before they got on their plane.

Anyway, this poor girl who had taken them to the airport could get no information because she wasn't the children's parent or a relative!? I don't know how long she spent begging for information in the airport and then finally called their mother who called the airline and got the information that the kids were on the plane but I understand that the friend was pretty hysterical and I don't blame her. Not knowing where they were for over an hour and wondering what could have happened.

Just something to think about in these days when there is so much confusion with custody and visitation and privacy. I'm glad I didn't know anything about it until they were safe at home.

 

[TinkerBelleLuvr]

I remember when my mom took my kids to South America. Of course, I sent her with notarized statement that she was allowed to have the children out of the country. I had seen Home Alone and Home Alone II by this time.

I sent my children with waist packs that had their passports and their itinerary in each one. They were instructed that if they were separated, they were to find someone in an airline uniform to help get them to the gate, etc.

In this woman's case, I would recommend that each parent give the friend a notarized statement that she is the 'custodian' of the children during transport and that she have full access to information until they arrive in their final destination.

 

[peppier]

I didn't realize I put this in custody

This just wasn't anything I ever thought of. I try to teach them what to do in different scenarios just for their own protection but I never thought of this one. It would have helped if they had cell phones but that's a different subject.

 

[mommyof4]

Your son needs to have the custody order modified so that it states that the children must be flown to the airport nearest to him. I'm really a little surprised that that is not specified already. (I am, of course, making the huge assumption that there IS an airport that supports commercial airlines closer to him.)

I know what a difficult time my relatives had last week getting from Chicago to Aspen. NOT a situation that anybody should have been having to drive in if it was at all possible to avoid that danger.

 

[TinkerBelleLuvr]

Your son needs to have the custody order modified so that it states that the children must be flown to the airport nearest to him. I'm really a little surprised that that is not specified already. (I am, of course, making the huge assumption that there IS an airport that supports commercial airlines closer to him.)

I know what a difficult time my relatives had last week getting from Chicago to Aspen. NOT a situation that anybody should have been having to drive in if it was at all possible to avoid that danger.

I know that IF mine goes for modification, it will have it in it. I have a perfectly good airport 35 miles from my house and my X likes to fly her into the one that is 90 miles from my house. I have on occasion used the farther one out, but only when absolutely necessary. He does it just to p*** me off.

 

[hearts41]

Your son needs to have the custody order modified so that it states that the children must be flown to the airport nearest to him. I'm really a little surprised that that is not specified already. (I am, of course, making the huge assumption that there IS an airport that supports commercial airlines closer to him.)

I know what a difficult time my relatives had last week getting from Chicago to Aspen. NOT a situation that anybody should have been having to drive in if it was at all possible to avoid that danger.

I have four children, two from one x two from another, my two oldest are over the age of 18 now and all the custody and support junk is over with, PRAISE GOD! But we stipulated everything when it came to transportation because if it was not spelled out he would find a loop hole, he was/is a real snake.

hearts

 

[frylover]

I know that IF mine goes for modification, it will have it in it. I have a perfectly good airport 35 miles from my house and my X likes to fly her into the one that is 90 miles from my house. I have on occasion used the farther one out, but only when absolutely necessary. He does it just to p*** me off.

Ginny, I've read some of your stuff and your ex is a piece of work!

Just out of curiosity, should it end up in court, would he an INTELLIGENT reason for doing this, or just "because I wanna!"

 

[TinkerBelleLuvr]

Ginny, I've read some of your stuff and your ex is a piece of work!

Just out of curiosity, should it end up in court, would he an INTELLIGENT reason for doing this, or just "because I wanna!"

The court system would LOVE for me to go back and clarify, but I won't open up the case. I suspect my X will want to open it up to time it for summer parenting time with my daughter. The court order states we each get 1/2 the summer. I've always given more. I'm half tempted to keep it at half - the little brat in me is saying to do it. The big person in me says that I should give an additional 2-3 weeks. I will NOT put her not on the plane for this summer without it being confirmed. Therefore, I expect a fight on my hands. (PS - he expects 100% of the summer.)

 

[frylover]

Jeez....the stuff some of you guys have to put up with!

What I meant was, does he have an intelligent reason for choosing an airport that is a major inconvenience for you when there is a perfectly good one much closer. Is he really dumb enough to say, "because I want to make my ex's life difficult!"

 

[peppier]

Your son needs to have the custody order modified so that it states that the children must be flown to the airport nearest to him. to avoid that danger.

I agree but I don't think he wants to go back to court again anytime soon. He only lives about 3 miles from the nearest airport. We'll see what happens at Spring Break maybe this taught her a lesson.

 

[TinkerBelleLuvr]

Jeez....the stuff some of you guys have to put up with!

What I meant was, does he have an intelligent reason for choosing an airport that is a major inconvenience for you when there is a perfectly good one much closer. Is he really dumb enough to say, "because I want to make my ex's life difficult!"

He squawked that **I** would be so insistant about going to the airport that was 35 miles from my house when **HE** has to drive 77 miles. If we were going by that, then **HE** should have to drive to the regional airport that is 40 miles so that **I** have to drive 130 miles to an airport. I think you get the drift.

He was howling in court about having to pay for tickets for SweetPea to go up there. I purchased her return ticket in JUNE for her return on Sunday. **HE** purchased round trip tickets with my daughter returning on MONDAY to the farther airport. (The court order has us splitting transporation. Because it doesn't state HOW it is split, the enforcement office says - he pays going up, I pay returning.)

I tell you - it is just to stick it to me. It is NOT for the best interest of the child. It's okay for us to get home at 11:30 at night on a school night. I just don't get it.

So, if he returns her on Monday, I'll write my protest letter to the courts and use the ticket money I paid for to go to California in April. I'm VERY good at making lemonade. I just have to make sure I use Sweet 'n' Low, otherwise it'll make me too round.

 

[frylover]

What a complete a**!

I am SO sorry!

 

[mommyof4]

I have four children, two from one x two from another, my two oldest are over the age of 18 now and all the custody and support junk is over with, PRAISE GOD! But we stipulated everything when it came to transportation because if it was not spelled out he would find a loop hole, he was/is a real snake.

hearts

Yep, we did, too.

It's funny, at first, I was to purchase the tickets. He complained that I didn't get the ones he wanted. (Of course, I went for the cheapest because I was paying for them, but she ALWAYS flew into the nearest airport and at a reasonable hour). On the first modification, I agreed to allow him to purchase the tickets. He thought the court would order ME to continue to pay for them while he would have the control of the times, airport, etc. NOPE! The judge made HIM pay for the tickets after he found out that the Ahole was so far behind in CS. He then tried to get the judge to order that he would not have to pay CS. The judge told him, "not a chance. You have a proven history of willful non-payment of child support and I see no reason to give you a pass." (It came out ---by me, of course---that he had access to buddy passes for two different airlines).

Of course, now, with no visitation, it's not an issue. But it was a more amusing moment in the saga.

 

[frylover]

Ok, this COULD be considered a hijcack, but since the OP was mostly posting info and not a question, I'm gonna risk it.

All of you who have to buy all these plane tickets all these times a year...what's the best route to cheap flights? Do those online sites that brag "cheap airfare" really work?

 

[TinkerBelleLuvr]

Ok, this COULD be considered a hijcack, but since the OP was mostly posting info and not a question, I'm gonna risk it.

All of you who have to buy all these plane tickets all these times a year...what's the best route to cheap flights? Do those online sites that brag "cheap airfare" really work?

You cannot use Travel**** or Ex***** to purchase unaccompanied minor tickets. An adult has to be traveling with them. I use Southwest who allows me to purchase online. The beauty is that it costs the same whether I buy 1 way or 2 one-way (round trip) or a round trip. Each leg has their own price. And the 'I didn't fly' policy is great. Don't know about the other airlines. Also, there is NO additional cost for the unaccompanied on Southwest.