July 29th, 2023

This day was different from all the other days in that I got up at 5:45 am and got ready before finishing the last bit of packing. Once I was ready, I took Eve to the play yard to run off some energy and go to the bathroom before our flight. After Eve was taken care of, I went back to my room to give her a little food and water before heading to the airport. 

Once at the airport my instructor helped me and his other student check in our bags before getting us into the airport. After parking the car, he helped us through security and to our gates. In addition to helping us he also helped one of my other classmates, as she missed her first flight. When he got me to my gate, I thanked him profusely for everything that he had done for me throughout these three weeks. 

When walking down the jet bridge I got a little emotional, as it hit me that I was now doing all of this on my own. Once on the plane the flight attendance helped me to my seat. Getting Eve down the narrow aisles was definitely not graceful, as at one point she was walking backwards, but we got it done. Getting her to settle under the plane seat in front of me was not easy either, but after a few tries we got it done. Despite these few challenges our flight went well. 

Once arriving back at LAX the real challenge began because I had to independently get Eve to the relieving area and go to baggage claim. Going to the relieving area was easy as my dad had shown me which gate it was at before I left for Guiding Eyes. The really challenging part as I would soon find out was getting my baggage from baggage claim as I was trying to navigate it without help. Somehow, I was able to get outside with all of my stuff and Eve, but by that point I knew I would have to flag someone down to get across the street to the pickup area. Thankfully I found someone to help and I was then able to call my dad to tell him where I was. 

Once my dad picked Eve and I up we headed home. When I got home I had quite the project on my hands, as I not only had to unpack from this three-week adventure, but I also had to put my room back together after my dad and brother redid my floor while I was in class. Putting my room back together was quite the project as I had several gifts from wonderful friends and family to unbox and put away. One of the many packages I had to open was Eve’s first @BarkBox, which was movie themed. One of the toys she received was a squeaky toy that was shaped like a Root Beer bottle, which was much deserved after flying across the country. 

Eve laying on the floor smiling at the camera with a Root Beer bottle toy between her front two paws.

In between doing all of this I fed Eve and took her to her new relieving area. At about 9 PM after taking care of Eve’s needs and unboxing as much as I could, Eve and I headed to bed as we had a long day.