That Time Cody Got a Tour of a Private Jet & Something Awesome Happened

Oh my gosh, I woke up to a blue sky and sunshine and today it actually stuck around. It’s a bit chilly out there, but I can live with that if it means the sun is warm on my face when I step out onto my enclosed porch. This is the exact kind of day that Cody and I like to spend a little time at the airport. One, because he loves airplanes, and two, because I love him and being out in the sunshine. We’ll be heading there a little later, but first I need to share that airport story I’ve been promising since last Saturday.

Flight Aware Flight Tracking Website

We’ve been fortunate in that the last few Saturdays have included gorgeous sunshine and mild temperatures, so while Nick was at work (we miss him on that day) Paul, Cody, and I have been making weekly visits to our local airport. The first thing I do is check flightaware.com for any jets (they are kind of rare for a small airport like ours) scheduled to land or take off and we plan our visit accordingly. By the way, if you have a kid who loves airplanes as much as mine does, or if you’re just curious, Flight Aware is a great website where you can look up flight information based on your city or a specific airport. Okay, let’s move on to the fun that awaited us this past Saturday.

There’s this one jet that’s landed a few times when we’ve been at the airport on Saturdays and what’s really cool is that it’s literally one of the biggest the runways there can accommodate. That we get what’s essentially a front row seat to see it land, park, and then take off again is a treat like no other. I mean, it’s a HUGE jet. Oh yeah, one more little thing about this jet is that its passenger is kind of important. I mean, some people might not recognize him, but my husband and I both did the first time we saw him deboard the plane about a month ago. He would rush off in a rental vehicle and we’d sit there and just ooh and ahhh over the gorgeous jet before us. Out of respect for his privacy I’m not going to share who he is, but I can tell you he’s connected to one of my favorite professional sports teams in the whole wide world. I’m honestly a little bummed to not share exactly who he is because what he did last Saturday was kind, generous, and pretty unforgettable and I’d love to shout it from the rooftops, but it just goes to show he did what he did simply because he wanted to put a bigger smile on Cody’s face.

Like I mentioned, Mr. Kindness usually rushes off when he arrives at our airport, but last Saturday he did something totally unexpected. He walked over to his rental vehicle, put his coat inside, and then came over to us and asked if Cody liked airplanes. Of course I said he LOVES them and then he said he had seen us out there on previous Saturdays and always noticed Cody’s excitement and wondered if Cody would like go ON BOARD and see the inside of the plane. WHAT?!?! I’m not sure what’s cooler here. The fact he noticed my kid or the fact he invited him onto the plane, ahem, a plane that a certain quarterback and his family might have flown on a time or five. Let’s just say you never have to ask Cody twice if he’d like to see the inside of an airplane because he loves them, especially the cockpit. I encouraged Paul to go with Cody, but he was a bit in shock and couldn’t seem to pick his jaw up from the ground, so I went with him. I have a feeling Paul will regret that decision because once in a lifetime and all that jazz.

Gorgeous, fancy, and luxurious are all words that come to mind when describing the inside of that airplane, but they’d also be understatements. I wish I had asked for permission to take photos, but I was so nervous and focused on Cody and Mr. Kindness’s personal tour that I totally forgot. It’s a memory I’ll never forget, though, and I have a feeling Cody won’t, either. The generosity didn’t end when we walked back down to earth, though, because Mr. Kindness then graciously took a photo with Cody (I seriously wish I could show you the huge smile on both their faces) and gave him a hat. Not just any old hat. A championship hat and I can still remember exactly what he said, with a big sincere smile on his face, when he handed it to him. I love the Celtics (Cody wears his Celtics hat practically everywhere he goes), but I think you need one of these hats, too. Or something pretty close to that, anyway. Cody immediately put on the hat and he didn’t take it off the rest of the day. And then like Cinderella’s fairy godmother Mr. K hopped into his chariot and was gone just like that. Paul and I looked with envious eyes at Cody’s new hat and believe it or not, the story doesn’t end there.

Not to be a tease, but I hope you’ll come back soon for the rest of the story.