Back in the New York groove.

I am happy to report that I will be home for the holidays!

Mom and I were stuck an extra two nights in New Orleans, which we mostly spent Mom-travel-style (days spent sitting in coffee shops and park benches around the French Quarter and evenings in the hotel room watching "What Not To Wear," "Say Yes to the Dress," "Elf" and "The Wizard of Oz.")

We arrived at the airport this morning at 7:30 am, nervous about what to expect. Weather looked bad in Newark. My iPhone weather application was sprinkled with snow. We got there early and our flight to Houston was already delayed, so we tried to get on the earlier flight which then got delayed as well, meaning we'd never make our connection to Newark. New Orleans is one thing, the last thing I wanted was to get stuck in Houston. Their airport is named George Bush...is that a way you'd want to spend Christmas? (No joke, I heard one of the travel agents tell a passenger there were no flights until Christmas Day! So the nerves was on. I told my mom, if we get stuck for the holidays, at least we have each other.)

Somehow, I manage to get us on a direct flight from New Orleans in the afternoon that the flight attendant told me had a good chance of being canceled. I took my chances.

When the flight was delayed for three hours, it was like deja vu of Friday's mess, but then suddenly, miraculously, we began boarding. We were going home.

Never in my life have I been so happy to see Newark, NJ, even though it's 29 degrees and feels like the North Pole. (New Orleans was a balmy 70 degrees the week we were there, so I was shivering my my jean jacket). The runways in Newark were covered in slushy snow and at one point, I am certain the plane skidded a bit, but I was more excited than scared.

So now, it's back home, wedding decisions to be made, cookies to be baked, presents to be wrapped. And after my long hiatus, I am finally motivated to hit the gym. It's the daily dose of fried shrimp that did it. And come on, let's be real now...I won't be starting until after Christmas.