All's well...

Japan AQS says the dogs are good to enter the country!  Instead of driving around two different states I can take the dogs on a last "leash-less" hike.

All that running around means you have to
cool off (and drink) from the creek!

After that, the dogs need a bath, I finish with the final pictures of the house, we return the air mattresses to their (wrong) owners (they realized the mistake and thankfully were able to get it straightened out afterwards) and we're off to Atlanta.

Tip from my friend Tari - a little "story" about the dog
taped to her kennel.

I'm very grateful the hotel was able to keep the dogs' buckets of water in their freezer for us.  That was a tip I read online, so the water wouldn't slosh around inside the kennel during boarding.  The next morning all went well with check-in at the airport and the dogs behaved wonderfully.

Delta was great!  While waiting to board, I started talking with a pilot who was deadheading to Tokyo.  He told me to check with the head attendant to make sure the dogs were put on our flight.  So I ask her to verify the dogs are on our plane, and I wait for her to get back with me.  Meanwhile our departure time has passed and we're still sitting at the gate.  I'm starting to get more nervous (I'm already nervous).  The pilot comes on and says there's an issue with some suitcases that need to be removed from cargo.  I'm wondering if that's code for "we have two loose dogs running around the tarmac."

The head attendant comes to me and says the pilots want to talk to me.  I can't tell if this means good news or bad news.  I think I'm shaking by the time I reach the cockpit.  But all is well!  The pilots just wanted to personally let me know the dogs are on board and they will make sure the environmental systems are good for them.  I resist the urge to pull out pictures to show the pilots how cute and adorable they are.  And yes, the delay is due to suitcases, not the dogs.

The good dogs on their way to board the plane.

Now I only have fifteen hours to worry about how the dogs will do during the flight.