The months of carefully planning a week-long vacation in Mexico can easily go bust when the realization sets in as you’re checking-in at the airport that your husband’s passport expired four months ago! Your face drains of all blood and your heart pounds like a rapid drum in your chest. Suddenly the air becomes so thick you can barely breath oxygen into your lungs then panic sets in. This is exactly what happened to us last month.

At the time, a flood of emotions came billowing in – shock then frustration and finally disappointment. However, it was hard for me to be angry at my husband for something unintentional and could of easily happen to anyone. The look on his face deterred any rebuke from me. He was more annoyed and livid with himself than I could ever be. There was only one option left after such a bitter  let-down – to salvage what we could of our vacation. After hours  of cajoling  and even begging the customer service representatives at both the airlines and Expedia, we were able to reschedule  our flight and hotel stay for July but not without paying a hefty penalty fee. As the saying goes, no careless mistake goes unpunished. Still, we both learned several important lessons:

1.) never book an international trip without first making sure your passport will still be valid on the anticipated date of travel;

2.) don’t give up should something go awry with your travel plans because where there is a will there is a way to get to where you want to go;

3.) good Chinese food and a delicious red wine helps curb the sting of a rough and exhausting day.

Shit happens! That’s a part of life. Maybe you whine or complain a little bit but then you cope and move on because there are bigger fish to fry.