Glad they switched you on the flights.
I also drop my bichon off the day before and that seems to be really when I put everything into the suitcase (instead of just lying around it). She seems to get less upset if she doesn't think that I am leaving her. LOL She stays there a lot for day care so it is a routine that I leave her at times in the morning when I go to work.
The things we do for our 'babies'.