WHBM:
Thank you for the explanation of Stansted and Ryanair...my heart just hit my feet It seems we should have done a bit more research before making these reservations.

The prospect of a rental car is REALLY not on the list of alternatives,...dislike that experience even when I'm not in a time crunch! What I meant in my last post was hiring a car a driver....I guess I did a poor job of communicating that

In your opinion,...is it possible to accomplish this feat without tossing our current tickets and flying in the night before? ..and how long does it take to get checked in at LHR for an international flight these days?
Thanks again!
Valencia