There & Back Again: A Mommy's Travel Tale
A week & a half ago, Benjamin & I flew to the East Coast. One of my dearest friends, a past BYU & Annapolis roommate, lives there with her husband and three boys. It had been over 5 years since our last visit and I was so excited to see them. I just had one fear to overcome: a coast-to-coast flight with a very busy toddler.
I wish the map above was how our plane trip looked. However, it did not because I am cheap and bought crazy good tickets... until I truly understood why they were "crazy good". Here is the flight breakdown:
Left Seattle, WA @ 1pm (PST) - 1 hr 55 min flight. B screamed the minute we boarded the airplane. I was able to calm him down after about 15 minutes, but not before a man in front of me started complaining.
Arrived in Reno, NV @ 3pm (PST) - no plane change; 1 hour flight
Arrived in Las Vegas, NV @ 4:45pm (PST) - ran like crazy to catch the connection (20 minutes through the airport with stroller, child, carseat and carry-ons); flight was delayed.
Arrived in Norfolk, VA @ 1am (EST) - exhausted, I collapsed into Tiffany's minivan, relieved to be free of the confines of the cozy airplane seats and finished with our 5.5-hour flight.
The visit was so good; I was able to just sit & relax, catching up with Tiffany and Trevor while our boys played together. It was fun to see their beautiful home, their lovely neighborhood, their city and I even got to go on a run with Tiffany one morning - exhilirating and absolutely wonderful to breathe in that salty Atlantic Ocean air!
But, I had forgotten how the time difference affects you, the toll it takes on your body. The fatigue makes you feel crazy. I forgot how long it takes to recover, how long it takes until you feel normal. The difference threw off Benjamin's sleep and napping schedules too, so he was more tired and cranky than usual. And just when we were getting used to living on that new East Coast time, we hopped back on a plane. Here is the return flight breakdown:
Left Norfolk, VA @ 9:55am (EST) - 55 min flight/full flight, but they squeezed in B's carseat (thank goodness!)
Arrived in Baltimore, MD @ 10:40am (EST) - 2-hr layover; after lunch, Benjamin literally passed out on my shoulder (not normal for him). I was able to put him in his carseat, get loaded on the plane... and then sit on the tarmac for an hour, waiting, waiting and wasting precious sleep time that could have been precious "sleep during flight" time. 2 hr 5 min flight/full flight, but again, they squeezed in B's carseat (thank goodness!) Unfortunately, he awoke very upset and kicked mercilessly at the seat in front of us. After several very nasty glares from the women in the reclined seat, she made a huge ruckus and had the flight attendant move her to a different seat. Felt frustrated and defeated, but what do you do?
Arrived in St. Louis, MO @ 2:00pm (CT) - no plane change, but were told flight was absolutely full, so made me check B's carseat (gasp!). Braced self for 4.5 hour flight with very tired, very busy child - who would no longer be in a 5-point restraint carseat, but just two-handed restraint. Epic wrestling match ensued, which included scratches, whacks, crying, screaming, reading, throwing, singing, more singing, crawling, scrambling, eating, more eating, drinking and a very wet diaper which leaked through his pants and onto mine - and of course, I forgot a change of clothes for him. I remember asking someone the time and when they said we were only halfway to Seattle, I tried to hold back the tears and prayed for warp speed ahead. Oh, and of course, the seat next to me? Empty the whole flight.
Arrived in Seattle, WA @6pm (PST) - I have NEVER been so happy to see the grey skies of Seattle appear out of the airplane window. Never. And I have never been so happy to see Mark & Linda - major thanks, guys - at the terminal to help me lug all of my travel gear. It was a priceless moment for very worn-out travelers.
So, the big question people have asked - would I do it again? Yes - and no. Seeing dear friends was worth all of the stress and craziness of the trip, and I bow down to single parents who do this all the time, but I don't know if I could do it again... at least not exactly the way I did it this time.
Next time, I'd consider buying him his own seat, bringing different foods or toys, or buying a more expensive, non-stop flight to make it a shorter travel day. But the one sure thing I would definitely change? Dave would be in the seat next to me to share in the wrestling time! We sure missed him, in more ways than one.
(Pictures of our adventures will follow soon - just trying to get them organized, photoshopped and blog-ready!)
3 comments:
the only time I've been on a plane with a kid was when Elora was 8 months old, and we were only flying to Utah. Whenever she got fussy, I'd pull out a blanket and nurse her till she fell asleep! I don't know what I'd do with an older toddler.
Sounds like you did well. I have a really hard time with people who complain about kids/babies, when they don't have one and there's nothing you can do about yours. I would have probably cried, or become really nasty.
Direct nonstop flights are a MUST when you have kids! It's crazy enough doing it wih kids and on your own. Good job to you, but I'm sure it was so stressful. Glad you had fun with your friend.
Oh wow. You made me cringe just reading about the flights. I have never flown with either of our kids yet and to be honest I think I've always been too scared to. Not that I wouldn't do it, but I guess I'm just glad we haven't had to cross that road yet.
It is SO hard. I totally remember being "the other passengers" and not ever having had kids before, listening to someone else's kid scream nonstop and though I felt bad for the parent, it was frustrating for me too. HOwever now that I AM a parent, it is so different. I now know that the parent is just as frustrated, if not more, than I am as the passenger.
A friend of mine is from Holland and she has travelled 3 different times with her son to/from and he handles it well now, but the first time she went over there with him he was only about 18 months old and he was a lot like B - just really restless and didn't want to have anything to do with anyone telling him to settle down or hold him down. She said the row of people behind her were complaining nonstop in German the entire time, and after a few hours she finally turned around and replied to them, in German. She said the looks on their faces were priceless because they had no idea that she spoke German and realized that she had understood everything they were saying the entire time. They were really embarrassed after that. I think she said something like "Would you like to hold my child and try to get him to stop screaming for the rest of the flight? because if you think you can do a better job then please be my guest." I guess they were quiet for the rest of the time. I believe she did finally give into giving him some benedryl, even though it wasn't her first choice, but it was like a 20 hour flight and that is a Loooooooong time to be cooped up.
You did great though and I admire your patience. I can't beleive someone complained about you guys only after 15 min. Geez.
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