Naturally, I have about 100 new opinions about traveling with kids, but the long and the short of it was: easy-peasy; I would do it again in an instant to AVOID the constant spring break traffic that has clogged my local interstate for the past FOUR weeks!
So, anyway, back to my airway evaluation: I have LONG thought that one of the troubles of traveling with kids is the car seat itself. They are confining. They are uncomfortable. My kids sleep in them all bowed over and look so pitiful. Safety, schmafety. I love hearing stories of families in the 70s piling up the backseat footwells with stacks of newspapers so their kids could make a bed out of the entire backseat! Unbuckeled! Awesome! Enter: the reality that on a plane these things are not needed. Both kids loved the ability to be more comfortable, choose whose lap to sit on, and so on. Man! do I wish I lived back when carseats were not the law.
On our second flight to get home, Hudson and Tucker were cuddled together on one seat, watching Cars, and loving every minute of their pretzel and ginger ale buffet. Yes, technology is a necessary partner in our flights of happiness, but we were able to survive those times when we were not allowed to use them alas they interrupt the completely unrelated technology that the pilot was using to fly the plane. Am I the only one who finds this to be total crap? Seriously? Someone's Kindle might make us fly accidentally to Canada or something.
I have to admit a total mamarrazi fail here. Despite this being Hudson, age 4, and Tucker, age 1, first airplane rides, I completely did not think to take a better picture of them both than the one seen here. Actually, I took only 3 pictures total while at the airport/on the plane. I guess I was being serious about being on vacation.
Now, I have a couple of complaints to address and I will go from least serious (to me) to the most stressing. First of all, as a mother I am not allowed to bring any peanut snacks of any kind to Hudson's classroom because for those allergic, just the dust of peanuts can be lethal. Please someone explain to me how airlines are still allowed to serve them in basically airtight tubes in the sky?
Next, the suggestion that all airplanes "have a changing station" in the bathroom is a lie. No they do not as I noted on flight #3 and if they do, as Josh noted on flight #1 and #2, they are about a 6 inch wide plastic piece over an open toilet. For real, airplane designers, throw parents a bone.
Finally, and this is worthy of a whole blogful of belly-achin': I am completely unnerved that on THREE separate flights, TWO full checks of security, not ONE person asked if I was the parent of or asked to see any documentation to allow me to fly with the children I had with me. Maybe I am the only one who is freakishly obsessed by child abductions, but PLEASE just ask my kid if I am his mommy or take a peak at those birth certificates I brought with me. It would make me feel much more "secure" if you would. Thanks!
All in all: good times. Uploading 579 pictures now. Next blog: bring popcorn!
We are getting ready to fly with our kids this summer. The last time we took a flight, they were super little but it was so much fun! I totally agree with you on the peanuts thing. Crazy!!!! lol
ReplyDelete