You guys,
Greetings from St. Kitts!
We experienced our first plane ride with two babies under 2 years old and I’ve decided there’s only one thing that makes or breaks traveling with kids:
The people sitting around you.
George started wailing shortly after we boarded the plane. I had Layla strapped to my chest while Sam and my in-laws scrambled to put all our luggage in overhead compartments. George stood in the aisle as I tried to calm him down by patting him on the head.
I had a sinking feeling we were about to be that family on the plane with the screaming kids that no one wanted to be near.
Then a man standing in the aisle announced, “There’s a whole plane that needs to board.”
He rolled his eyes, clearly annoyed, as he finally passed through.
The man sitting in the row behind us sat with his wife and pre-teen daughter. He looked from Sam to me:
“Some people just aren’t nice.”
It was such a simple gesture but I could have cried I was so grateful for this family sitting behind us. They were completely unperturbed by our screaming son.
In the row behind them, a woman spoke up. “How far apart are they in age?”
I told her 17 months.
“Same as me and my sister! And we’re best friends.”
Sam and I loved hearing this. The nice lady introduced us to her daughter in the seat next to her who looked to be about 10 years old, and her teenage twins on the other side of the aisle.
During the flight, the 10-year-old told me how adorable Layla was and the teenagers somehow managed to turn my son's cries into laughter just by looking at him.
Some people are just nice.
So Much Poop
Layla pooped through three plane outfits.
Blowouts are normal but three in one day was a record. We finally put her in her brother’s backup plane outfit or she would have descended in a diaper.
George was the one we reeeeeally didn’t want to poop. Because they’re basically like big, wet adult poops that “stink to high heaven” as Sam always says.
So of course George pooped on the plane. We saw the patented hold-his-breath, red-faced, stare-you-in-the-eyes-as-he-does-it poop face. Sam looked at me and said, “If he pooped through we’re fucked,” which felt extra dramatic.
We moved swiftly. George didn’t poop through. We promptly removed the dirty diapers from the area.
What saved us through all those diaper changes was sitting in the exit row. We had enough space in front of us to change them at our feet.
When the flight attendant politely informed us there were changing stations in the bathroom (can you even imagine?? I can barely fit in there by myself), Sam told her some things are just easier to do with the both of us.
The flight attendant said she understood and left us alone. Exit row for the win.
iPad Fail
We loaded up the iPad with kid apps and animated Dr. Suess books. We bought one of those kid proof covers. We were ready for screen time.
But George never used an iPad before this trip so all he wanted to do was press the home screen button, mess up all Sam’s settings, put the iPad on the floor, and stomp on it.
Lower Your Expectations
The flight lasted from 11:30am-3pm and George naps every day from 12-3pm.
This was perfect. He was going to sleep for most of the flight! Sam was pleased with this timing. He even brought one of those stupid neck pillows so he could doze while George napped on him.
Good one.
George didn’t sleep a wink. He whined, screamed, yelled, pinched, bit, and cried.
He laughed a few times.
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Until next week,
Charlie