We began our adventure by finding out our flight to LA was delayed....by two hours! We had planned a 5-hour layover to connect in LA, so at first I wasn't too alarmed by this. However, as we waited the estimated departure time kept getting pushed back and back. We spent that time waiting by a window so Evan could watch planes go by, and he played his Nabi too. When our flight got pushed back to the point that the delay was over 3 hours, I went to customer service to ask about our options. While 1.5 hours seems like it would be enough time to make a connection, that really only applies under certain conditions that did not apply to us. For one, it's best to sit at the front of the plane so you can get off your first flight quickly (we were in the back). Secondly, it's best to not have two kids to two (one of which can't walk and the other has a big bulky car seat to be toted along). Third, it's also best to not have any gate checked items to have to wait for after disembarking the plane (for us it was Evan's stroller). And fourth, it's best to have your boarding passes for your next flight already so that you don't have to leave the secure area, go to ticketing to check in, and then have to go back through security to get to your connecting departure gate (especially when you have an infant and a toddler and all that comes with them to get through security).
Emma hanging out in the stroller during our departure delay
When we boarded, I asked the people who were seated next to me if they would trade back with John and Evan. The first lady was easily willing to trade, but the other man was on the fence. He told me "I paid for this seat", so then I felt bad and figured he wasn't going to trade. To my surprise he did end up letting the trade happen. It was great to know that we'd all be at the front, and so we tried to get off the plane as soon as we could. However, the stroller still took awhile to come up at the gate check, so that was still one thing slowing us down. Then finding signs to help guide us to the check in area was also a bit confusing, but we finally made it. There was no one left in the check in line, so we went right to the counter and she checked us in. It was just under 90 minutes. After she checked us in, she told us we needed to be at the gate 1 hour before departure, which was in 10 minutes. Ha! We still had to walk to the next terminal, get through security and walk a long maze of walkways to get to the gate (it was a seriously ridiculous amount of walking). Then at the gate we had to board a bus to take us to our plane gate. Very strange. However, we made it in time (we caught what I think may have been the last bus though). Out of all of this we also managed to get a bassinet row! We got lucky because the plane wasn't fully booked I think and there weren't too many other babies. Otherwise, checking in so late would have most likely cost us getting one.
Anyway, the first flight wasn't too bad with Evan or Emma. Emma wooed the flight attendant (she gave us extra special treatment--extra water to drink and information to help us make our connection--because Emma was being so cute to her I'm sure of it!) and Evan played his Nabi and toward the end of the flight fell asleep. This meant he was asleep when we landed so that made getting him off the plane in a rush that much more difficult. Then he was pretty much in a sleepy daze as we madly rushed him through the airport to catch our connecting flight. He was crying pretty hard (like he was scared) at the security check point (luckily John asked if there was a quick lane we could go in since we were late for our connection and they let us in the priority lane!), and Emma was crying off and on too. Evan once again was crying pretty hard as we arrived to the gate, so John walked us up to the business class boarding lane and asked if we could board from there, which they let us! (I think we were getting some special treatment due to the kids...especially because they were so cranky and crying!) I'm pretty sure Emma then cried the entire bus ride to the plane and during boarding. A man in the row near us suggested I do "African squats" to help calm her. That worked, although I felt kind of odd being guided how to calm my baby by a stranger. Oh well...we made it on board and weren't going to have to stay an extra night in LA! We were on our way.
Evan ended up staying up a lot longer than I thought he would. I had figured he'd pass out as soon as we took off. Alas, he stayed up until after the dinner was served, which was at least a few more hours. When he finally fell asleep, and I got Emma into her bassinet, I tried to get some sleep too. However, a few bouts of turbulence that meant I had to move Emma onto my lap, and then the fact that Evan woke up after only sleeping four hours meant that I didn't really get more than an hour (maybe two) of sleep. Emma slept a bit longer than Evan, but she also didn't get much sleep. The jet lag confusion had already begun for these two.
Emma sleeping in her bassinet
Evan played his Nabi some more, watching movies or playing games. John tried to watch a movie, I tried to sleep some more. It was not easy, but time slowly passed. Then breakfast was served and then I started doing a final countdown until landing (but it certainly seemed to take forever still). As we began our descent, that's when things got pretty bad. Evan had really done remarkably well up until that point, but during this final 20 minutes he refused to drink anything so his ears were clearly hurting him, and he just screamed and cried the whole time. So much so that we took him out of his car seat and put him on John's lap (at the suggestion of the flight attendant, so also with an infant belt to help strap him in).
What our row looked like for the second half of the long flight
After we landed, Evan finally calmed down (reaffirming to us that his ears were the biggest part of the problem, although his sleepy confusion probably aided the issue), and we made our way through immigration and customs (we were allowed to go through the Express lane at the last minute given our "load") to meet up with Louise. Evan gave her a hug right away, and he had a lot of fun running around the airport (he'd been cooped up for so long!). Both kids fell asleep on the 1.5-hour drive to Louise's house from the airport, which was a blessing because they both needed sleep.
It was certainly warm and humid. It wasn't a terribly hot day, which was a good transition for us coming from the frigid cold we had left behind, but the humidity had us all feeling hot and sweaty. So we stripped the kids down to their diapers to help them cool off and get used to our new climate, and we all chilled out for the day. We were finally here!
Lessons learned about traveling with a toddler
After having this experience with our toddler I learned several things, just as I learned a few tips after flying with an infant on this trip a few years ago. A common thing I learned between then and now is I packed more than we needed (granted, I packed less for Emma this time as a result of what I learned about taking this trip with Evan as an infant two years ago). So, we hardly used the things I packed for Evan in his little backpack (nor did he wear that backpack more than the one time when we boarded the first airplane). His Nabi was the primary entertainment device he wanted and/or used. I had brought a sticker book (a Lightning McQueen/Cars one), foam puzzles/shapes, a few books, and his travel magna doodle. We tried the foam puzzle and sticker book during the second half of the long flight, though he was quickly not interested in either (neither are normal activities we do with him). He was too tired and/or asleep to wear his backpack during most of the other boarding/disembarking times. At least he ate most of the snacks I brought for him.
1 comment:
You are brave. :) This is like my worst nightmare but it sounds like everyone survived and it wasn't too bad- and how fun for them to get to see family and enjoy the warm weather!
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