Flying
We flew to Oregon two days before the kids turned 2, so we didn't have to buy them seats. Score! They slept on the first (short) flight to Dallas, then stayed awake from DFW to Portland. We entertained them by feeding them snacks, playing with toys, sticking stickers on everything, walking up and down the aisle, and watching videos on our Kindles. Gus flung some applesauce on our nicely-dressed seat neighbor and Gibson got a big goose egg by conking his head on a seat. Those were the only incidents to report! No lost luggage, no creepy old ladies trying to get the kids to eat Cheerios out of her mouth, not too much screaming.
On the flights back home to Memphis, the boys got their own seats, since they'd had a birthday. We hauled their gigantic car seats with us through the airport. My luggage cart + bungee cord transport system didn't work quite as well as I'd hoped, but I think it was still better than trying to just free-hand carry them. And with their car seats on the plane, they boys did great! We flew through Denver, which meant we had two medium-length flights. Both kids napped for a bit on the first flight. Gus even slept through the really turbulent descent into Denver! (I, meanwhile, was awake and really not enjoying the bouncing...)
We had a THREE HOUR layover before our next flight. Sheesh! Not what I had originally booked - the flight schedule changed after I bought the tickets. The boys bounded up and down the moving walkways, and I attempted to hold onto their frog backpack leashes while they lunged in opposite directions. They pretended to talk on all of the pay phones/courtesy phones they could find. And, they found a display with about 300 flyers advertising United's credit card, which they threw on the floor and "swam" on top of. All of these antics seemed to amuse our fellow passengers during their layovers :)
DF found a yogurt parfait with blueberries, so that's what the boys ate for dinner. (Their lunch had been french fries...) Then we boarded the flight to Memphis and found out the seats had these handy little pockets we could rest the Kindles in so the boys could watch videos more easily. Score! And we saw some fireworks from the sky as we were making our landing.
Meeting New People
I don't think Gus or Gibson remember taking a trip last summer, so for them, it was pretty much like meeting a bunch of new people again. They did really well! They did seem to recognize their grandparents, aunt, and uncle from a family photo that we have at our house. But they were fairly flexible and friendly with lots of other people, too. Auntie Hipster threw a birthday party for them, and they had fun playing with the other kids who came. They even stayed in the nursery at my parents' church without too much of a fuss. They wouldn't sit on Great Grandma's lap for a photo, however...you can't win 'em all.
New Foods
They boys ate their first ice cream cones at Dairy Queen! They've had ice cream before, but not in a cone. They thought the cone was gross and spit out any little pieces they accidentally bit off, haha.
I think this was also their first time trying Jello. They like it! But it wasn't a good idea to feed Gibson red Jello when he was wearing a white shirt. Good thing Grandma has stain remover!
Beach Time
We stayed at the coast for a few days and it was so much better than last year, when the babies had hand-foot-mouth disease and spent most nights wailing. Plus they were not fans of sand. Oh dear, it wasn't very relaxing. This time, though, they were healthy (yay!) and excited to play on the beach (double yay!) Gus especially loved splashing in the ocean. They both liked digging in the sand, and no one tried to eat more than a mouthful.
Overall Pros (kid-related)
- Slept well
- Ate sufficiently
- Everyone stayed healthy
- Played on fun playgrounds
- Learned new words (chair, pumpernickel...)
- Good memories with family and friends
Overall Cons (kid-related)
- Gibson shattered a glass ball and startled everyone, including himself
- Tried to eat semi-toxic foxgloves
- Gus still hates bath time
I'd say the Pros outweigh the Cons! Guess this means we can take another trip someday :)
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