Last weekend, I embarked on a new adventure: taking Abby on a plane by myself. I knew it could be tricky to have her in my seat with no other help, so I planned accordingly: lots of snacks, a DVD player, 3 DVDs, a book, toys and a prayer that she'd take a nap.
On the way to Chicago, we were very lucky that the flight was on time, and while there were no empty seats so we could spread out, she did pretty well on the flight. She was curious and wanted to play with the man next to us (who was trying to sleep) and played with/munched on the American Airlines menu, in-between lunch and playing with (not watching) her DVD. [Oh, and note to self: do not bring anything with red sauce for food on a plane, as it will end up on the seat, window and clothing. Oops.] She didn't nap but of course she did fall asleep in her stroller when I was waiting for my rental car at the airport. Oh well.
We had a lovely weekend, seeing family & friends and going to a work event. Abby had a lot of fun exploring her Grandma's apartment and checking out her new surroundings.
And then we had to leave. As it was, I was dreading the trip home alone - the way there wasn't terrible but it wasn't terribly easy, either. We boarded the very full plane on time, taxied out to the runway....and sat there for TWO HOURS while we waited for good ol' LGA to let us fly out. OMG. My worst fear had come true. And of course they don't tell you it's going to be 2 hours, they let you think that it will only be "30 minutes" or "15 more minutes" which we kept hearing over and over. The plane was hot and crowded and Abby did not want any part of sitting in a tiny seat on my lap. She wasn't crying but she wasn't exactly having a ball, though either was I, as I tried to give her snacks, play her DVD and entertain a 13-month-old in a 4" x 4" space. She didn't want to nap and did, however, enjoy touching the guy next to us with her messy little fingers.
Alas, we took off 2 hours late and both of us were exhausted. My little munchkin fell asleep on my lap 3 hours after we first boarded the plane, and not a moment too soon to give mommy a break. She was so wiped out that she didn't wake up for those annoying "flight attendants, prepare for landing" announcements, the actual landing or when the seatbelt sign went off. I had to wake her up so I could get my bags together and get off the plane.
We then had to wait while daddy and Sadie made their way through Sunday night traffic to get us at the airport, with me feeding her dinner in her stroller. She finally went to sleep around 9:45 pm and like my child, slept until 9:15 am the next day! I wish I had done that, too, since I needed a vacation from that day!
All in all, she was such a good baby but I learned a valuable lesson: spend the extra cash to buy the baby his/her own seat when you are traveling alone (unless they are really tiny) - it's worth it to be able to spread out and not have to hold him/her on your lap for hours! Our next flight with Abby is in late September, also to Chicago, but this time daddy will be doing all the work!
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