Tag Archives: flying

Jan 11 2016

Places I Do Not Belong

Posted by Musings & Misc. 3 Comments
Places I Do Not Belong

We’ve been back in California for a week now, and while I enjoyed our Michigan visit immensely, I returned with the vague feeling that I don’t quite belong anywhere anymore.

Don’t get me wrong: in a lot of ways, it was the most relaxed I’ve been in months. It was incredibly fulfilling to be with our family and friends again, and SUCH A RELIEF to know that help was nearby if we needed to call upon our village. I was able to just zip away to brunch with the girls. I was able to see P and B fall in love with their grandparents again. I was able to have an actual dinner with my husband. There were way more sets of hands to change diapers, give hugs, and mold Play-Doh. My daughter’s tantrums (a very recent and totally unwelcome occurrence in our household) vanished after just a few Michigan days. She was a better person when there were more people around to love her. We were all better people, I think. Continue reading →

Dec 20 2015

I’ll Be…Home?…for Christmas

Posted by Travels & Experiences 12 Comments
I’ll Be…Home?…for Christmas

In a few days, Lord willing, I will be back in Michigan for the first time since May.

I imagine this flight will be just a smidge different than when we flew out here in the Spring. Back then, it was just the three of us, which was overwhelming enough; this time, we’re flying with four — there are two kids and two adults, but somehow I feel outnumbered.

B is so young that he doesn’t need his own seat. At first, we were like, “Woot! Look at us, saving money!” — especially since it is already costing us a full month’s rent to fly home. But then we were like, “WAIT. He doesn’t have his own SEAT.” That means someone will have to hold him the entire time. For almost five hours. Unlike P, he’s not a sleep-in-your-arms sort of baby (which I’m fairly sure is my fault, and is the source of much mommy guilt, but that’s a story for another day). He is generally pretty mellow, but simultaneously wriggly and squirmy and enjoys a nice change of scenery every now and then. Unknown: how he will handle being cooped up in the same tiny space for that long.

Continue reading →

May 24 2015

An Indefinite Vacation

Posted by Moving 4 Comments
An Indefinite Vacation

We officially, as a family, moved to California on Saturday, May 16. Al flew home to help with the movers and to assist with the whole flying-with-a-two-year-old thing.

When the plane touched down, I felt the same rush of relief I always do. We grabbed our luggage — one suitcase each, plus a car seat — from the carousel. Standard issue. In fact, everything felt just like every other trip I’ve ever taken (except now we had a child with us). Sitting with Peaches, waiting for Al to pick us up in the rental car, I looked around at all the travelers and thought, We are just on vacation. We were going to take Peaches to the ocean, show her some sights, and then we were going to board a plane again and head home. Right?

The flight.
I was semi-dreading a four-and-a-half hour flight with a toddler. P has flown once, for forty-five minutes — she was ten months old and slept in my lap the whole trip.

This time, there was no sleeping. Continue reading →

Mar 31 2015

This Is What It’s Like When I Fly

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This Is What It’s Like When I Fly

I’m on a plane.

Right this very second, I am several miles in the air. MILES. We’re flying back to Michigan after our house-hunting trip. And as I always do on any flight, I am panicking just a little bit.

Generally, if you’re not a superfan of flying, your biggest fear is probably that the plane will crash. Me? Continue reading →