We Did It!

We survived our plane ride across the country!

I had been dreading that airplane ride since we made the final decision to move to Toledo. I knew Landon hated riding the car and now that he wants to move around, I knew he would not be thrilled about sitting in a small area for 5.5 hours.

I prepared the best way I knew how.
     I read basically every, "How to fly with your baby" article on the internet.
     I packed a diaper bag and suit case full of toys.
     We made sure he was hungry enough to eat when we took off and while we were descending.
     I had his favorite blanket ready for him just incase we got lucky enough for him to take a nap.
     I downloaded a white noise app on my Iphone for him to fall asleep to.
     I had wipes to wipe down every surface he would try to touch.
Basically, if I read a "tip" I thought would be helpful, I prepared to do it.

Upon loading the first plane, we sat in the back section where other families were sitting. We assumed they would be more understanding if we had a melt down. However, I was pleasantly surprised when he stayed happy the entire time. He was even playing peek-a-boo with the lady behind us (and laughing really loud).

We had a layover in Phoenix which was a really nice break. I had packed a blanket for him to lay on the floor so he could sprawl out and move around.

Once we loaded the second flight, we ended up sitting in front of another family with a sixth month old. Their baby was screaming before we even took off. He eventually settled down, but I realized my patience and empathy towards mothers has drastically changed now that I am a mother myself.

Landon, on the other hand, was doing great. He was content chewing on his cup, banging on the lap tray, looking out the window, and listening to his favorite stories.

Honestly, I was just bracing myself for a melt down because I figured there was no way we were going to get off this easy.

When we had about an hour left of the trip, he was tired and ready to be done. Tyler, being the awesome, patient dad he is, walked him up and down the aisle for about an hour and a half.

But the greatest thing was, he never really cried or causes a scene. He did awesome! I should know by now to never underestimate this child. I'm sure he will be surprising me for the rest of his life.

I know he doesn't understand us when we tell him how proud we are of him, but I've told him so many times how awesome he has done with this huge transition. I can honestly say I have never felt more accomplished (and relieved) than I did when we stepped off of that airplane.

So far, we are enjoying this (old) new place. We have only been here for 24 hours and we definitely already miss California, but we are ready for new things to come.

Now, if we could only get Landon used to this time zone...