Monday, June 18, 2012

Flying with a 1 year old is like wrestling an octopus

4.5 hours on a plane with a 1 year-old isn't my idea of a grand time, but then it isn't Corinna's either.  Usually I buy a separate ticket for the baby, but at almost $350 one way it was more economical to try my luck with a lap baby.

Still she did fairly well for her first plane ride.  We had a middle seat, and the passengers on either side were very understanding and patient.  Seated right next to me was a full bearded man in his mid thirties with long wavy hair and heavily tattooed arms.  Corinna took advantage of my attention elsewhere a few times to grab his inked arms.  I think she was trying pick the tattoos off of his arms.  The lady on the other side was charmed by Corinna and offered to let her sleep across her lap if she was so inclined.  Corinna was not so inclined despite missing an afternoon nap and it being well past her bedtime.  She alternated between manic-happy Bubbles and somewhat moany-tired Bubbles.  In either state she was extremely wiggly and squirmy.

During the course of the flight she managed to squish a number of my potato wedges that went with my hamburger (thank goodness for baby wipes!), tear apart the to-go tray, "read" all of the books I brought, play with some toys, jump up and down on my lap repeatedly, play peek-a-boo with the lady in front of us, sip and spill my water bottle on herself, fill two diapers, rip two napkins to shreds, eat her fruit puree, empty and refill the backseat pocket of the magazines and flyers over and over, play with the back seat tray, fiddle with the seat buckle, eat the snack pretzels and the chocolate I brought, climb down to the floor and back to my lap repeatedly, attempt to escape, take the wipes out of the container one by one, and play the "gravity game."  To her credit she didn't really cry until after we'd landed and I took my phone away from her.  Then she wailed.

Truly she was a study in motion, and we were both exhausted by the end of the flight.

And to think we get to do this all over again in a few weeks!

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