Mamas on Planes

We are out numbered 3-2. The kids haven’t formed a coo against us yet but I fear if they choose to. We will lose.

On what should have been a 3 hour flight, we were delayed multiple times. From leaving the house to landing at our destination we traveled… hours.

Left the house at 10 am and after check in and security arrived at our gate with time to spare. Our flight was to board at 1:45 and be in the air for 2 hours 45 minutes. We boarded the plane and were ready to go when a storm warning came in. We would be sitting in the plane for an hour due to the delay. An hour later we were deplaned. Our original take off time and our actual take off were FIVE hours apart. FIVE. Don’t misunderstand I am incredibly grateful our flight wasn’t canceled and we arrived on our originally planned day. But have you ever traveled with little children? We have a teenager, a high spirited 7 year old and a lap infant/toddler. Like I said, we are out numbered.

I’ve read cute blogs from other moms about flying with kids and giving cute little care packages to the neighboring flyers. Yep not me. I don’t have the capacity for that. I have already thought of five things I forgot to pack.

We do our best to bring distractions in many forms for our kids. But asking them to sit in an airport as our flight was delayed every 30 minutes is torture, for us and everyone else.

Enter my saving grace, Vanessa. From our original boarding she was pure joy and kindness. She introduced herself to us and the kids, quickly mentioning she has three of her own little boys and knows what it is like to fly with little ones. Flying alone on this particular trip (turns out she’s a Younique presenter as well and is making her way down to New Orleans for convention as well) she assured us we are not to worry about fussing children. What a relief. A slightly older couple sat beside her and weren’t quite as happy with being in front of our little family but we’re keeping comments to themselves. Let’s be real here, I can see your head turns and corner of the eye glares while my child is throwing a needless tantrum. Sigh.

Upon deboarding the plane, still in Newark, we stay near the gate as our departure time was only 30 minutes away. Time came and went, departure times changed; 2:30, 3:45, 4:10, 4:45, 5:10, 5:45, 6:10 and finally 6:30. Time to board! Yes! Quick check and adjustment of the fuel tanks and away from the gate we go!! Slight delay on the tarmac as there is a back up of all west bound flights as well as a possible new storm. Waiting 10 minutes for clearance, then an additional 15 minutes. Finally our turn to hit the runway, 7:30 take off time!! Our delays are longer than our flight time, but thank you Jesus our flight is still leaving.

You may be wondering why Vanessa is my saving grace. Remember the 30 minute increment delays? AJ walked Baby K around our terminal, changed his diaper multiple times, he and the girls ate the snacks we packed for the flight. Four hours is a long time to wait for what I am sure seems like nothing to a child. Multiple times Vanessa was down on the ground playing with Baby K and Little Red (really should find a new nickname for Baby K). She took them to the windows, chatted with them and entertained them. Even while we were waiting on the tarmac she put a movie on her phone for the littles to watch and keep them occupied. Who does that for a stranger? While waiting we were free to move about, she took Baby K for a walk up and down the aisle waiving and saying hi to everyone. Then he wanted to be held and he let her hold him. She swayed with him while he tried everything he could to keep his eyes open. Time to take our seats, so close to sleeping. As soon as the plane was off the ground Baby K was out! Little Red still entertained by the movie, Baby K asleep in my lap, all is well. I thanked her profusely and many times. All she said was I hope someone does the same for me when I fly with my kids. Talk about paying it forward with kindness!

So here I sit on our flight, writing about our family’s flight angel with tears in my eyes and drops slowly rolling down my cheeks. Hopefully we all will be a little more kind to those we interact with on a daily basis. This is how we show Christ’s love and compassion, being kind to each other.