First Flight Jitters

I am going to be honest with our experience (really my own personal anxiety) with our little sailor's first plane ride when he was 4 months old.  My husband's oldest niece was graduating from high school and we decided to make the trip from IL to GA for the momentous occasion.  I did probably what most new moms do- read a ton of articles to prepare for upcoming flight and trip.  Lesson learned- take each moment, first-time experience, etc as it comes.  I never admitted this to my husband before, but he was right. 

When we were expecting baby D I signed us up for EVERY birth prep, nursing, you name it class that was offered in our area.  The first and last class we attended was an informational session about SIDS.  Ok, yes, I know SIDS is real and very serious, but my anxiety was through the roof and I think that was the last night I ever slept a full night's sleep.  (You can read more about SIDS here:  http://kidshealth.org/parent/general/sleep/sids.html)  From that night on, my husband suggested "we wing it" and by that he meant take every moment of labor, delivery, and first-time parenting moments by the seat of our parents.  I figured, what the heck; it was time for me to break away from my need to plan everything out in advance. 

With the exception of an emergency C-section, we were 2 extremely lucky first-time parents.  Everything seemed to go seamless and chaos-free.  So I am not sure why I decided to try and plan the perfect first flight for D.  This little guy is just like daddy; a go-with-the-flow kinda boy!

I planned everything from when to nurse him before leaving the house to how many pumped bottles we would need to extra clothes to where to eat at the airport to how to respond to gawkers on-board if I needed to nurse the little sailor; if it could be planned, it was planned.  The one aspect of flying that made me most anxious was ear pain D could experience, so it prompted me to plan a little more so we wouldn't disturb any other travelers. 

The moment we boarded and found our seats, I nervously asked the flight attendants to pass out pre-packaged baggies I made the night before to everyone in-flight.  She agreeably took the bag and started handing out disposable earplugs and a poem to accompany them as my husband fed our pleasant first-time flyer.  Before the plane backed out, baby D was snoring on my shoulder, but most importantly, each passenger was prepared for any ear-piecing screams, but I was still anticipating the screaming baby with us. 

Dressed for his first flight and representing daddy, he slept peacefully 2+ hours until we landed in Georgia.  As we exited the plane, several travelers thanked my husband for his service and expressed their appreciation of the on-board (but unnecessary) goody bag.  My over-planning fell by the wayside, thankfully, but I forgot to enjoy our first flight!  My husband's "wing-it" attitude won again!   

Picture on bottom right by:  Erin Hodge Photography. 

A Very Hungry One Year Old

Our little sailor has been an incredible eater since the moment he entered this world.  The joke among my family is that my husband and I will need to take on a second job just to support his healthy eating and growing appetite.  So when we started planning his first birthday the classic children's story by Eric Carle, "The Very Hungry Caterpillar," was quite fitting for our very hungry one year old. 

 

My coworkers nicknamed me the "Google Queen" a few years ago and I still seem to live up to that title; often forgetting to hit up Pinterest for ideas.  In my Google search I found these adorable food labels at http://www.polkadotsandpuppies.com/2011/04/grants-1st-birthday-party.html that gave me the inspiration to put together the caterpillar's feast to celebrate our little sailor's first year.  From there, my very limited creativity took off. 

 

Thanks to http://makeitcozee.blogspot.co.nz/2012/11/free-very-hungry-caterpillar-invitation.html I was able to design our own personalized party invitation.  I also used the download to make a timeline of baby D's first year.  (I will update this picture soon once it is hung in our living room.)  But in the meantime, here is a sneak-peak of how I used it...

 

We were honored to have my parents travel from the east coast to help ring in his birthday and join in the festivities!  I am quickly learning how to expand my creativity now that I have a little one of my own.  It's not the best, but it's the best for a beginner like myself.  

 

  In place of the chocolate cake (since we were having cupcakes) I baked a batch of brownies.  I accommodated the cherry pie with my mom's cherry squares with cherries we picked over the summer in Michigan.  (Recipe included at the bottom.)  Hot dogs are always a favorite of little people and they were easy to prepare and forget while we played.  I didn't think a salad would accompany our other treats, so before my anxiety took over for a replacement, mom came to the rescue (like always!) while we were at the Dollar Tree and handed me spearmint gum and mints.  (Obviously, these weren't intended for our youngest of guests.)  

 

 

  

 

  

 

  

 

          

   

  I have attended many children's birthday parties over the years and one thing I never clearly understand were the gift bags full of toys that ended up in the trash before the weekend was over.  I have promised myself that I will not succumb to those gift bags.  Here is what our small guests in attendance received from our hungry caterpillar...(inexpensive, easy, and kid-friendly)

 

 

  

 My mom couldn't resist adding a stuffed caterpillar to each goody bag as well.  We were grateful to our local children's museum for also giving each attendee a pass for a free day of admission on their next visit.  (This was definitely an added bonus for having it there!)  Do your area have a children's museum like this one in our area?  Check it out; it was like a hidden treasure!  http://www.rlapd.org/programs-childrens-museum.cfm  My girlfriend teased me that I booked baby D's first birthday party here without visiting it first, but let me tell you, it was a pleasant surprise to everyone!     

 

 

What was or will be your little's first birthday theme? 

 

 

If you like what you read, share it.  And, please do not forget to follow me & subscribe to my blog.  Happy reading!