"I'm NOT a Princess, I'm Izzy!" - May '15 Land/Sea ~ Updated 6/4: Link to Disneyland TR!!!

[Dugette]

I'm here, of course!

Glad you are here!

And then they become "big kid" moments and then "you're EIGHT years old" moments and on and on.....

Oh, man, so many moments to look forward to.

Oh my goodness!!!! Izzy has grown up so much - I can't believe it. Time goes far too fast, doesn't it?

It really does. The second you have a kid time starts moving 10 times faster. Except when the kid is cranky - that's when it slows way down to sync back up with "real" time.

Why must EVERY child do this???? It is so aggravating and so funny at the same time!

Oh, so it's not just Izzy, then? I wasn't entirely sure. I haven't exactly followed around any other potty-training toddlers. It just really got old fast.

Coming over from the PTR. She looks so much older from your last TR! They change so fast!

Thanks for coming over! Yeah, it just amazes me every day how much she is growing up. I mean, I still feel like she was just a newborn and here she is bossing me around on a daily basis.

Curious to hear how this trip went vs the last one. Sounds like it was pretty different!

I'd say it was quite different, though some things remained the same (like love of characters! )

I'm here and can't wait to read more about your trip! Izzy has grown so much from the last TR!

Glad you're here! Our little kiddos really are growing and changing too quickly!

I am here!! can't wait to read about your trip!

Yay, you're here! I'm excited to hear about yours too (when you get to it).

I subscribed to this the second I saw it pop up on the boards, and now I am here reading. I can only imagine how...interesting Disney was with a potty trained toddler. I can't wait to hear about all the good, bad, stressful, and magical moments!

Glad you're in for ALL the moments, as there were certainly a variety. It's funny that I went into this trip thinking that we needed to remember to bring her to the potty often enough, as she tends to put it off, but instead it was trying to convince her that she didn't have to go every 10 minutes.

Izzy is definitely growing up! I'm ready for another great report!

She sure is! Well, I hope I can deliver that great report! I'll try!

I'm here! I usually lurk, but I work with two years olds and am curious to see how that went down.

Thanks for de-lurking! Haha, you probably have a better idea of how this trip went than I did beforehand, since you work with 2-year-olds. The little ones sure keep it interesting.

For the 345983475th time.. Izzy is adorable!

Thanks!

Following along!! Can't wait to see all of the potties!!!

I don't think there are a lot of actual pictures of the potties, but I will try to share our tour de potties experiences as much as I can.

 

[Dugette]

Recliners in the Sky

It was the night before our trip, Wednesday the 13th of May. At work that day, there had been a lunch meeting (not for me ) that involved Panera catering. Lucky for me, there were leftovers up for grabs, so I took some sandwiches home for a quick and easy (and free) pre-trip dinner that night.

As one might expect, Kitty was none too pleased with the luggage being filled. She just glared at us while we ate dinner:





No pictures of Bailey, as she was already at Dug’s parents’ house. She stayed with them for half of our trip, then moved to my dad and step-mom’s house once they returned from their travels. Both said she was a very good girl, thankfully!

As we had been doing for the prior couple weeks, we pulled one Magic Band off of our countdown chain before Izzy headed up to bed (this was before taking that night’s Magic Band off):



Only Izzy’s little, pink Magic Band was left to take off in the morning! I’d been telling her that, once we took hers off, we’d go to Disney World. I was hoping it would help prepare her, as she was constantly putting off the trip (i.e. – “not now!”, “later!”, etc.) It seemed to work, as she was agreeable the next morning.

As is standard for me, I set a goal of being in bed at a certain time and did not achieve it. I don’t remember exact times, but I don’t think I was too far past the goal time and I was all packed, less the morning-of items. What I do know is that I was awake at 4:30am and got less than 5 hours of sleep. And I still remain the oddball DISer that can sleep just fine before Disney and would prefer to hit snooze for a while instead of jumping out of bed squealing about Disney. I know, I’m weird. I mean, I like WDW, I really do – but I also REALLY like sleeping.

Anyway, we got ourselves and Izzy dressed and ready and were heading downstairs at 5:08am:



Izzy enjoyed some breakfast pretzels while we packed and loaded the last-minute items (like her pillow, white noise machine, etc.):



We also worked on getting Kitty all loaded up with extra food and water. Dug’s friend would be coming by a few times throughout our trip to play with her, refill food/water, etc. She did fine and enjoyed having an old friend come to visit (Dug was roommates with his friend when he adopted Kitty about 14 years ago Yes, she's a senior cat).

Did you notice that little cruise booklet on the table in the last picture? I left it open there, as it had emergency contact info for the cruise ship. I figured that would be a good place for it, as we had Dug’s friend coming to our house while we were gone and he’d be able to reach us if there was an emergency. Well, leaving that whole book there was a rookie mistake. I didn’t see anything in it that we needed or didn’t already know – guess I missed that pocket in front with the luggage tags for the cruise, oops!

After we had everything packed, we got Izzy ready to go. She actually agreeably wore her Mickey/Minnie fleece (that she’d been refusing to wear because she wanted her winter jacket, even on the warmer spring days ). She also wanted to put her Magic Band on when we pulled it off the countdown chain. Sure, why not? I think we all put them on, at her insistence:



We got on the road only 11 minutes behind my goal:



And I say “only” because I feel like we were perpetually behind schedule for the entire trip. And sometimes more than 11 minutes. I think I was spoiled last trip when it was just me and a kid that happily rode in a stroller. I was fast. Bringing a DH with back problems and a toddler that often insisted on walking made everything take a lot longer than I had expected, even after factoring in “extra” time.

This airport experience would be a little different for us, as it was our first time flying on Sun Country instead of Delta. The nice thing about that is Sun Country flies out of the small terminal (2), so it was much less hectic. Almost there:





I think Dug purposely took this picture to show that I had not yet slowed down to the required crawling speed :



We were very happy to see that the small terminal still had Skycap, as we had a lot of bags:



I have to say that I really have no idea how people travel light on a trip with a kid(s). I mean, we did laundry halfway through the trip, so we didn’t even bring clothes for each day, but we still maxed out our luggage allowances. We had two large checked bags, stuffed to the gills (we got those free, since we each have the Sun Country credit card), then we had the stroller, carseat, 3 carry-on roller bags, 2 backpacks, and a purse/bag. Oh, and a little bag with raingear (stroller cover, umbrellas, rain jackets, etc.) that I put in the stroller bag once we got it ready to gate-check (my sneaky trick for things you can't fit in a checked bag! ) So, anyway, we got our two bags up to the counter and the skycap says, “Oh, you’re on the way to Disney World? Bad news, it closed. All the dreams came true! Too bad.” Darn, all the dreams already came true?!

I left Dug and Izzy with the stroller and some of the carry-on stuff while I hopped back into my car. It was about quarter after 6 (our flight was at 8am) and I was on my way to Dug’s sister’s nearby house. She and her husband live near the airport and are very kind to let us park in their driveway and give us rides. They are awesome and actually enjoy helping out travelling family members. So, I got there and she came out and hopped in with me. As we went back to the airport, we chatted about how they had recently sold their house. It was unexpected – the house wasn’t even on the market! They had just started to look at moving to a new house and a realtor they’d talked with mentioned they had a client looking for a house just like theirs. And, sure enough, they were – and made an offer they couldn’t refuse. However, they have yet to find a new house – and I believe they need to be out by the end of July. The pressure is on! I can’t imagine how stressful that is for them. At any rate, we arrived back at Terminal 2 and I grabbed the remaining luggage, thanked her and said goodbye, and she drove my car back to their place.

Dug had texted me that he was at Caribou Coffee, near the baggage claim. I found them at 6:38am, as they were enjoying their treats:



Dug got a Northern Lite Caramel Latte and Izzy had a chocolate chip cookie (yes, we are WINNING on toddler nutrition so far this day! ) We spent a few minutes there while they finished up, then were on our way to security. We had lucked out and gotten “TSA Pre-Check” printed on our tickets, so we were excited about not removing shoes, belts, laptops, quart baggies, etc. In case you wondered, I am pulling two carry-ons, hooked together:



And Dug is pushing a stroller filled with backpacks/bags, with a carseat strapped to the back of it, while pulling the third rolling carry-on. Again, I have no clue how people travel light with kids. Granted, the Fish Extender gifts were taking up a lot of room, but still.

We took the elevator to get up to the security area (checkpoint 2, as we were closest to that):



Izzy enjoyed pushing elevator buttons (as directed) throughout the whole trip.

Once we got there, we learned that Checkpoint 2’s TSA Pre-Check was not yet open. They tried to get us to just go in the regular line, but we were having none of that. We were looking forward to our easy-breezy security, darnit! They told us that Checkpoint 1, on the other end of the terminal, was open for Pre-Check. Hey, it’s not a big terminal – let’s go! So, back down the elevator we went, across the terminal, and back up another elevator. Yay, Pre-Check:



Now, did we save any time doing this? I don’t know. But we saved frustration and stress, so that works for me. It’s hard enough getting a toddler and all your stuff through security, but having to scramble to put on your shoes while your toddler wanders and your stuff starts piling up on the belt isn’t cool. Happy to avoid some of the madness.

Everything went smoothly, except for one thing. We had a couple of thermoses full of milk for Izzy. She’d want some with breakfast and on the plane. I’ve done this every flight with no issue – they just want to open it and test it, no big deal. Well, this TSA agent said that she thought the cutoff is age 2 and you have to buy milk in the airport after that, unless there is an allergy, etc. She said she learned this when travelling with her grandkids. I thought that was odd – why wouldn’t she have learned it in the training for her job as a TSA agent?! And, for the record, I have looked at the official guidelines and I’ve never seen a specific cutoff age. She was nice enough, though, and said she’d “let it slide” this time. So, we made it through unscathed.

It was a few minutes after 7am and our next order of business was getting some breakfast. I’d looked in advance at our options and thought Barrio would be good – a bit different – can sit down and have breakfast burritos and the like. However, we got there and perused the menu and nothing was really speaking to us. And we were worried about the time. It was 7:09am by then and boarding could start in maybe 20 minutes for our 8am flight. We didn’t want to be stuck waiting for food and miss the family boarding (wanted time to get carseat installed and get settled before the masses boarded). So, we changed plans and just grabbed breakfast sandwiches and a Coke Zero (to share - no, not with Izzy) from the Grab & Go area of Barrio to bring on the plane with us. As Dug was paying, Izzy "needed" to climb up on the big barstool and succeeded:



There was a family/companion restroom near the gate, so I took Izzy there to make sure she went potty before we boarded. And we got there and she went through all the motions before declaring that she didn’t like that potty and didn’t want to go. Ugh. Get used to this. We went back out to meet Dug.

The gate agent had announced that they were taking carry-on bags and checking them for free. I had packed one that I knew would be fine to check, in case they gave us a free third one, so we brought that up a few minutes later. And she told me, “We’re done.” Um, okay. I guess that was a very limited time offer to check extra bags. So, we brought it on with us. We also got our gate-check tag for the stroller and told them we’d be bringing on the carseat. In all the flights I’ve brought this carseat on, nobody has ever once inspected it for the FAA approval label. That was about to change. I knew 100% for sure this was FAA approved (I’d made sure when I bought it, since I was getting it specifically for air travel), but I had no idea where the sticker was. The gate agent said the TSA would want to see it and they had to make sure or we couldn’t bring it on. So, she and I were flipping it around and trying to find the sticker. She was reading all the fine print on the obvious label and couldn’t find anything. Finally, at the last minute (she was about to say we couldn’t bring it on, I think), I flipped it just right and found the FAA label, hidden underneath. Whew, we were good to go! I was panicked for a bit there, as I know from past experience that the more restrained Izzy is during a flight, the happier EVERYBODY will be.

After that excitement, I decided to make one more attempt at the potty with Izzy. It was either that or put a pull-up on her, as I didn’t want an accident on the plane and in that carseat. So, off we went, leaving Dug to get the stroller in the gate-check bag (which he did – it’s a pain, but he got it – and the raingear bag slipped right in there too). Fortunately, this time Izzy decided that very same potty was acceptable and actually used it. Yay, everything is going according to plan, more-or-less!

We came back out and it was time to board. Sure enough, the TSA person wanted to see the carseat sticker and this time I knew right where it was, so no problem. I believe a flight attendant decided to help us out and carried the carseat down the aisle and led Izzy (who was in front of us) to our seats. I got the carseat installed quickly and we stowed all our bags and got seated just before people really started flowing in. Success! I hate holding people up while we try to get situated, so this was good.

It was a rainy, cold morning outside. Izzy started in on that forbidden milk:



We passed the time at the gate by taking selfies:



And Izzy’s favorite friends (Little Minnie and Silly Bunny) came out to play:



I knew Izzy was unlikely to nap on this flight, but I brought her friends and her blankie anyway, just in case. But she only played with them, no sleep, as I expected.

A blurry shot of my breakfast sandwich:



They were good, but nothing extraordinary. The Coke Zero hit the spot, as I am not a coffee drinker, but it was early and I needed some caffeine. Let’s take off already:



We were finally in the air about quarter after 8:



Naturally, the woman in front of me reclined her seat at the first opportunity :



Nearly every flight that I have taken with Izzy has been like this. I mean, probably only a small percentage of people actually recline their seats on a plane, right? I mean, most people don’t want to crowd their fellow travelers. But I always get one of those few that feels they are more entitled to that few inches of space than I am and reclines without even a glance to see who’s behind them. It really used to bug me when I had Izzy on my lap. Now I’m just used to it, but it makes it really hard to get things from under the seats. (And I’m seriously not kidding – you can go back and look at my other TRs and nearly all have a reclined seat in front of me and/or Izzy).

We just laughed about it:



And then Little Minnie and Silly Bunny started flying:



Izzy got a kick out of that. Silly girl.

Dug was in the aisle seat and his notes say that he listened to part of a Jim Hill / Len Testa podcast of a walk-through of the Epcot resorts, listened to some web design podcast, took a brief nap, and had some coffee. Sounds nice.

I had packed a lot of toys for Izzy, so we started in on those. Despite my aversion to stickers, I had gotten her one of the sticker books that we got as Fish Extender gifts, so she started in on that:



It was an Ariel book, if you can’t tell. I was assigned the job of pulling the sticker off the backing, then she stuck it in the book. She enjoyed this.

I was glad that I’d packed some snacks, as Sun Country does not offer complementary pretzels or anything. Just drinks. Luckily, I’d brought some small bags of pretzels, so Izzy enjoyed that. I had a glass of Diet Coke when they came around with the cart.

A little after 9am, the iPad came out so Izzy could watch (silent) Frozen. She had no interest in her headphones , just like on our last trip. But she’s happy to watch the movie without sound, so whatever:



I found it interesting that the little girl in front of us was doing handwriting homework. I remember those sheets. I could see since her mom was reclined, of course:



I finished my Diet Coke and Izzy desperately wanted my ice cubes:



I was nervous about choking, but gave her some and she was fine. This becomes a theme at many meals on this trip. So, if you’re keeping track: pretzels, cookie, milk, pretzels, ice. Yep, just what the food pyramid (or whatever we’re supposed to go by these days) says! Oh, wait, I just remembered that we got her a banana at Barrio and I think she ate it on the plane. Whew, we are respectable parents!

[Potty Story Alert!] At some point, Izzy said she had poopies and was making uncomfortable gestures. Oh no, I hadn’t planned for this! I was slightly panicked as I told Dug what was going on. Spare clothes were in the overhead compartment, so we might have to get down a bag. She was just in underwear (and pants) since she had peed beforehand and only poops overnight (seriously, she insists on only doing that in her diaper – night or naps). She also smelled. Uh oh. Took her to the restroom, filled with dread, and…nothing. I think we tried the potty, but she didn’t even pee. I had a pull-up in the diaper kit (oh, yeah, forgot to mention we carried that on too, attached to the purse/bag), so put that on her, just in case there were pending poopies. She liked the pull-up – I think it was Sofia the First, so she granted approval of it. Back to our seats and silent Frozen.

By 9:40am, the young girl in front of Izzy followed her mom’s lead and reclined so that Izzy barely had room for her feet that were dangling off the carseat. Not that the girl was leaning back or relaxing in the chair or anything. She was sitting forward and just enjoying more space around her. I know I ranted before, but I will never understand people who recline on airplanes without any regard for those behind them (or the parents that allow/encourage it). I no longer tried as hard to keep Izzy from kicking/pushing that seat – she had zero room to stretch her legs. Here’s the space:





Towards the end of the flight, Izzy started saying she needed to potty again. I knew we were beginning our descent and I didn’t think we could get up anymore, but I asked the flight attendant that was passing by, as Izzy was getting really upset and me telling her she had a pull-up on was not calming her. The flight attendant said no to the restroom and then critically told me that Izzy had kicked the seat in front of her during the two seconds I turned to look at the flight attendant. Well, of course, there’s .2 inches of legroom and she’s upset. Honestly, if you’re going to selfishly recline your seat into someone else’s tiny bit of space (or allow your child to do so), then you need to assume you’re going to take a few blows.

I managed to calm Izzy down and distract her with dualing Minnies. Spinning Minnie (light up toy) and Little Minnie danced together:



By 11am (Minnesota time), we had pulled out the sparkly pipe cleaners and made triangles, circles, squares, and hearts:



Then I gave her the little Ariel purse I’d picked up in the Target One Spot and she filled it with pipe cleaner shapes:



Dug was not enjoying the descent, as he had pressure in his ears that wasn’t being helped by chewing gum, yawning, etc. He’d had a cold recently and it was probably still causing issues. He was worried his eardrum would burst or something. Luckily, it cleared up on the Magical Express and didn’t cause any trouble afterwards. Scared him, though.

We soon landed and gathered our things and were in MCO at 12:34pm Florida time (we lose one hour in flight). Izzy was happy to be on her feet again:



Up next: We decide to change into shorts at the airport – what could POSSIBLY go wrong?! (Hint: “threenager”) Also, we finally pass under that magical archway!

 

[schmass]

Oh wow, sounds like a bit of a stressful airport/flight adventure!

I hope everything was still okay with your luggage for the cruise without the luggage tags!

I'm with you on the seat-reclining thing - so annoying. I never recline my own seat and get so frustrated when the person in front of me does it, usually all the way back at the first chance they get.

I love the selfie of you and Izzy on the plane - you two look so happy!

I'm glad that Dug's ears started feeling better quickly!

 

[Imagineer5]

She was nice enough, though, and said she’d “let it slide” this time. So, we made it through unscathed.

I have had that happen ONE time too! The TSA agent basically said the same thing. IMO they don't offer enough milk options beyond security for them to say ANYTHING about it - they test it and that should be it. I hate when people are on a power trip.

Now, did we save any time doing this? I don’t know.

I think if the line is short for the regular security, you might save about 30 seconds total via Pre-Check - the reason I like it is basically for the shorter line (but I always wear easy shoes and carry no toiletries).

And we got there and she went through all the motions before declaring that she didn’t like that potty and didn’t want to go. Ugh. Get used to this.

Poor you guys, and poor izzy! That trip must have been hard with all the potty breaks you took. I hope it got better though and she is doing better now.

Finally, at the last minute (she was about to say we couldn’t bring it on, I think), I flipped it just right and found the FAA label, hidden underneath.

Phew! I have never been asked nor do I have a clue where it is. I'll put this on my to-do list for France though just in case, as that will be a TERRIBLE flight if she can't sit in the seat. Glad you found the label!

Dug was in the aisle seat and his notes say that he listened to part of a Jim Hill / Len Testa podcast of a walk-through of the Epcot resorts, listened to some web design podcast, took a brief nap, and had some coffee. Sounds nice.

LOL that sounds like a nice flight?! Andrew gets the same treatment bc he claims his knee hurts. It's just his right knee, so if we sit on the right side of the aisle I can make him sit in the middle and be Aria's playmate, but if we are on the left he insists on being in the aisle.

A little after 9am, the iPad came out so Izzy could watch (silent) Frozen. She had no interest in her headphones , just like on our last trip. But she’s happy to watch the movie without sound, so whatever:

That is good she likes it without sound at least! Luckily Aria loves her headphones. This reminded me of this family who goes to Aria's ballet class. The girls bring their ipads and listen at full volume during the ENTIRE class while I am sitting there watching Aria. It is SO SO SO annoying!! (I KNOW that isn't what you guys were doing AT ALL, it just reminded me of them. Thankfully tonight is her last class!)

The flight attendant said no to the restroom and then critically told me that Izzy had kicked the seat in front of her during the two seconds I turned to look at the flight attendant

Rude! Geez, if the family in front complained that might be one thing (though the girl sitting forward is super annoying too) but how rude of an attendant to say that. Plus usually they are very accommodating with a toddlers potty needs! Glad she held out though!

Dug was not enjoying the descent, as he had pressure in his ears that wasn’t being helped by chewing gum, yawning, etc. He’d had a cold recently and it was probably still causing issues.

Ugh! I can't even remember when this happened to me - thinking Texas in April? - it IS scary though! It hurts! I was in tears on the flight and walking to get the bags, when it finally clears up (which it feels like that will NEVER happen) it is such a relief. I'm glad it cleared up for him! As a kid, this happened to me on EVERY flight (and we flew a ton) - I was so worried Aria inherited that but thankfully she's never had a problem.

 

[amazingact21]

Whew. I didn't think it was possible, but I think your solo trip late last summer was less stressful than this airplane ride. That's saying something...

No milk over 2? That sounds strange. 2 year olds need milk just as much as 1 year olds and some kids (mine) only drink one specific brand. (The most expensive stuff, naturally.)

I was laughing at your food pyramid comments. I think all parents of toddlers have been there. I'm pretty sure Landon eats a month's worth of grapes and apple slices on Disney trips because that's all he wants to eat. So I'm usually like, just give it to him so we can go!


A kid definitely didn't need to recline their seat. Yeesh. I mean, if they were gonna nap or something then maybe. But just to do it cuz moms doing it. No way. Poor Izzy.


You guys are in Orlando now! That's exciting. Almost to Disney!

 

[chunkymonkey]

Your post cracks me up. I should share it with my 2 sisters who both have kids 2 and under. They have never been on a plane with them. I kept telling them, what could go wrong!!?!
I'll just tell them, lots of ipad, toys, pipe cleaners, and diapers/pullups!
Glad you made it there ok and that your DH's eardrums didn't pop! That would not be a good start to vacay!

 

[StephanieE]

Yay! You made it!!

I was wondering how Sun Country would work out when you mentioned them in your PTR. It looks like less leg room than other planes (even before the recliner fiasco ) and no snack? Boo!

We had a recliner in front of us and I have to agree with you. On one hand, I blame the airline for designing the plane in a way that one person's comfort takes away from the next person. But people know that and still choose to do it so I agree that it is rude! The same person also stuck their bag under their seat and pushed it so far back that it took up my DH's area for his feet. The flight attendant did make them move it so that helped.

Yay for pre-check even though you ended up having some other delays with the milk. I ended up getting a pat down at both airports!

They said (in Pittsburgh) that it was because of the shirt that I was wearing. It was a longer flowy shirt and the extra material on top of my jeans didn't allow the machine to xray (or whatever) the entire way through. I made sure to wear a different shirt that I thought would be better on the way home but still got a pat down!

Can't wait to read more about your trip!

 

[Gracefulskinny]

And I still remain the oddball DISer that can sleep just fine before Disney and would prefer to hit snooze for a while instead of jumping out of bed squealing about Disney. I know, I’m weird. I mean, I like WDW, I really do – but I also REALLY like sleeping.

I guess we know where Izzy's "Later"s come from!

She actually agreeably wore her Mickey/Minnie fleece

Huzzah!

“Oh, you’re on the way to Disney World? Bad news, it closed. All the dreams came true! Too bad.”

Izzy had a chocolate chip cookie (yes, we are WINNING on toddler nutrition so far this day! )

Meh its vacation. Sometimes you just do what you gotta do.

But we saved frustration and stress

Which can be more valuable than time anyways!

I thought that was odd – why wouldn’t she have learned it in the training for her job as a TSA agent?!

You would think.

she’d “let it slide” this time. So, we made it through unscathed.

Fortunately, this time Izzy decided that very same potty was acceptable and actually used it.

Two year olds!

Naturally, the woman in front of me reclined her seat at the first opportunity :

Ugh! Rude!

She had no interest in her headphones , just like on our last trip. But she’s happy to watch the movie without sound, so whatever:

Whatever works.

Oh, wait, I just remembered that we got her a banana at Barrio and I think she ate it on the plane. Whew, we are respectable parents!

Bannana to save the day!

(seriously, she insists on only doing that in her diaper – night or naps)

OMG!!! So it isn't just Little MIss?!?!? Its why we haven't switched to underwear yet.

By 9:40am, the young girl in front of Izzy followed her mom’s lead and reclined so that Izzy barely had room for her feet that were dangling off the carseat.

You know its bad when the two year old doesn't have room.

Honestly, if you’re going to selfishly recline your seat into someone else’s tiny bit of space (or allow your child to do so), then you need to assume you’re going to take a few blows.

Yeah years back DH and I were on our way to Hawaii to see relatives. We had already been traveling for 10-11 hours when we boarded the plane to Oahu. I had just enough time to lower the tray table before the chair in front of me reclines and shoves the table into me. I couldn't even raise the table. I had to shift to make things work. About half way through the trip he had the gall to turn around and complain that I was bumping his chair. If looks could kill....DH had to jump in and resolve the situation before I said something and caused bloodshed.

 

[cindianne320]

What a hectic morning! Sorry about all the rude people you encountered. What type of car seat do you use for flights? Is it lightweight? When we flew with DS at 4, we didn't use one, but DD will only be 3 on our next trip... (Baby will be in lap.)

 

[soniam]

I hate it when people recline, especially if the seat just comes crashing back toward you. Once, DH was getting something from below the seat when someone did this in front of him. He ended up getting smacked really hard in the head and trapped. He had to push the seat back up to be able to sit up. The guy in front just muttered under his breath and rudely glared at DH. He didn't even apologize. He's lucky it was DH and not me. I have a temper and don't care about making a scene.

Usually though, we just end up with our drink, hopefully iced and not hot, in our lap or the laptop takes a nosedive or almost gets crushed.

It sounds like you survived the inhumanity of flying without being arrested or embarrassed in front of your daughter Now onward to the inhumanity of being in public with a child that is potty-training

 

[TheMaxRebo]

11 minutes behind schedule is about 1/2 ahead of schedule is "people with toddlers" world. Seriously, we have events with my wife's moms group and no one even bothers giving a heads up unless they are more than an hour late as everyone run late

“Oh, you’re on the way to Disney World? Bad news, it closed. All the dreams came true! Too bad.”

Izzy had a chocolate chip cookie (yes, we are WINNING on toddler nutrition so far this day! )

hey, that is actual sustenance ... I think you are doing great!

Izzy enjoyed pushing elevator buttons (as directed) throughout the whole trip.

Just a note that with multiple kids handling "who pushes the elevator buttons" becomes as complicated as the treaty of Versailles

Not sure about time saving, but anything that makes going through security easier is worth it in my book - just so much stuff to worry about!

She was nice enough, though, and said she’d “let it slide” this time. So, we made it through unscathed.

Ugh, I hope that isn't her attitude towards everything. "I learned on a trip I was taking with the orphan choir I teach that you aren't allowed to take loaded handguns on the plane ... but I'll let it slide this time"

Dug was in the aisle seat and his notes say that he listened to part of a Jim Hill / Len Testa podcast of a walk-through of the Epcot resorts, listened to some web design podcast, took a brief nap, and had some coffee. Sounds nice.

Um, you'd think at the point Dug would at least pretend he had a terrible flight

I finished my Diet Coke and Izzy desperately wanted my ice cubes:

Oh my gosh, my kids always go crazy over ice cubes. We don't drink soda so usually comes from ice water but sometimes they make a grab for cubes in the empty mixed drink glass or something


If it is an overnight flight or very late/very early and you are trying to get some sleep I can see reclining the seat ... but knowing that the little girl in front wasn't even sitting back would definitely annoy me

Well, you made it - an no disasters yet or anything (well, at least I hope the fact you forgot the cruise luggage tags wasn't a big deal )

 

[jdfmommy]

Did you notice that little cruise booklet on the table in the last picture? I left it open there, as it had emergency contact info for the cruise ship. I figured that would be a good place for it, as we had Dug’s friend coming to our house while we were gone and he’d be able to reach us if there was an emergency. Well, leaving that whole book there was a rookie mistake. I didn’t see anything in it that we needed or didn’t already know – guess I missed that pocket in front with the luggage tags for the cruise, oops!

uh oh! interested to see how this plays out

After we had everything packed, we got Izzy ready to go. She actually agreeably wore her Mickey/Minnie fleece (that she’d been refusing to wear because she wanted her winter jacket, even on the warmer spring days ).

Yay! I totally get the jacket thing. A few days ago, I threw a light jacket in with the stuff we brought with us to Hersheypark, and when DS saw it he insisted on wearing it throughout the afternoon/evening; it wasn't as hot as it had been in the morning but it was still too hot for a jacket!

I have to say that I really have no idea how people travel light on a trip with a kid(s).

me neither!! We usually do road trips, and it's always touch-and-go how we're going to get everything in the car, LOL!!

As we went back to the airport, we chatted about how they had recently sold their house. It was unexpected – the house wasn’t even on the market!

Yeesh! That's exciting (and stressful!) for your in-laws, but potentially a bummer for you to lose your easy airport trips!

So, if you’re keeping track: pretzels, cookie, milk, pretzels, ice. Yep, just what the food pyramid (or whatever we’re supposed to go by these days) says! Oh, wait, I just remembered that we got her a banana at Barrio and I think she ate it on the plane. Whew, we are respectable parents!

Hey, bananas and milk have lots of nutrients! Pretzels are really no different than cereal, right? As for the cookie, it's what vacation is for!

[Potty Story Alert!] At some point, Izzy said she had poopies and was making uncomfortable gestures. Oh no, I hadn’t planned for this! I was slightly panicked as I told Dug what was going on. Spare clothes were in the overhead compartment, so we might have to get down a bag. She was just in underwear (and pants) since she had peed beforehand and only poops overnight (seriously, she insists on only doing that in her diaper – night or naps). She also smelled. Uh oh. Took her to the restroom, filled with dread, and…nothing.

Good luck with this - my 4YO still refuses to do "that" anyplace but in his pull-up. When I try putting them away entirely he just withholds for days at a time, so I relent because I don't want the greater health issues. But at this point he's big enough that he will go into another room and just get it and put it on himself!

I managed to calm Izzy down and distract her with dualing Minnies. Spinning Minnie (light up toy) and Little Minnie danced together:

I really LOVE this picture! She's so adorable

Dug was not enjoying the descent, as he had pressure in his ears that wasn’t being helped by chewing gum, yawning, etc. He’d had a cold recently and it was probably still causing issues. He was worried his eardrum would burst or something. Luckily, it cleared up on the Magical Express and didn’t cause any trouble afterwards. Scared him, though.

I had a similar experience a number of years ago flying into Jacksonville; it was just a weekend trip and while I didn't have any actual damage, I did have affected hearing in one ear for all of the weekend and then some. Just an annoyance but REALLY annoying!! Glad his cleared up!

Up next: We decide to change into shorts at the airport – what could POSSIBLY go wrong?! (Hint: “threenager”)

duh duh duh...

 

[jane2073]

The Mickey/Minnie fleece is super cute!! I wish it came in an adult size!
I do not miss the early days of a potty-trained child. All of the begging and pleading to go potty before we get in the car/go to the movie/go to a show/go on a ride!

You really do handle things like a pro!

 

[soniam]

The Mickey/Minnie fleece is super cute!! I wish it came in an adult size!
I do not miss the early days of a potty-trained child. All of the begging and pleading to go potty before we get in the car/go to the movie/go to a show/go on a ride!

You really do handle things like a pro!

You don't have to beg and plead about the restroom anymore? What's your secret? DS is 9 and still thinks going to the bathroom is a punishment

 

[afwdwfan]

At work that day, there had been a lunch meeting (not for me ) that involved Panera catering. Lucky for me, there were leftovers up for grabs, so I took some sandwiches home for a quick and easy (and free) pre-trip dinner that night.

So... you got the Panera, but didn't have to go to the meeting??? Sounds like a win to me!!!

As one might expect, Kitty was none too pleased with the luggage being filled. She just glared at us while we ate dinner:

Oh my gosh. That picture could be the next great cat meme.

I was hoping it would help prepare her, as she was constantly putting off the trip (i.e. – “not now!”, “later!”, etc.) It seemed to work, as she was agreeable the next morning.

Thank goodness it worked! The way you kept mentioning it during the PTR I was afraid it would never be "later."

Well, leaving that whole book there was a rookie mistake. I didn’t see anything in it that we needed or didn’t already know – guess I missed that pocket in front with the luggage tags for the cruise, oops!

Uh oh... I take it that it must have worked out though?

And I say “only” because I feel like we were perpetually behind schedule for the entire trip.

I know exactly how you feel.

I think Dug purposely took this picture to show that I had not yet slowed down to the required crawling speed :

Hey, gotta make up time somewhere!

Oh, and a little bag with raingear (stroller cover, umbrellas, rain jackets, etc.) that I put in the stroller bag once we got it ready to gate-check (my sneaky trick for things you can't fit in a checked bag! )

We did the same thing with the carseat we checked. That bag was stuffed with all sorts of extras.

(yes, we are WINNING on toddler nutrition so far this day! )

You're in an airport and you're keeping her happy. That's all anyone can ask.

Again, I have no clue how people travel light with kids.

They don't.

Izzy enjoyed pushing elevator buttons (as directed) throughout the whole trip.

I know you said "as directed" but I can't help but think of this...

She said she learned this when travelling with her grandkids. I thought that was odd – why wouldn’t she have learned it in the training for her job as a TSA agent?!

Did you happen to see that story a couple of weeks ago about something like TSA agents failing to detect something like 95% of fake explosives and weapons that agents tried to sneak past them? I think the training might be a little lacking.

I mean, most people don’t want to crowd their fellow travelers. But I always get one of those few that feels they are more entitled to that few inches of space than I am and reclines without even a glance to see who’s behind them.

I always get that too. They usually come to an abrupt stop and get whiplash before they lean back too far when they slam into my knees.

I had a pull-up in the diaper kit (oh, yeah, forgot to mention we carried that on too, attached to the purse/bag), so put that on her, just in case there were pending poopies. She liked the pull-up – I think it was Sofia the First, so she granted approval of it. Back to our seats and silent Frozen.

I'm glad you were prepared and it all worked out.

The flight attendant said no to the restroom and then critically told me that Izzy had kicked the seat in front of her during the two seconds I turned to look at the flight attendant. Well, of course, there’s .2 inches of legroom and she’s upset.

That really helps the situation.

(Hint: “threenager”)

 

[BibbitybobityLu]

Hi! I followed along on your PTR but I didn't realise you had started your TR!

I know, I’m weird. I mean, I like WDW, I really do – but I also REALLY like sleeping.

I must be weird too because I LOVE sleeping and even WDW can't compete! Christmas...maybe! But then I'm like five!

the skycap says, “Oh, you’re on the way to Disney World? Bad news, it closed. All the dreams came true! Too bad.” Darn, all the dreams already came true?!

That's hilarious!

Such a cutie! And that cookie looks awesome!

So, if you’re keeping track: pretzels, cookie, milk, pretzels, ice. Yep, just what the food pyramid (or whatever we’re supposed to go by these days) says!

Hey, sounds about right to me

Hint: “threenager”

I love that!

 

[jane2073]

You don't have to beg and plead about the restroom anymore? What's your secret? DS is 9 and still thinks going to the bathroom is a punishment

I think 10 is the magic age!
It is only in the past six months that she has decided to go when I go without my even asking her! Or even bring up the bathroom on her own!!

 

[MEK]

I always enjoy reading your travel updates because they are so blow by blow. Poor Izzy. Nothing like having to poop on the plane. I can't believe the flight attendant gave you crap for Izzy kicking the seat in front of her. For real?

And OMG to having to find the tag for your car seat. Ugh - can you imagine if you couldn't find it?????

I cracked up when you said you like Disney but you REALLY like your sleep.

 

[MEK]

I almost forgot - your sweet cat! Did she try to jump in your suitcases. That's what mine always does. Cats know when their owners are about to go on a trip.

 

[Nermel9]

OMG your cat glaring at you is so cute! My cats don't glare when I'm packing, they just come in the bedroom and inspect everything, it's ridiculous!

You make it sound so easy to fly with a toddler, I see so many people struggling with their kids when we go to Disney, and Izzy is such a pro!

Ummm...so I had no idea it was rude to recline your seat on a plane. I always see people doing it, so I always do too...maybe now I'll pay more attention to see if I'm annoying the person behind me. I really never gave it much thought, and I like to think I'm a pretty considerate flier.

Can't blame Izzy for kicking the person in front of her because she had to poop, I'm sure plenty of adults would want to do the same thing!