Plane trip home

I forgot to mention that the flights home also went well. I'm grateful for that beyond words. I can't imagine dealing with cancelled or missed flights while flying by myself with Cora.

Cora did well on all the flights, although she only slept 20 minutes the whole day and didn't fall asleep until she was home in her crib at 8 pm (which to her body would be 10 pm)!

Before this trip I was envisioning people being impatient and annoyed that I was traveling with a toddler but I found just the opposite to be true. Cora turned on the charm playing peek-a-boo and saying HI to anybody who glanced in her direction. That probably helped ease people's anxiety about having a toddler on the flight. She did give me a little bit of grief on the long flight to Denver, but I didn't get any nasty looks from anyone, thankfully. Her attention span was SO short that day, and thankfully that was also true for her moods. When she got upset it only lasted a minute and she was easily distracted by something else! Another blessing.

Flying, in general, seems to make me more anxious than it did when I was a teenager. Adding a toddler to the mix doesn't help. On the flight out of GR I was seated next to a man going to a Christian Bloggers convention. The take-off was quite rough and I heard myself deep-breathing and telling him that I was nervous and if he could keep talking to me a little bit it would really help! I couldn't believe I had said that to a total stranger, but I guess I figured it was obvious that I was uncomfortable with the bumpy, windy take-off, so why not? He was kind and understanding; I think it was comforting to know I was sitting next to a Christian, too. Soon after take-off the flight smoothed out and a man seated near us offered to switch seats with me since he had an empty seat next to him. It was nice to have the extra seat for the toddler gear - snacks, books, sippy cup, stickers, napkins, etc...

It was a long day, but one in which I felt so blessed through circumstances and people. As much as I love to travel and visit family, I hope it's a long time before I fly again!