in flight
we came back from camping, then back from DC, and are now on our summer trip to oregon. the rugged coastline, redwoods and family called our names and so we came. the last three mornings before leaving, ruthie woke up asking if it was (finally) "oregon day". "no, but it will be soon, rufie" eve would quickly answer. "super duper soon?" "yes, super duper soon" "super duper malooper soon?" "yes, super duper malooper quadooper soon."
our annual trip to oregon usually involves me flying by myself with the kids, chip joining for the last week and then the five of us shuttling home together. this time we switched it up. chip is with us for the first two weeks, so our family of five all boarded and landed together. a big relief for all involved. especially me. nothing like trying to get yourself and all three of your children into an airplane bathroom before your (then) two-year-old actually does wet herself, as she has been announcing to/ threatening her fellow passengers with at the top of her lungs for three minutes while we wait for the "occupied" light to dim..
but even with chip there to wrangle and distract, traveling across the country with these three takes a little planning. not my strong suit, but we made it here and did so without our neighbors cursing our names. charlie, being magical and in love with his thumb, was easy. and, with the help of their very own back packs bags full of a few simple treats and ways to pass our nine hours of travel, the girls were pretty great too.
the goods inside the bags:
+ new coloring book and new crayons. heaven for my little girls. brand new pages waiting to be filled and sharp new crayons means fresh, intricate designs for the girls. a dolphin? no, no. a rainbow, diamond, snowflake dolphin with pink eyelashes. takes at least 40 minutes to get just right.
+random activity books from the pharmacy because we couldn't find any decent coloring books on our own (chip's sister saved the day and showed up at our place with the real goods).
+ stickers. with thousands of foam stickers floating through our apartment (and torturing me) years ago, i began taking them on flights with eve and i. we would stick them all over the tray table and seat back, we'd make scenes of dancing animals or designs with our shapes. i'd put two pair of each (animal, shape, whatever we had) up and eve would find the matches. we'd draw faces on them and find the sad horse or the happy lion. and after an hour or so of playing we'd we'd take them off the seat and tray and be done. i don't have the foam stickers anymore and don't ever want them in my house again, so we go for regular stickers. they don't entertain nearly as long but they are a special treat. and apparently ruth loves to put them in her hair (which works out really well..)
+ snacks. of their very own in their very own back pack. no sharing, no bargaining, no waiting their turn for a bite. preferably wrapped up in colorful paper. because unwrapping takes time too, and it makes everyone happy.
+ a book. i can't take my kids anywhere without a book. i used to bring several, but we've streamlined. one for each girl and a couple for charlie. old favorites are the best, because i know they will be hits and the girls can "read" them to each other when i'm finished.
+ woodkins. i may need to devote a post to this toy. all i can say is that they, a gift to the girls from chip's parents, are so much better than i thought they'd be.
+ home videos. pulled out when all else has failed, these are always the answer. the girls love watching themselves, so the dvd with an hour's worth of footage sampling their entire lives is devoured happily. they stare and laugh and pretend to be embarassed by themselves while i try to take a nap.
all carried on their own little backs from plane to plane, these items weren't anything new or groundbreaking, but they did the trick.
in four and a half weeks i'll be flying across the country to get home. a mom alone with her three very young kids, i'll be every other passenger's worst nightmare. but hopefully the treats, and crayons and home videos will, once again, charm the littles. and maybe the people who watched me with big eyes and thought to themselves "please don't be sitting next to me. please don't be next to me" will watch me leave thinking that it wasn't so bad afterall..
..
backpacks are a shrunken version of the backpack pattern in lotta jansdotter's simple sewing. easy and fast.
i have a lot to post, but being on vacation with family in paradise is distracting and too much fun. i'll try to get back to at least once a week. but if i don't, take it as a good sign. summer!
Thursday, July 16, 2009 at 06:10PM
Reader Comments (55)
thank you so much for all these great ideas! i will be flying with my daughter to argentina from the us and i need all the distractions and attractions i can find.
love your blog and all your creations.
loving the airplane photos Katie!
Have fun in Oregon!!
xo
Roxy
Such great photos! Have SO much fun in Oregon! Give my old state a great big hug from me. We'll be there in October and I can't wait. The air. The damp. The trees. The green. The everything.
OK, so I need to hook you up with some work stuffs. As in, stuff from work. We've got some foam dough that I think might be pretty sweet for plane entertainment. It's super lightwieght and doesn't stick to surfaces or carpet like regular dough, and it doesn't leave residue on hands or clothes, and it doesn't dry out. I'm going to send you some. I need an address for you in Oregon though so email me or comment on my blog. Also I'll send you some other goodies. I'm thinking make-your-own stickers might be a hit. Coloring + stickers = awesome. And maybe some other crafty delights.
I was the reason most people don't want to sit by kids - I flew on a 5 hour flight with my 3 year old and 11 month old. The 3 year old was perfect, the 11 month old cried the whole trip and threw up on me twice - good times :)
I would fly with them alone again but if I could survive that, any other trip would be nothing.
wow! good job on the plane trip - our first cross country trip was so much better than I had imagined, but I'm still scared to do it again. Lovely photos and stories as always.
LOVE IT! :) I hope you have a BLAST! SO FUN! I'm with you on the plane thing, I've done that many a time- and it sounds like you've got it covered! Great idea, the home videos! I have the "normal" videos on my ipod- but home ones would be FABULOUS!!! I hope the ride home goes as well as the ride there- traveling INSANE-NESS with little kids, but hey, I'm sure we'll all miss it and laugh about it when ours are all grown up :) PS- you're girls in those pics are so cute, and love their little backpacks. Also- just did my first freezer paper transfer! A #5 birthday shirt for my oldest :) He's SO EXCITED!
I just came across your blog and am enjoying it greatly. Love your plane suggestions. Hope your trip to Oregon is great! Our next month trip is the redwoods too, so perhaps you'll have some great notes for us.
Cheers!
Aly in Oregon
ahh the good old "keep 'em busy box' as i call it! mine is a little cardboard suitcase filled with a memory game, puzzle, spin tops, finger puppets, pencils and colouring in cards. it goes everywhere from train trips to restaurants to friend's homes. livesaver! enjoy your trip
I just passer-by. You have two beautiful kids! And love your bags!
I'm one of your new followers. Hi! There are many reasons I come here now, but let me top the list with those two little GIRLS, who are about as opposite as you can get to our grubby, brawling little boys.
But yes, either way you slice it, travelling with young kids can be a real PIA, so cheers to making it safely. The pictures are lovely. Bon voyage!
cutest. ever. and your photagraphy skills are fabulous!
I am enjoying your blog - esp since I also have twin girls . Our annual trip home from JFK to Perth , Australia (which as Tania mentioned is EXTREMELY long) is in two weeks. I keep a box of bits n pieces in which during the year I stash all kinds of things that might come in handy on long car or plane trips. Now that they are 3 at least I don't have to carry all the diapers and formula but keeping those girls busy can be hard work.So far I haven't flown alone with the girls but it might happen next year. I'm going to steal that foam sticker idea. We do have two of the little Trunki suitcases...they can be annoyingly difficult to open/close but the advantage of these is that the kids can ride them in the airports, they hold a bit more than a backpack. QANTAS doesn't gate check strollers and there can be very long walks between gates. Looking forward to hearing about your trip when you return.
and I forgot to add... love the leggings!
That must be an awesome trip! Your girls are adorable. They look so cute and pretty, I wish I have twins like yours.
What a trip! From camping, DC to Oregon, the girls must be very exhausted well I’m sure you all had a great time... I notice the girl’s outfits are fabulous! They look lovely on it. And those bag packs are beautiful.
Hi! I just came across your blog & I looove it. I just posted about some of your cute little outfits and gave a link to yours from mine! I will definitely be back : )
Your daughters outfits are so cute...the striped leggins and red shoes made me smile~
Best of luck traveling home~
Susannah
I had to laugh about this - we once took a family trip to San Diego with our then 2 year old and 3 year old, my 5 month pregnant belly, and our 2 and 4 year old niece all on the same flight. My brother-in-law brought pocketfuls of earplugs to hand out to any glaring seatmates. And the flight actually went smoothly. It was getting through security that was the nightmare! Taking my 3 year old's blanket AND shoes and putting them on the scary conveyor belt? That's child abuse.
Thank you for your lovely blog - from the angelic photos, I can't believe anyone wouldn't want to sit near your beautiful children. I've traveled heaps with my two (3 and 6) and we like a bit of playdough with little moulds or stamps, colouring in and dot-to-dot stuff, and exciting jelly dinsoaur lollies for ascents and descents. Enjoy your holliday!
Come back and write more about the girls! Come back!
these are fantastic! I love the idea of making travel easier on parents (and more fun for littles) with gems like your backpacks.
also, LOVE the ruffle collar dresses from awhile back... I'll be linking to the ruffle tutorial (and later to the backpacks!). :)
I loved the back packs and bought the book from amazon straight away. Thanks for the tip. It arrived the day before we set off on our hols. We're in the french country side eating our body weight in cheese and bread. Will get sewing when I return.
You are a dream come true. A friend showed you to me yesterday and I've spent a total of 3 hours on this site in the last 19 hours. I'll be feverishly checking your site for your patterns "soon to come." You are so cool girl.
Ready to buy your pattern book when it is available ; )
I am just now finding your blog..I love reading it and all about your family adventures. Beautiful!