the comments before our trip to Naples were comical and contradictory...
~what? fly with a 6 week old, you are crazy!
~I would NEVER fly with a newborn
~Good for you! You are one brave mom!
~Way to go, what an adventure!
I have to admit, leading up to our Naples adventure I was thinking both, "this is crazy!" and "what a great adventure for William and for me... it will build character!"
I am happy to report that flying on Southwest with a newborn was flawless. Flawless. What a great word to be able to state about an experience with a newborn.
Let me paint a picture for you~ Carseat bag for the carseat and base. Stroller. 3 suitcases. breast pump bag (carry on). diaper bag (carry on). mom's back pack (carry on). mom's purse (carry on). William (carry on!).
Boat shoes helped us get checked in curb side so mom flip flops and I were able to go through security with just William and our carry on baggage. I was pleasantly surprised how kind, helpful and accommodating security was on both ends of the trip.
You can bring as much liquid as you need for an infant which is very helpful when breastfeeding. I brought 3, 4 oz bottles ready which is ALOT of milk for a short amount of time (3 hour flight), but I wanted to be prepared, just in case. I wondered, why can I bring fluid and others can't? Well neat thing about the TSA, they actually scan the milk to see the structure of the fluid to make sure that it is safe. Kind of impressive.
The flights were also both "almost" flawless! The way to Naples, William had a pretty unbelievable diaper situation... thankfully they dont smell when you are nursing... and I have to say I will ALWAYS use pampers diapers. Not one little bit came out... which was a great thing because mom of the year here forgot one critical item in the diaper bag...
a change of clothes for a newborn.
My favorite moment, mom flip flop says, "well its ok, I mean you clearly have extra outfits" .. and I casually state, "yeahhh in his checked suitcase. Woooops!"
However, thanks be to pampers for their fabulous design and my woops didnt event matter!
One of my other favorite moments was on the way back from naples~ an early evening flight is a perfect time for happy hour, right?! Well our wonderful flight attendant brought boat shoes and I our wine in a cup with a lid and a straw. Kind of like a sippy cup of wine... he giggled as he handed it over and just simply said, "It will be easier with the baby." We said CHEERS and enjoyed our glass of wine, and baby boat shoes didnt get any wine dripped on his precious little self!
So all in all... amazing trip, great experience, totally built confidence and character...and my tips are..
1. pack an extra set of clothes just in case
2. curb check everything and carry the baby
3. bring along a baby carrier like the ergo baby just in case you are the last gate
4. bring as much milk as you need, be ready for it to be scanned
5. enjoy happy hour and if you are lucky, you might get a lid and straw (check WIlliams world for pictures!)
