Two boys and me on a long haul…
Where have I been the last 2 months? This has been one of my best summers in a long while both, in London and in Los Angeles.
I had a slew of visitors in London prior to leaving with the boys to California in July and as I got to LA, the plethora of people we met and spent time with just left a lovely, warm glow in my heart and my memories.
This was also the first time I travelled alone with the boys – aged 3+. I was slightly (just!) apprehensive a whole month prior to the flight and tried to be organized and over organized with how and what to take on board with me, and what state of mind I should be in to make it through with the two.
Here is how I survived the journey with two lovely little boys and how they survived me!
- Take the latest flight available to LA in my preferred airline – this time Air New Zealand
- Air New Zealand offers the use of a ‘sky couch’ for an additional £60/head. This means that the 3-seater by the window turns in to a ‘sofa-cum-bed’ where each seat has a section at the foot that lifts up flush to the seat in the front. Once all 3 are lifted up – you have a bed. They also provide you with a ‘mattress’ cover and 2 big pillows in addition to the typical airline pillows and blankets.
- Each of us had backpacks. I purchased a Kipling backpack as I knew a roller bag, a double stroller and two toddlers would be hard to manage. The boys had their own little backpacks.
- Their backpack – 2 toys, stickers, 3 snacks, kids’ headphones
- My backpack – extra clothes, pull-ups, more snacks, a backup homemade meal, 2 iPads.
- I called the airline in advance to know of the ‘milk’ situation. They did not have whole milk and did not serve milk as a drink, so I bought milk at Boots once we were through security. NOTE: In America (not sure about other countries) you cannot carry milk through security for children over 2. On the return, I was too organized and the milk got confiscated. Lucky for me, the airline stewardess was amazing and helped me settle the boys and brought me 2 glasses of warm milk.
- In-flight entertainment. This is great ‘after’ takeoff and once the ‘fasten seat belt’ light is switched off. Prior to that, the captain makes loads of announcements that ‘interrupt’ the entertainment. This did not bode well for my boys. So I quickly switched to the iPads and went back to the entertainment system later.
- So the boys didn’t fall asleep as I planned, but they were not disruptive and the benefit of sleeping less on the flight helped us get through jet lag faster in LA, as they slept a long stretch at night.
We got to LA with all 3 of us happy and in good moods and were ready for the amazing holiday that was in store for us!