Twins on a Plane. Probably scarier than Snakes on a Plane. I could see it in our fellow passengers’ eyes!
We prepared more for this trip than all previous trips combined. So much research. Talking to people who have flown with children.
Reading blogs. Reading articles. Reading reviews.
Finally, it was here.
We chose Southwest for a couple of reasons, not the least of which being that bags fly free. We would be in AZ for 5 days (Monday-Saturday). Our two-bedroom villa would have laundry facilities, so we weren’t too concerned about packing clothes for the duo and I, but TT Dad would be attending some workshops, and meeting with customers during our stay, so he needed to look presentable.
Most of our luggage allowances would be taken by the extras… Things we bring to attempt to make the transition as smooth as possible. I’m not going to lie. There’s a very good chance we go overboard. If you’ve met us, you probably know we don’t do well with moderation 😉
First and foremost is their bedtime routine. We packed their favorite blankets (A&A), their sound machine, their monitor, and camera, their favorite bedtime books, their toothbrushes and toothpaste.
And that’s just bedtime.
Other ‘stuff’ packed for trips include an assortment of their favorite toys.
You can imagine that these things tend to take up a decent amount of space. We were thrilled to learn that the Hilton Resort & Villas in Scottsdale, AZ would not only provide us with two pack and plays, but they would also provide two highchairs.
Did I mention our pre-trip research? Turns out, the hotel website lists a number of things they would let us borrow, at no charge, during our stay.
Most of my preparation time was spent trying to set us up for success during the flights. We would be flying from Hartford to Denver, then a quick flight to Phoenix. On the way back, our first flight would be from Phoenix to Baltimore, with a quick second flight up to Hartford.
With most of our belongings packed into luggage, we stuffed our carry-ons with toys, books, and snacks for the duo. We also packed a couple of sippy cups to fill with water, in the hopes the kids would drink during take-off and landing, to help their ears pop.
I was pretty happy with our set-up. With two lap kids, we had to sit across the aisle from each other (only four oxygen masks per set of 3 seats). We paid for the A group assignment, so we wouldn’t have any issues finding seats across the aisle from each other, for easy kid swapping.
The down side to this is that we had to keep our kids contained for that extra 20 minutes or so. If we were on an airline that assigns seats, a tip I’ve heard is to have one person bring on the carry-ons and everything else, and the other parent stays off the plane with the kids until the very last minute. This sounds like a great plan for the future.
The flights actually went pretty well. The plus side of Southwest is that, believe it or not, the seats next to us weren’t the first to be occupied. Three of our four flights were full, but on that fourth flight, there was one free seat. It was next to me.
We were very lucky to have seatmates that had all flown with children of their own at some point. I think they decided to take it easy on us, and it helped. They sang songs, they played games, they gave us a half of a break on what was a very long day. It was so greatly appreciated.
The first (long) flight went fairly well. We were stocked with snacks, toys, and books, and we somehow kept them entertained the entire time.
We high-fived before deplaning. We got this.
Grand prize to anyone who can guess what happens next!
That’s right. The second flight was a mess. Terrible. The kids were not happy to see we were going to be doing this lap thing again, and let us know. But it was a quick one, and so we made it through.
We made it. We were in Phoenix. We had gate-checked our stroller and car seats, so we collected those, and headed to get the rental car.
We landed at 2:30pm. The kids took a nap on the way to the hotel, and we were all happy to have a place to settle in.
In front of our Villa
Next up, we’ll review the hotel, as well as a couple of our fun adventures!