Airplane Diaries are Back! Newborn Edition.

It's about time I post some photos and commentary from our visit to Savannah. I'm lucky enough to be able to travel with Ray when he has a meetings in a faraway city-- especially if I've never been there before. We usually extend our stay a day or two for exploration. Let's start our story the day before we left, shall we? I have the perfect story for y'all.

The one where I felt awesome about my body image.
I know I just posted about all that in my last post, but I forgot a little something. I was searching my closet for something I'd fit into for Easter service. We went the night before since we were traveling on Sunday. I selected a short sleeved brown dress with a cute collar and ruffly front. I started pulling it over my head and realized it might be a little tight. Not only was it a little tight, but my arms barely fit into the sleeves. For some reason, I still thought this little endeavor was a good idea. Before I knew it, I was asking my husband to help me pull the rest down. Once on, I realized very quickly that it needed to be taken off immediately since it was a no-go. Then, it took two of us to peel the dang thing off me. I got on the floor and Ray was above me bracing himself while pulling with two hands. It was not pretty, folks. I'm surprised he didn't have to brace his feet against the wall or something. Honestly. In that moment, I felt beautiful, I tell ya. I just may be burning that dress. I definitely wore pants to Easter service. I also want to add that from my last post, I am not intending to be in bikini shape anytime soon. As a matter of fact, my beautiful stretch marks pretty much nix that idea altogether. I just want to fit into pants and feel healthy again. After so long with very little exercise, I want to feel healthy again.


The next morning-- our first flight with a newborn.
I mentioned being a bit cheap, right? Well, I also refused to pay a baggage fee (I've never paid one, ever) for our 5-day trip. The carseat and stroller are gate-check items and we were allowed one bag and one carry-on item each, allowing for the following to be in our possession for free:

• stroller
• carseat
• 2 rolling carry-ons
• backpack with computer & iPad
• diaper bag (yes, my cute, new one I bought at the lululemon sale!)
• Ergo + infant insert

B was in the carseat and clipped into our snap stroller and the diaper bag and laptop backpack were in the stroller basket. The Ergo was stuffed into the backpack and I was pushing the stroller. Ray was managing both of our rolling carry-on bags. Mine is quite small and he'd done this many times before (and all through Europe), so we're pretty skilled. Also, I'm a master packer. We've traveled a lot together and I make sure never to pack more than I need. I managed to fit all of my clothes for 5 days (it's warm in Savannah) and B's clothes and our toiletries with room to spare. I then packed in one of B's Aden & Anais blankets to fill it so things wouldn't get all messy and shift around. We didn't pack many diapers or wipes because we intended to stop off and buy some once we reached our destination. Another lesson in traveling with the Wilsons: always stop to buy a case of bottled water, granola bars & fruit for a cheap breakfast, and now-- add diapers and wipes to the mix. We did this all through Europe and saved a lot of money not buying overpriced water and breakfasts on-the-go.

Before our flight, I strapped B into the Ergo and we were off. He did amazingly well on our first flight and I managed to feed him at the end of our flight and while we taxied so we could make our connecting flight (I know, ridiculous!) on time. Second flight from Charlotte to Savannah was also great.

 His very name on the ticket! Also, I had no idea you needed to get an infant pass at the ticket counter. Now I know...

The arrival at our destination. So not uneventful.
Once we arrived in Savannah, we took our time getting to the rental car. B then started having his massive breakdowns-- thankfully he waited until we were out of public range. I went to the bathroom to change him since I didn't have time between flights and whatdoyouknow, blowout. Crap! (pun intended) I now had a naked baby in the airport bathroom and I was cleaning not only his outfit (I recommend dark outfits, especially for travel), but I had to clean the WHITE infant insert to the Ergo. Why do they make those white? And why was I stupid enough to buy that? Well, it's sort of gray, but it may as well be white when your kid's poo is of a bright yellow hue. I scrubbed with thin paper towels and the automatic soap that decided in my haste not to want to come out no matter how many times I waved my hand in front of it. I walked naked baby out of the bathroom leaving the rest of our things in place and handed him off to Ray to re-dress him while I attempted to salvage our insert. Add to our shopping list a bottle of Shout {Excellent $2 investment}.

We had a nice 5-day adventure between Hilton Head, SC and Savannah, GA. We had lots of stroller and Ergo walks and some nice dinners and exploration while there. I'll post some photos with commentary...

B's first touch in the Atlantic Ocean... a bit cold! Hilton Head, SC

 Marriott sinks make excellent bathtubs for 7-week old kidlets. He looooves his bath time.

 I like big beds and I cannot lie...

 Naptime at the beach/pool

 Just before dinner in Savannah

Ergo walking all over Savannah while Ray was in meetings

Popular Savannah joint, Zunzi's. The locals love it. Vegetarians don't fare as well... but it was good. I'd say we enjoyed a leisurely stroller walk and lunch in the park, but that didn't happen quite like that... B had other ideas.

Our trip home was equally as uneventful as the trip there-- except random sick guy directly next to me on our first leg. It was a small plane that was about 60% full and I made sure B was covered up and then some. Ugh. Otherwise, we had a nice trip... looking forward to our next trip. Our flights are already booked for Jersey! We're headed to the Poconos and Long Island for a few days to visit Great Grandparents and Ray's parents. We also have a Nashville, California, and Canada trip planned for this year as well! B is going to be one well-traveled kidlet by his first birthday.

Speaking of birthdays... I cannot be more excited to welcome all kinds of BLM babies into the world. I think there are about 15 of you having babies in the next few months! I'm looking forward to reading all about these babies and seeing their photos, my friends.