Tuesday, November 11, 2014

blondes, fire, and airplanes... oh my!

Against my better judgement, I've decided to share our story when flying to Washington a couple weeks ago. You all are about to find out just how big of an idiot I am :) But the second half of the story is just plain crazy and a little terrifying.
So this was Mia's first time flying and I was super nervous to be doing it without Eric, mainly because Mia is always on the go and I just knew she would hate sitting on my lap the whole time (hello lap child! I had to get in one free flight before she turns 2!) Also, I've only flown 2 other times in the last 6 years so I am definitely not a pro. Let me just tell you now, Mia was such a pro! She did really well in the airport (except for the time she threw herself face first on the ground and mid-tantrum discovered chewed up gum smashed in the carpet and decided to try and pick it off with her tongue. Yeah.) and loved wearing her leash backpack :) And on the flights she settled right down and fell asleep quickly both times, but I had downloaded Frozen onto my phone as back up ;)
Anyway, after Mia and I got our luggage checked and found our gate, we went to go buy a snack because we'd been up since 5:30am. After waiting far too long for one pastry, we found a bathroom. While I was changing Mia's diaper I heard them call my name to board. I heard that they encouraged all passengers with kids to board first, but I knew I wanted to board last so I didn't think anything of it, besides the fact that it seemed kind of late to start the boarding process. After our bathroom break we made our way over to the very empty gate. I let them know that I wanted to be one of the last to board. The employees gave me a weird look but said "okay?" Mia and I went over to the window where she was in heaven looking at the airplane. I noticed a few girls running to our gate which I thought was weird, but again, didn't think anything of it. Finally, the guy checking every one's tickets asked me, "Courtney, are you ready to board?" While I'm busy taking pictures of Mia I said, "Oh that's okay! I want to be one of the last ones to board!" "You ARE the last one to board...."

There are no words for my stupidity.

As soon as Mia and I took our seat, the nicest flight attendant asked if we wanted to move to the back and have a row all to ourselves. Well heck yes we did! Mia tried out all 3 seats until she settled back on my lap next to the window. I could hardly believe our luck! A row to ourselves plus Mia was being an angel?! Heck yes! I pulled out Mia's snacks and bink for take off (I was worried about her ears) and she snuggled into me snacking away. Just when the wheels left the ground I felt the worst turbulence I'd ever experienced, which I thought was weird, but Mia didn't even react! The plane instantly turned and we took a detour over Lake Mead then landed again. Turns out that turbulence was actually the left engine bursting into flames! The engine was on fire the whole time we were in the air! The captain handled it so calmly that I didn't even realize how serious things were until we were off the plane! Thank heavens everything turned out okay!
We ended up being delayed for a couple of hours which was a little rough with a tired toddler and no stroller, but we survived! We were downgraded to a smaller plane so we weren't able to have extra seats, but that's okay! I was so proud of my girl for sleeping on me the whole flight and putting up with the confusion of the day! I'd fly with Mia any day!
It was definitely a necessity to take these crappy selfies... Mia never sleeps on me anymore!

23 comments:

Amanda {Tickled Pink} said...

Way to go!! It's so empowering when things seem to sync up like that, right? Also, love how you can just throw your hair up and it still looks so amazing!!!

BLovedBoston said...

Girl the engine was on fire while you were in the air...I have no words!! I'm also smiling about you being the last one to board...so funny!! I'm so happy that the flight was a success and of course Mia was a pro! :)

Erin LFF said...

So scary about the engine!! ACK- that's why I get so nervous every time I fly! But I'm so glad everything ended up okay AND that lil Mia was an expert traveler!! Love that last pic of you two :)

~Dawn~ said...

OMG, so terrifying. Thank goodness you didn't know how severe it was until it was all over. I would have been a WRECK!! haha
Mia is such an angel - she looks so sweet sleeping in your arms!

P!nky said...

Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh! I can't even! I would have freaked and lost it, completely lost it!

So glad everything was okay and Mia was an angel!

Nicole @ Haute Runner said...

So scary about the plane being on fire!!!

Funny, I prefer to board first with kids! Glad Mia was such a rockstar flyer for you! There is no way my toddler would fall asleep like that on me on the plane, unless it was midnight!

Your hair looks so nice! I have hair envy!!

Sarah said...

What?! On fire! Crazy! I don't think I would have the courage to fly solo with my kid at that age. Good for you!

Tawnya Faust said...

Oh my gosh I love how cuddly toddlers are on airplanes, Scarlett is always willing to take a nap on me while traveling and I just soak it right up!! So sweet that you got a whole row of seats to yourself in the back though!

Haha I'm laughing out loud about you almost missing your flight!

Kelly Mock said...

Oh gosh! Glad you both are okay! She did great! Good job Momma!

Courtney [Sweet Turtle Soup] said...

oh man, it really didn't get any better after the gum incident...but wow so awesome that Mia was a pro about the whole thing.

Life Happens said...

What a crazy day! I flew with my son when he was 18 months and from that vowed to never fly alone with an infant again!!

Ashley Brickner said...

Oh my craziness!!!! So glad everything was ok & LOVE the picture of her sleeping on you!!

Lexie Loo, Lily, Liam & Dylan Too said...

I still can't believe the engine was on fire! How scary!

Julia Anderson said...

So freaking scary. Good thing no one knew because that would have been even more scary. I am not sure I would have been able to get back on a plane after that! Lucky you for a sleeping baby. Myles gets super antsy on planes and I don't look forward to flying with him at all. But going home to family it worth it!

Ashleigh said...

Oh my goodness.. I cannot even imagine!

Desiree Macke said...

Oh my gosh - SO SCARY! So glad that everything was handled so well, and so smoothly! And, what a little flying pro you have!

Elizabeth [Chasin' Mason] said...

Oh my gosh!!!!! First the gum, then the almost missing the flight, and then the FIRE. Girl, that is one crazy trip! So glad you guys were ok and that Mia was such an angel! We have yet to take Mason on an airplane but I am praying that it goes as smoothly (at least with the toddler attitude) as your trip!

-Heather- said...

Glad everything turned out for the good. I would have been freaking out! Of course, the chances of that happening again are pretty slim, so maybe flying would be easy peasy after that!

B @ The Sequin Notebook said...

Oh wow, that engine story is scary, but luckily everyone remained calm and safe! So glad that the flight was a big successful - sounds like you have a little future traveler on your hands :)

Kimberly said...

I was always too afraid to fly alone with just Olivia, but now I wish I had! Your story is great! You gotta always be thinking that when something funny/crazy happens "At least I can blog about this!"

tina bumblebee said...

Ohhhhh my god your PLANE WAS ON FIRE? That is some crazy stuff right there! So glad she was an angel on the flight... gives me hope for my daughter's first flight!

Jenny said...

Wow thats crazy scary! Glad it was all ok! Wow what a rock star flyer you have. My kiddo never and I mean never sleeps on planes (or cars or me, etc etc)!

DeNae said...

How scary. Glad everything turned out well and that Mia traveled like a champ. I'm flying with our youngest in January and he is a busy little guy so we'll see how that goes!

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