8:28 PM
McGhori
Blogger Lisa Farley finds the necessity, and blessing, in keeping it positive while traveling with three children under the age of four.
One of the many challenges of parenting is keeping a positive attitude in the face of adversity. Last week on a flight to New York with our three toddlers, I was put to the test and was surprised by the outcome.
We had booked an 8 a.m. flight, figuring that the kids would be best behaved in the morning. This proved true. They were excited and we had an easy time getting through security and onto the plane. I was uber-prepared: changes of clothes, piles of diapers, snacks, books, coloring, and iPods/Pads.
Once on board we quickly learned that our flight was delayed due to fog at LaGuardia. As any mom flying with small children knows, you try to time eating and drinking with take off and decent, to help with cabin pressure and ears popping. So this delay immediately threw a wrench into that plan.
We quickly went through my stores of cheddar bunnies and granola bars while still on the ground. After a half-hour delay, the pilot got on again with “bad news.” Planes were still grounded in New York and we would have to wait another 45 minutes to see what our departure status was.
At this point we let the kids walk the aisles and tried to keep them happy. In my mind I couldn’t help but think about how we hadn’t even taken off yet and it was already past our scheduled arrival time.
Eventually the pilot announced our flight was cancelled. We were heading back to the gate, would have to reclaim our luggage and go to the terminal counter for “re-booking.” This was where parenting got interesting.
Inside I was fuming. However, I also felt a strong need to maintain a positive and light attitude for the kids—especially for my four-year-old who was starting to meltdown wanting to know how and when she was going to see her cousins?
I started saying things like, “This is exciting. It’s like a story and we don’t know how it ends yet... What an adventure, now we get to take two planes!” Fortunately it worked out and the kids didn’t really pick up on what an enormous pain this was. I think it also helped me get past the frustration since I couldn’t dwell on it. We had lunch and caught a later flight—arriving in New York about 6 hours late.
The silver lining and lesson for me was that by having to focus on and highlight what was positive about the situation and keep my frustration in check for the kids sake, I actually had a better attitude and experience as a result.
Posted in: HEALTH
