I've only travelled on a plane with child in tow once. My baby was 4 and half months old when my husband and I boarded the plane with her and made the journey from the UK to Australia.
The weeks preceding were a mixture of excitement and pure fear.
Were we crazy to even think of going on a 24 hour flight with a baby? But we went ahead, the plans were made and soon we were at Gatwick, waiting to board.
I remember eyes, burning holes into us, people silently hoping that they would not be seated anywhere within our vicinity. We sat with our smiley baby, trying to show everyone that she really was a happy little girl and not to worry. Or maybe we were trying to convince ourselves.
The announcement came that parents with young children could board. This didn't go down too well with the previously mentioned passengers. Not only would we be disturbing their whole flight but we got to board the plane before they did too.
We found our seats and settled in. Other parents walking past would exchange terrified but knowing smiles, almost saying a silent "Good luck".
Baby’s On Board
Just then, my baby began to cry. Just in time for the passengers that were made to wait for us to board, began to venture onto the plane. The smiles now turned to grimaces, as people looked for their seats and relief if they were a fair distance away from us.
I remember looking at my husband and saying that if we were quick, we could get off the plane, there was still time. Just at that point the engines started, so I guess that was no longer an option. But oh, thank the good Lord for white noise. Within a minute, my girl was sound asleep. She stayed like that right through take off and settled happily into the bassinet.
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