When my surgeon told me that after my ACL reconstruction surgery, I was going to have to delay my trip to Florida, I panicked. I had planned the whole trip so my twin daughters and I could fly together to spend some time in the sun with the grandparents.
I had to change my tickets, and when I checked the airline's website, the only three available were in first class.
I doubted whether it was crazy to take not only one toddler but two on first class, and what other passengers would think of us. I worried someone was going to be mean to me or them, especially since one of them would be flying across the aisle from me.
Turns out, no one cared, and we had a memorable flight.
I prepped them before the flight
My husband and our older child were sitting at the back of the plane, so I explained to the twins what was happening before boarding. I told them we had to be on our best behavior because they were probably going to be the only kids on that section of the plane and that Daddy wouldn't be able to come to sit with us.
To my surprise, they were not the only kids there. Another child around their age was sitting right in front of us, and a teen was further up front.
They were excited about the big seats but, more importantly, about being able to watch endless shows on their tablets, as I had promised.
The flight attendant was so kind
Food was another thing I was nervous about. Being used to flying coach, I missed the window to order a toddler-appropriate lunch for them from the airline, so I knew we were stuck with whatever was left over. I made sure to have plenty of snacks to avoid meltdowns.
The flight attendant made sure they had enough cookies and warm nuts, and instead of giving them the full fancy meal, they got to eat cake for lunch. They were so thrilled.
She also helped me get both twins into the bathroom when it was time for a break and checked in with us several times throughout the flight.
They were better behaved than some of the adult passengers
I was worried about how they were going to behave and if people were going to treat us poorly after reading so many airline nightmare stories from other parents.
One of the twins was seated across the aisle from me and next to a stranger, and I was ready to jump into action if that passenger was rude to her. To my surprise, they didn't really care and laughed when my toddler kept asking for more cake without taking her eyes off the screen.
Other adult passengers around us were even worse behaved than my toddlers were, complaining when they needed to get up to let their seatmates use the restroom.
While I can't afford to fly in first class with my kids regularly (or ever again), this flight with them restored my faith that not all travelers are mean to kids and that parents and non-parents can coexist when up in the air.
