We just spent 6 days in Dallas Texas. When I say, “we,” I mean the whole family. My wife, Baby Emerson and myself.
After much contemplation on whether or not Emerson and I should stay home, my wife was heading to Dallas for a conference, we decided to “come with.”
I’m not sure how many of you have traveled with an infant (Emerson is 15 weeks old) but it can be quite the adventure and it activated all of my super, “let’s be as prepared as possible” daddy senses (since the birth of Emerson, my spider senses have been replaced).
Before the flight I had already looked at blog sites like Lapeira to see what I needed to do in preparation for the flight but I was still a bit nervous about traveling with small children. I reached out to a couple of friends who have small children and who have traveled with them by plane. Some of them suggested me to hire a private charter to forgo much of the stress associated with airport stopovers, flight times and delays. They said that I should consider web portals like Jettly when booking charter flights because of their in-depth and upfront information on travel expenses and in-flight services. An entire section on their site, I’m told, has the full roster of their flights, helicopters and choppers.
I also created a Google doc with my checklist of stuff to bring and got excellent input on, “what about this and what about that.”
Oh, I don’t think I mentioned that my wife was on a different flight so it would just be Emerson and I on that Jet Blue flight to Dallas.
All of my angst was met with kindness all around and you have to understand THIS is what I wish for everyone (of course you gotta give first baby), a life of kindness, connection and good karma.
Dallas Bound Kindness
Here is a bullet list of the kindness that came my / our way and a shout out to all involved.
- My friends reviewed my Google Doc and provided excellent suggestions, including: where’s the bottle warmer and where’ s the number to the nearest emergency room
- My homie Joel, left work early to drive us to the airport at about 5 a.m. in the morning
- A lady helped me to put my car seat and stroller in a travel bag before checking it at the gate. This sweet lady even waited for us afterwards to help unpack the travel bags so I could put Emerson in the stroller.
- The Jet Blue Flight Attendant (Haley) was really kind to Emerson and I (talk to us before the flight, helped during the flight and even held Emerson so I could put on my carrier to get off the plane).
- Pete Conway and family picked up baby Emerson and I from the airport with very short notice and they provided us with a pack and play, changing pad, Bumbo and a few other items that just made life much easier.
In Dallas Kindness
- The hotel staff was great, one night they provide me a 10 pm meal in the lobby so I didn’t have to wake up baby Emerson. We stayed in a Luxury Hotel in Downtown Dallas and it was fantastic. We had such a great time!
- We ran out of wipes and the hotel staff went to pick up a box for us from Target, just in time to put them to use (I’ll spare you the details).
- The Conway family (our buddies from college) was kind enough to host Emerson and I at their home for a Texas BBQ meal.
- Our friend and Emerson’s God mother, Jess, checked in on him to see how things were going.
Back to Boston Kindness
- My wife and I weren’t seated together on the way home but someone was willing to switch seats with us on a packed plane.
- The lady who we sat next too adored babies (that’s not always the case) and kept Emerson entertained
- Our good friend Emme picked us up from the airport, had food waiting for us and also house sat for us while we were gone.
This trip could have easily been a nightmare but it was the kindness of friends and strangers that allowed me to stay sane and enjoy my time in Dallas.
On the surface this is a post about a trip to Dallas, underneath is the understanding of building an online and offline community and about being a good person; it comes back to you.
Do you have a story about the kindness of strangers? I’d love to hear more about it in the comment section.
