Yep, we were “those” parents. A stroller, a car seat, two bags, checked – plus a diaper bag, two backpacks, and a pillow for Zoe to sleep on for on-plane comfort. Who needs all this stuff?!! Clearly, we do.

Ok, so if it makes a difference, we were packing for 2 weeks (does that help?), and our travel schedule was unusual: We flew into Minneapolis on Saturday, I left for NY on Sunday & returned to MN on Thursday, spent weekend in Minneapolis, then I leave for NY again on Sunday & return on Tuesday, spending the rest of the week in Minneapolis with the Johnson family. I’m exhausted just writing it. So far our weather has swung between 55 and 103 degrees – that requires some creative packing, right?!

But enough excuses. Even after checking our bags, we lugged car seat & stroller with us for gate checking. Note for next time: when you drop off items at the “gate”, you pick them up at the “gate” on the other end. We found that out the hard way after carrying Zoe through the airport in MN, while waiting for our stroller & car seat to show up at baggage claim. Pretty sure we only have to make that mistake once.

Try getting the new stroller we HAD to have through the x-ray machine without removing the wheels (hint: you can’t). Though by the way, we love our Mamas & Papas stroller… Best money we’ve spent so far on a baby item – other than the $13 I spent on a red dog stuck to a pacifier (an impulse buy and yes, it works). Oh, and car seats, even the smaller infant carrier Zoe still uses, barely fit through x-ray – and I’m not sure that gate checking is a huge benefit. And don’t forget to remove the computers from your bags and put them in a separate bin.

Seriously, we were “those” parents. The ones you get stuck behind in the security line that cause you to take a deep breath and wonder, do they really need all that stuff? So far, we really do need all that stuff. But surely, this gets easier, right?!