When your children consider 3 hour flight a short trip, get their passports out and ask which language we will be using – you know international travel is a common nature to them. It also tells me that we need to visit more places in the US and reset expectations that not every trip will involve 10+ hour flight (thank god!). This week we spent in Vail, Colorado and celebrated Thanksgiving with our family.

The flight was packed with very annoying young family sitting in front of us. As a pretty well seasoned traveling parent, I feel like we parents are a hidden secret society – we give each other those looks of sympathy, understanding and “what hell did you go through on this flight” nod. This family was different, it was young parents with a grandmother and about 9 months old baby. Mia and Max sat right behind them and every single noise they made including laugh and squeak, they got a pretty bad look and gesture of exasperation. Yes the baby was napping but you are on a public flight and unless the children are yelling constantly, you can’t expect them to be mute. I had to use all my control not to say something snippy about “you wait when your sleeping angel starts moving and expresses their desires” – then we can talk. Max was very disappointed there was no food as every single flight he has ever taken has had 2 or more meals – so big low for him but no food is always a low for him. One mental note for Delta. Marking a 5 years old and 7 years old as TSA pre-check qualified, while their parents are not is a little counterintuitive. I get it that they are least likely to break the rules since they don’t know what all those insane rules actually are but let’s offer a free kids watching service once they pass it and their parents are stuck in a line – or just drop it.

Denver was our first stop – we got to play in a park in freezing temperatures and then visited the Denver Museum of Nature and Science which was truly magnificent. Wonderful space section, great Egyptian mummy exhibit and we all loved the IMAX movie on things that our eye can’t see as they are too small, move too slow or move too fast. Unfortunately, Mia moved a little too fast and was too small so it wasn’t exactly a quiet performance.

Outside, the kids were fascinated by every tiny and dirty piece of snow or ice and realized quickly that gloves are critical piece of your attire here. I reminded myself that packing and dressing them for -4C is a test in matching, memory and hide/seek games – so many pairs to match, layers to find, pieces to connect or tie together. And then reserve the time to actually put it on them – my gosh beach attire is so much easier !

Then on Day 2 – off to Vail – next post.