Korea part 1 : by jean

We survived!  After 3 bottles, 5 diaper changes, countless amounts of Cheerios and Puffs, 1 hour nap before flight, 45 min nap during flight, and 6 hour sleep mid flight, we made it to Korea!!

our plane to korea!

In the end, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.  Maybe because I had planned for the worst!  Flying with a baby had its own advantages starting with the VIP treatment you get as soon as you get to the airport.  The airline we took, Asiana, has a special "happy mom" service. "Happy mom" provides "3E" services – Express Check In, Express Boarding and Express Baggage.  It's great!  They have a special lane dedicated to moms, so there is no need to wait in line to check bags.  You also board first AND all of your luggage gets a "priority" tag so your bags come out much faster!

Also, their press release says they offer:
(1) A free nursing cover: I wasn't offered one maybe because I didn't ask?
(2) Free sling: I didn't know about that either! But, I didn't walk around enough so maybe they didn't offer?
(3) Cabin baby seat installation and renting service: If you buy a seat for your baby, then the airline offers free installation upon reservation.  It doesn't say if the rental is also free, so I'm guessing it's not, but that still saves the hassle of bringing your own car seat along with all of the other baby luggage you have to take with you!

During mealtimes, they provided baby food.  I brought along several pouches of Ella's Kitchen (which he ate SOO well) so I was set but I still asked for it so I can see what they give out.  They gave baby food made from Beech Nut. Have you guys heard of that brand?  I haven't given Miles juice yet and I think jarred chicken isn't very tasty so I only held onto the fruit.

meal #1: bananas, pears, and chicken & chicken broth, with apple juice

meal #2: apples & blueberries, chicken & rice dinner, chicken & chicken broth, and white grape juice

If you are an expecting mom, they have what they call a "pre-mom" service.  You get an exclusive check-in counter, as well as an electric cart service to the gate so you don't have to waddle there.  Isn't that great?!

miles checking out my seat

miles playing in his bassinet

sleep time for miles!

Overall, Miles was a champion traveler.  During the few times he got fussy, we gave him a brand new toy he's never seen, which helped occupy him, and lots of cheerios or puffs.  The bassinet that was attached to the wall in front of our seat was great because he could not only play in it but also sleep in it, so we didn't have to carry him constantly.  The only issue was that he would wake up easily since he had hardly any room to roll around.  But with lots of patting on the back, he managed to get in 6 hours of sleep once it was his bedtime.

During take-off and landing, I was instructed to hold Miles on my lap.  I would strap myself in and hold him, giving him a bottle in case the pressure was bothering his ears.  During landing, since he played so well in my lap, I strapped myself and him together in my seat belt.  However, I was told that wasn't safe and that I was supposed to only strap myself in and hold him.  I will have to look into this but what if there's bad turbulence?  How is just holding him safe enough?

Getting ready for part 2 next week: All about being jet lagged and taking care of a jet lagged baby. Oye!