Leaving on a jet plane

One of James's Christmas gifts this past year was a gift certificate for a sightseeing flight. We finally got to use it a few weeks ago. It was not the most clear day, but we were happy to see as far as we were able. We were also able to include the girls in our trip. Catie had to be in her carseat b/c of FAA requirements, but Lydia was held on my lap. Seriously....What good did it do to have Cate in a seat and Lydia not. If that plane went down neither would've survived. I guess it might have something to do with mobility? who knows. seems kinda silly.

Catie actually HATED the ride. She fought with James when he tried getting her into her carseat. I thought about staying behind, but figured once we got going she would stop crying and enjoy the flight. That was only partially true. She settled down, but still says she didn't like it. Lydia, on the other hand, loved it and did a great job just hanging out on my lap while looking out the window.

Our first sight to see was our house. This is the part Catie enjoyed the most. She could see her playground and little kiddie pool. We tried to spot the dog, but we were a bit too high for my poor eyesight. She still talks about that part of the trip.

That was also the point when I started to regret going. We circled the house once and I became nauseous. Then I remembered....the only time I threw up while pregnant with Lydia was when we were flying home from my brother's wedding in Indiana and had to circle Dulles a few times before we could land. I had hoped the nausea would pass once we got going straight, but it didn't and I just prayed that I would be able to enjoy the rest of the hour flight without getting worse.

This is a picture of our property. In the bottom right corner is our little pond with my Martin House (the white dot). Catie's playset is in the middle of the yard and the blue dot b/w the playset and the house is her kiddie pool.

The next sight we saw was Keuka Lake. We really do live in an amazing area. If you can see through the propeller you can see that. :)

This next picture was taken while flying over the Bluff (a peninsula the comes halfway down the lake). It was not surprising to see this "USA" sign in the farm land. What a beautiful sight it was though.

Our pilot is also an instructor and allowed James to fly for about 15 minutes. He taught him some things about the rutters which made the plane tip/turn/etc. And remember that nausea? yep, it was still present and persistent. And about the time James was flying I threw up. I'm fairly sure it had nothing to do with his flying since the nausea was with me for the entire flight. I was glad that it went away a bit after throwing up, but I still didn't feel well for most of the day.

The pilot allowed me to get proof that James was doing the flying....

Another highlight of the flight was seeing the Watkins Glen International Raceway from the air. Last year we went to the track for the NASCAR race in August. It only takes about 20 minutes to get there from our house, and I drive by it whenever I go to my sister's, but seeing it from this angle was just so cool.

Catie did pretty good. It was nice to be needed by her when it really counted. So often she goes to daddy and I feel useless, but she really wanted to snuggle with me for the whole flight.

Lydia was quite the opposite. She loved looking out the window and even fell asleep for the last 15 minutes. We had expected Catie to respond like this and enjoy the flight, but I'm now wondering if there is a point when children begin to learn what danger and fear are.

I'm glad we had the opportunity to do this. I highly recommend seeing your home area from a different perspective....just don't do it if you're pregnant.