Come Fly With Me

Moving large quantities of Ern's books to and from the library is a large part of our life. 

I think this is objectively the cutest kid on planet earth.

We suddenly realized it had been a few days since we've been on a plane so we booked a ticket and rushed to the airport before the horror of being stationary had a chance to take hold.

The difference between my childhood and Ernie's never cease to amaze and amuse me. I probably hadn't been in an airport lounge until I was 35.

Turkish Airlines gave our boy a little kid's welcome pack thing contained in an awesome backpack with friggin' airplane wings!

Whoa

The in-flight entertainment system made me an offer I couldn't refuse.

I appreciate it when you get a paper menu in economy class. It says "we know you're poor but we still imagine you can read".

The future is now.

No thank you!

Round and round our airplane goes. Where it stops? No one knows.

Some Rough Airports

I hadn't been murdered in St. Louis yet and I decided I shouldn't push my luck any further. To the airport!

Lambert Airport was in a very "burn me down and start over" state.

Seattle's airport on the other hand was still having the same computer issues as when I left.

Drastic measures were in place.

I don't like to brag but Lydia was PRETTY impressed with how much pumpkin flavored alcohol I managed to smash into one suitcase.

I had a delicious bowl of ramen at Silverlake Ramen in Totem Lake. It's great to be back.

Flyboy Birthday

In anticipation for Ernie Wernie's 1st birthday party we hit the airport and flew to St. Louis.

Ern is starting to get the hang of this airport lounge thing.

St. Louis achieved!

I am apparently old because I still walk past this US Bank branch at the airport and smirk to myself over an incident that occurred in 2011. A ding dong frat brother of mine was working here at the time, and I stopped in to buy some pounds on my way to a UK trip. When I arrived in the UK and began spending said pounds all hell broke loose because the notes were expired. Good times.

Alaskan Launch

It's a good thing that Lydia and I have a good chunk of parental leave because Ernesto has been demanding to see the world and go on lots of trips.

My big chunky baby outgrew his little swing. I thought it was kind of sad that he'll never ride in this again and he has no way of knowing that's happening. He used to like to spend time in the swing and I had a red, white, and black takeout bag from Din Tai Fung hanging from the kitchen table that he liked to stare and and smile.

Alaska was actually supposed to be our first trip after St. Louis, as a domestic starter practice adventure. I was able to get us those fancy tickets to Japan on short notice though, so Lydia was a trooper and rescheduled the Alaska journey.

Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport was very impressive. It had a lot of depictions of Alaskan animals, geography, and culture and really served as a great starting point for a tourist.

Ted Stevens is a big ole deal in Alaska. He was influential in getting Alaska accepted into the union as a state, and the served as senator 1968 to 2009. He was actually involved in a plane crash at the airport in 1978 in which he survived but his wife was killed. He himself was killed in a 2010 crash north of Dillingham, AK. I'm not sure I would personally want an airport named after me after all of that but why not? He was a big deal in getting pork barrel spending for Alaskan projects so if I was a gambler I'd guess he's the one who got this fancy airport built in the first place.

Alaska is big.

While we were in line getting our rental car sorted out I was amused to find a salmon recipe on the counter for people to take. I'm starting to get the impression that this state is different from all the others.