That’s “cat”, by the way, hitching a ride atop the suitcase.
My 4-year old daughter and I took a “girls’ trip” this summer. Just the two of us (neither of her brothers and no Daddy). She felt very big-time. We flew to Texas to visit more girls — my sister and her two daughters. Lots of crafts and dress up and girliness was to be had. And it was. However, if you feel inclined to travel, particularly via airplane, with a 4-year old little girl, I feel that I must warn you of how it will go. Here are the 9 rules of traveling with a 4-year old girl.
- You will allow her to pack her own suitcase, as this is a big-girl trip. She will fill it with 17 stuffed animals and all of her favorite dresses. She will not see the need for more than one pair of underwear.
- Your child will walk at a -10 mph pace through the airport. You will try to move her to the side so that normal-paced walking people may pass. However, she will move in a continual S formation, thus taking up an entire 50-f00t section, so that no one is able to pass her.
- She will insist on holding her favorite stuffed cat throughout the day of travel. (The rest of her friends, she will acquiesce, may stay packed away in the suitcase). However, going through security will cause some distress, as cat must be scanned for… whatever incendiary or dangerous device stuffed cats are scanned for at airports these days. Your child will not feel comfortable separating from cat for 28 seconds and sending her through security, for cat “is scared and won’t like this.” Relief and joy will wash over your child as cat emerges on the other side of the x-ray machine, unscathed.
- Your 4-year old will also move at a painfully slow pace in public airport restrooms. She will tell you a very elaborate tale of her stuffed bunny and his stuffed bunny mommy and stuffed bunny daddy, who are at home, waiting for her. (They didn’t make the cut into the suitcase.) They miss her and she misses them, and this will be discussed in depth whilst perched atop a public toilet. She will continue lamenting her neglect of the bunny family while washing her hands and drying them, making anyone else who needs to use the sink (and subsequently, the toilet) become fully schooled on the state of the bunnies before leaving the restroom themselves.
- She will reeeeeeeally want to hold her own boarding pass because she is “such a big girl!” You take a deep breath and hand it to her 30 seconds before boarding, asking every 2 seconds if she has it.
- Your child will stand awkwardly close to strangers, periodically bumping into them, in the check-in and security lines, having no concern for other people’s personal space.
- She will ensure that everyone around her knows that she has to poop.
- Your daughter will be ridiculously adorable, and therefore, she can get away with all of the above. (She will stare creepily at anyone who does not verbally acknowledge her cuteness.)
- She will remind you of what you often miss in your busy days at home with her brothers: how funny and unique and pretty freaking amazing she is.