Monday, July 4, 2011

portland - no checked bags


I am currently in the lovely city of Portland, OR and enjoying every second of it.  Although this will be our 4th time to visit, we had a new experience getting here.

We didn't check any bags.

I know, this isn't new to anyone on the planet, but we usually just check our bags like normal people and go about our travels.  But, remember, we're making cuts when possible and this seemed like an easy sacrifice.  9 days of lots of weather options put into a small-ish suitcase was going to be interesting, but I was up to the challenge.

I spent the week dreading Friday ... the day to pack.  I hate packing.  It finally arrived and I hated it even more, so I sang and danced around to Regina Spektor to make it a little more enjoyable.  It actually prolonged the pain.  I was not done when Colt got home from work, therefore, he received the bulk of my packing dilemmas, questions, and concerns.

"So, should I bring both pair of shorts?  I wear these a lot, but I like the length on these better."
"How many t-shirts did you pack?"
"What's the cutest outfit you have?"
"But how am I supposed to decide on shoes?  Should I bring my tennis shoes?  Are we doing anything that requires them?"
"How do we pack the liquids?  I looked it up online already, but I don't feel confident in the answers.  Will you double check it?"
"Uh, you can't pack the gel inserts that are in your tennis shoes!  I saw it online!"
... and many more.

Colt gently answered my 236 questions as patiently as he could, but I know he had to be wondering ... what was she doing all day?  why didn't she get all of this figured out while I was at work?  why isn't she done packing?  Of course, he never said any of those things.  Smart man.  

I worked myself into a pretty emotional state and found myself crying at the end of all of this.  (I hope some of this can be blamed on pregnancy.)  Colt pulled me back to reality and, in an attempt to save his own sanity, would say the following phrase when needed, "Okay, I'm going to be doing a few things for the next 5 minutes.  Can you not ask me a question during that time?"  I just love/needed to ask questions!  But, I tried my best.

We finally got out the door, made it to the airport, and enjoyed a flight to Portland which did not conclude in a baggage claim visit.  

We would have spent about $125 checking 2 bags for our flights to and from Portland.  Instead, we kept it simple, and just spent about $30 at Walgreens when we arrived on some travel size toiletries.  Because we wanted to keep it safe and we weren't crazy prepared, we didn't bring a few liquid/toiletry things that we actually could have.  So, next time, it'll be less.  

In summary:  Yes, it's worth the pregnant woman tears and packing stresses to not check any bags.  :)

Updates of fun Portland adventures coming soon!

1 comment:

  1. Very nice to read your post :)

    Yes, pregnancy brings in a lot of hormonal changes. You don't seem to be the one you are. You keep asking and saying this and that. :) My husband tells me all the time i act weird. He either keeps smiling when he does that or tries to pull my legs trying to add to my misery. -:P

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