Days 1 & 2: We Are Off to New Zealand!

After many months of planning, departure day is finally here. The trip started with a late afternoon flight to San Francisco, which gave us a leisurely last day at home.

Our “firsts” were already starting: Nicholas rode in his an Uber and used his passport for the first time. Despite a small flight delay due to weather at SFO, we had plenty of time to make our connecting flight to Auckland. Nicholas rode the moving sidewalks (repeatedly), and Cooper enjoyed watching pallets loaded onto the airplane. We all appreciated the opportunity to stretch our legs as we walked between terminals.

Our SFO-AKL flight on Air New Zealand was 12.5 hours, and we couldn’t have asked for a better experience. Cooper commented they have the best accents and declared “that was the best safety video in my whole entire life.” Shortly after takeoff they served dinner, including kids meals, then offered a beverage service. We skipped the latter, as it was 10 p.m. and time to brush our teeth and get some sleep. We splurged on a Skycouch for the boys, which converts a 3-seat row into a little bed, along with some pillows and blankets. The boys slept so well.

Rob and I had a bit more tossing and turning, but also managed a couple hours of sleep. We had lucked out with an empty seat in our row of 3 too making it much easier to stretch out. Apparently I reached my best state of sleep just as they were turning the lights on and starting breakfast service. I was completely asleep through all of the noise and commotion until Rob finally woke me up. Breakfast was also wonderful, after which it was time to pack up and get ready for landing.