baby on a plane: the last of the photos from phoenix

Posted on 26. Jan, 2012 by Princess Lasertron.

Last week, Dave, Alice, and I went to Phoenix to stay for a week with my grandpa and his wife and take a little break.
We didn’t do a ton of sightseeing.
We didn’t do much shopping.
We did a lot of eating, visiting family, and relaxing.
(And we spent some time in traffic.)
Here are a few pictures from the plane and a few more from our stay in Phoenix.

We hope to go back to Phoenix next year and check out the vintage shops that I heard so much about. It was a beautiful trip and we loved the city.
See all photos on Daily Alice.

xo
meg

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today’s outfit and a few snaps: heart glasses and note passes

Posted on 23. Jan, 2012 by Princess Lasertron.

1: Mama’s outfit and Alice’s outfits from our plane ride today. 2: On our way to the airport. Alice wears those glasses everywhere. Now we have two pairs. 3: Fancy shoes and Dave’s indie video games. 4: Nap. 5: Playing her new iPad game, Animal Alphabet. (She said “Yak” today!) 6: Notes passed back and forth between me and Dave on the plane. 7: Napping across our laps. She slept for over an hour this way.

Top: Left of Center; Jeans: Joe’s Jeans; Boots: Henry Ferrera; Bag: Kinies; Lipstick: Hazardous by The Elixery; Alice’s Bag: Skip Hop; Pullover: American Apparel; Polo: Circo; Pants: Carters; Shoes: Pediped

See more details about today’s outfit on my Polyvore page.

xo
meg

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Happy Trails With a Toddler: What I packed in Alice’s travel bag

Posted on 19. Jan, 2012 by Princess Lasertron.

Who: Alice, 20-month-old toddler
What: A 2.5 hour flight to visit my grandfather in Phoenix
Where: On my lap in the middle seat of a packed airplane, 40,000 feet in the air
Why: I do not want to be one of those parents.

1: Pets Sticker Book (I have a “Getting Dressed” one for our return flight) 2: Pipe cleaners 3: “At the Zoo” wipe-off book 4: Noise-reducing headphones for toddlers 5: Crayons 6: Bee Backpack from Skip Hop 7: Ugly Doll bat keychain 8: Gallop! by Rufus Butler Seder 9: Silly Putty 10: Applesauce in a squeeze packet 11: Lemur stuffed animal 12: Cool wooden puzzle 13: Hello Kitty Band-Aids 14: Travel Kleenex

Not pictured: Empty sippy cup (to fill up after security), peanut butter granola bar, Annie’s fruit snacks to help her popping ears

When my brother and I were younger, our family traveled a lot. On each trip, my mom took care to pack a special airplane bag for each of us full of new treats and distractions to keep us content on a long trip. Sitting with a nearly two-year-old on my lap for the duration of a packed flight was my idea of hell, but the backpack helped a lot.

The biggest hits with Alice were the pipe cleaners, snacks (of course), and band-aids. We’ll save the rest of the stuff for the ride home on Sunday!

What do you take on long trips to keep your kids happy? Is there anything I should grab for next time?
xo
meg

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Flying Away: Rest and relaxation in Phoenix

Posted on 19. Jan, 2012 by Princess Lasertron.

I’m writing from US Airways flight 668, en route to Phoenix. Alice is laying across both of us, enjoying her hard-won sleep, as Dave listens to music too loud and I work on my book outline on the little iPad keyboard I borrowed for the trip. The arms of Alice’s striped sweater are covered in patches of Hello Kitty band aids and she is clinging to her dad’s legs like a sloth. He’s sporting his fair share of Hello Kitty bandages too–the other half of the box I stuck in her special new backpack.

Yes! It’s our  first family vacation ever. I even stopped at work on our way to the airport and (in a devious twist of fate) left empty-handed. No thread has been packed, no scissors have been hidden in away in a carry-on, and no frayed scraps of fabric will litter our bedroom floor. It’s  really a big step for me.  This is the first time I’ve EVER been out of town without work.

We’re staying in a beautiful three-bedroom home where my grandpa and his wife live during one month each year. They are there, and Dave and I will be there with Alice until Sunday night. If I said I did not plan to work, that wouldn’t entirely be true–I will probably work on my book each day, but I left the heavy labor at home.

This week I plan to post a few great weddings we did recently as well as some newer work that we have just completed and mailed out, as well as instagrams and photos from our trip.

Thanks for reading, stop SOPA, eat a clementine every day, and never complain.
xo
meg

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Radvent day 7: Travel

Posted on 07. Dec, 2011 by Princess Lasertron.

Have you ever taken a trip that changed your outlook on something, inspired you to consider a new worldview, or helped you fulfill an important goal?

Put yourself in the mindset of being on a journey–what is essential to keep with you, and what can you leave behind? What souvenirs do you pick up along the way? What gifts do you acquire that can be shared with others? Even those of us who aren’t well-traveled have been on plenty of adventures. What is the biggest risk you took to travel outside of your comfort zone?

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Three travel memories

Vejle, Denmark

In Vejle I spoke to a group of students about U.S. customs and our cultural similarities and differences, in pop culture, politics, lifestyle, education…everything. We talked for so long and it make me realize how much our geography, our circumstances, our Geworfenheit influences our beliefs. Everyone around the world basically wants the same things, but our cultural values influence the way we think things “are” and make us think things are so black-and-white. The political conversations I had in Denmark in 2007 were pretty intense, as you might imagine! I had traveled in other countries and cultures before, but never gotten the chance to have such a personal, in-depth conversation with people from the place I was visiting. Since that trip to Vejle, I have made meeting local people the biggest priority of my travels. Going to museums, historical sites, shopping, and restaurants are an important part of my “studies abroad,” but making meaningful connections with other humans who come from a totally different frame of reference has taught me the most.

Berlin

Berlin is my favorite place in the world, where I experienced my most inspiring and peaceful moments of solitude. In fact, when my birth coach asked me to construct a “happy place” for meditation, the room I stayed in for three weeks at Hotel Bogota immediately–automatically–reconstructed itself in my mind. Two long twin platform beds pushed together, a single crisp white sheet with a fluffy down comforter that was the exact size of the mattress, one pillow on each bed–all white linens. Soft threadbare cotton curtains that hung in the window, which I kept open over the corner of Bleibtreustrasse and Kurfurstendamm. I saw the #2 bus come and go every seven minutes. I watched international news on an old tv set far across the room. I was lucky to have a simple shower in the room–many visitors took a short walk down the hall to a shared bathroom. A standing birch wardrobe that held my two pairs of jeans, three sweaters, and dress that I brought for the trip in my small bag. Other than that, the room couldn’t have been plainer. It felt like luxury to me, more than any suite I have stayed in at a “nice” hotel chain. It felt like a place where I was really getting away, a completely new environment, not constructed to conjure memories of a home I was used to. The luxury was the freedom of being alone, unobliged, and unfamiliar. When left to rely on myself, I am so happy.

Moscow

My uncle is a businessman in Moscow, where he lives with his Russian wife and kids. My aunt is so beautiful, educated, and intelligent. Hearing her stories about growing up in Soviet Russia and the tales about their scandalous courtship in the USSR always fascinated me, and spending a week with them in Moscow was like being in another world, even in 2008, 19 years after the fall of the iron curtain. One of the most memorable nights was spent bouncing between night clubs and being chauffeured around the main streets of Moscow, peppered with beautiful people, bottles of champagne, blackjack and quick translations. The ride home at 4:30am was into the early Russian sunrise, and I slumped in the back of the Mercedes calculating how many hours of sleep I would be able to get before I had to rise with the rest of the family and drive back into the city for our next excursion. I wrote a postcard to my husband that night–we hadn’t yet met, but we had become friends online and I couldn’t get him off my mind.

Other impactful experiences

My dad flying us to Chicago to see two of our favorite bands. Learning  letterpress from Jordan Ferney in San Francisco. Watching a clown perform in an amphitheater in Puerto Vallarta while eating–what else?–crepes. Seeing homelessness for the first time in Washington D.C. Taking a train out into the country in Berlin and sharing a lakeside dinner. Walking as far as we could in Paris with my friend Matthias and doing a photoshoot at the Musee de Picasso. Standing up in the crown of the Statue of Liberty.

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If you are writing your own Radvent responses, share the link below! Browse around! Leave comments!

xo
meg

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