7-Hour KL-Dubai Flight With the Boys

yes, i’m back in dubai.

i flew back with my 3 boys. mr. khairul had gone back even before the start of ramadhan. oh, did i mention i was in the aeroplane for nearly 7 hours with my 3 boys; aged 5+, 2+ and 1+? and i was alone, without my husband?

…and i survived! more on that later…

 

cuya, khaleef, syima, syida, me holding kazim & azot

 

as usual, my sisters sent me to klia – syimot, syidot, azot and her beau faiz tagged along to help out with the luggage.

my in-laws were there too to send off their beloved nephews – mr. khairul’s mom, younger bro and sisters were there.

 

me holding kazim, teh with kahfi & tina

 

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now on to the *actual* story – my plane trip with the tiny terrorists.

1. they had a very late nap at home – 8pm up to the time we’re supposed to leave for klia which was around 10pm. my flight was at 2am.
2. i made sure i already checked in online, so everything was smooth when we got to klia – though it was still quite slow!
3. the kids were fed – we lepak at mcdonalds, right by the international boarding gate
4. the boys ran around with their aunts to tire them out for the coming plane ride
5. by the time we entered the international boarding gate, it was already 12.30am; and by the time we walked, rode the train, and walked to our gate – it was a good 1am – just few minutes left before we board the plane, so there was no time for the boys to get restless waiting

on the plane…

1. i sat in the middle with khaleef and kahfi on my left and right. alhamdulillah we got the front seat with the bassinet for kazim
2. before boarding i made sure ALL of the boys wore jackets and socks
3. before keeping my hand-luggage, i made sure i took out my pre-arranged ‘plastic bag’ which contained a couple of diapers, wet-wipes, biscuits and milk
4. once we’re on the plane, kahfi drank his milk, and immediately fell asleep – and the plane hasn’t even took off yet – so far so good!
5. khaleef immersed himself in disney cartoons and airline games while i breastfed kazim to sleep
6. as kazim slept, i put him in the bassinet, just in time for the first meal served – the snack
7. it was peaceful – the noisy kazim was asleep, the mischievous kahfi was asleep – just me and my eldest boy enjoying our snack
8. kahfi slept through out the journey, while kazim woke up once awhile for his milk fix. still fine by me.
9. just few hours before landing, khaleef grew tired and fell asleep. i probably had a SOLID ONE HOUR in that 7 hours with ALL THREE BOYS SLEEPING. unbelievable
10. then the main meal was served – here was a bit tricky because 1) i had to save some of the boys’ food for later (since they’re both sleeping), and 2) while i was having my meal, kazim woke up and i had to move my tray to the floor
11. and then later, i need to go to the lavatory. aiyo. how lah? i can’t leave all three boys sleeping unattended! then kazim woke up, and i was able to go, TAKING KAZIM WITH ME, and changed his diaper also
12. by the time i returned to my seat, kahfi had already half-awake, khaleef still sleeping
13. i turned on his fav movie ‘rio’, and kahfi was nailed to the chair – no fuss
14. kazim was wide awake, fed him bread while he enjoyed ‘rio’ too
15. by the time the plane was about to land, i woke khaleef up because i know how he enjoyed lift off and landing
16. alhamdulillah the plane safely landed; now ALL THREE BOYS WERE FULLY AWAKE, and ready to leave the plane, to meet their bapak

 

 

at dubai international airport…

1. mr. khairul took the ahlan ‘meet and greet’ service for us as he knew it must be taxing for me to drag all three boys across the airport – thanks honey!
2. this service provides a personal porter who waited for us once we’re out of the aircraft'; holding out my ‘name’ on a small board hihi
3. he was friendly; he took our hand-luggage, handled the immigration process and baggage claim – so all were super-smooth – he even asked whether we want to lepak at their lounge, or want to shop – i just wanna see my husband! haha
4. sambil tu rasa macam vip hihihi because while everyone else queue up for immigration, we passed by a special counter without having to line up. the process is the same, but no waiting!
5. later on, mr. khairul told me that a representative from ‘ahlan’ actually called mr. khairul 3-4 times just to update him on the progress of their ‘meet and greet’ – like whether they’ve met me, then another time when we’ve passed immigration, and another time when we’re waiting for our bags
6. when we’re finally out and mr. khairul was there, then only the porter left us
7. i recommend this service for those flying with young children (like i was!) or old folks yang tak larat nak tunggu lama-lama

 

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overall, i would say it was a smooth ride!

before, i was actually very nervous – anything could go wrong – maybe kazim mengamuk non-stop, or kahfi refusing to sleep and want to walk around the aircraft, or khaleef could somehow lost control of his bladder and wet the seats – but we survived without any untoward incident.

alhamdulillah!

good timing, always have a back-up plan, and don’t panic – the key to our survival!

 

 

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