All Things Aviation

Yesterday, I took Kaitlyn to her very first airshow. To be honest, I haven't been to a show since I was a kid. So, it was great for both of us. Ronnie hurt his back at work, so he unable to attend. It was a day full of mommy/daughter time, travel, and airplanes. I wasn't sure if she would want to go. I've never told her that mommy was an aviation student in college, or that when I was in 7th grade, I wanted to join the Air Force to be a pilot. In other words, I've never exposed her to the world of flying.

The travel was an adventure in itself. I have a good sense of direction, if I have some familiarity of where I'm going. For instance, if I have directions to a place, I don't usually need the directions for the opposite way back. Does that make sense?
Anyway, the Acadiana Airfest was in New Iberia, LA. I've never been to New Iberia, but decided it couldn't be THAT difficult. So, I packed my kid in the car, and away we went. And went. And went. And then, I got lost.

Just a side note: if you have an iphone and are interested in the Mapquest app... don't waste your energy. I'm glad I have common sense, because the app wanted me to make a left turn on a road that was clearly marked, "No Left Turn." Okay, fail one. After a lot of looking for streets that never appeared, I did what a woman would do: I stopped and asked for directions. =) Finally, I found the airport.

The opening "act" was a sky diving team. My daughter was unimpressed. At that point, she was far more interested in the random, inflatable Ronald Mc Donald that was just as randomly placed on the ramp. But, as the other aircraft made an appearance, she was hooked. The only thing that she didn't like was the noise of the F-16 Viper. She kept her fingers in her ears while he was in the air. (The F-16 was my favorite part).

I took Kaitlyn to buy an airplane, and she chose an inflatable F-16. I was SO excited that she showed an interest in something that I love. Once the show was over she wanted to drag me to look at each and every one of the planes. We looked at a few, and then headed to the car. I knew we had a LONG drive home.

Once home, Kaitlyn didn't want to put her new airplane down, and requested to take it to school. She wanted to show all of her friends her new plane. She asked me last night when we could attend the next airshow and if SHE could fly in the planes. There's a Fly In in DeRidder next month, and we will be there.