10 In travel

selfcare in the sky

I’m still pinching myself over our amazing trip to Europe. Two and a half weeks in Paris and Barcelona was the babymoon of my dreams, and I feel so lucky that we were able to fit it in to our crazy spring schedule. (And I do mean crazy- we came home just in time to start unpacking before David’s ankle reconstruction surgery!)

Before I get into recapping our trip, I wanted to share a bit about our flight (we flew on Norwegian Air’s aptly named new Dreamliner, and it was so SO nice) and the in-flight habits i rely on to make long-haul travel just a little easier.

When it comes to flights, I have quite the routine, honed over years of frequent travel. For starters, if I’m on a plane, I’m wearing compression socks- always. My doctor says moving frequently is more effective as far as blood clots go, but they are majorly helpful when it comes to swelling.

As soon as I hit my seat, I use antibacterial wipes on every hard surface in my vicinity- armrests, the window area, my seatbelt buckle, the tray and chairback. If I can clean it, I do- I try not to think about the fact that airplanes are flying Petri dishes. Then I start hydrating- I always have a huge refillable water bottle on me, and I empty it before beverage service. Prepregnancy, I’d take my anti-anxiety medication at this point, but xanax is a preggo no-go, so I’ve been making do with essential oil balms lately.

We were lucky enough to fly to Paris and back from Barcelona in Norwegian’s premium economy class. In all honesty, I usually find flying first class a bit excessive. We aren’t big rollers, and it can be so expensive that I just can’t justify it- I’d much rather earmark that money for a Michelin starred meal, an incredible experience, a designer purse or shoes, or everyday life expenses once we get home.

But after flying premium economy to Europe, I’m singing a different tune. Frankly, it was astonishingly affordable- less expensive than economy on some other airlines. And when you reason that it includes a generous luggage allowance (and we are heavy packers, between wardrobe and David’s equipment), airport lounge access, and meals and drinks, it comes out to be even more sensible. And especially traveling at 20 weeks pregnant, the extra room and ability to recline all the way and spread out and relax for 13 hours, rather than being cramped and uncomfy, was priceless. I’m not sure I would have been half as cheery upon arrival if we’d flown economy.

I will say, flight meals were generously portioned and really quite delicious. I normally pack us a whole sack of food for traveling- David’s a bottomless pit- and it was so nice not to need to bother with that in the last minute leaving-the-house frenzy. And he had himself a few cocktails, while I drank a dozen bitter lemon sodas- I miss you, champagne. We watched movies, clocked some serious time asleep (thank mercies for the big comfy seats) and I played in-flight facialist, like I do, and shamelessly looked like Jason as I sheetmasked.

Let’s talk in-flight skincare. I do a lot, yes, but my skincare routine is extra at home, so it’s not terribly surprising that it’s more of the same in the air. I start by cleansing as best I can, whether I’ve been wearing makeup or not. I LOVE the micellar water wipes from Trader Joe’s, and I use several to make sure everything’s off and I have a clean base. I exfoliate next- peel pads from Dr. Dennis Gross are my in-air pick because they work so well, but the tiny packet of two drenched cloths takes up zero room. There’s a waiting period as you let this product work it’s magic, so that’s about the time I put in eye drops, and choke down an emergen-c vitamin packet. I honestly hate the taste, but need I mention the airplane germs again?

Hylauronic acid is a hydration hero, so a Skinceuticals HA serum is up next for me, and I follow it quickly with a sheet mask so there’s lots of goodness for my pores to suck on up. I often wear sheetmasks for longer than the directions say- I remoisten them with extra essence from the packet or spritz repeatedly with facial mist.

When I’m done scaring people and the sheet mask comes off, I use a sleeping mask to seal in all that goodness. I’ve been obsessing over Dermalogica sound sleep cocoon lately. Then it’s time for eye cream, my favorite lip balm, and a emollient hand cream to wrap up the product parade. I put in earplugs and put on a silk eyemask and get some beauty sleep.

Most of the heavy lifting is done by the time I wake up, but more is more. I ask the flight attendant for a cup of ice, and chill my quartz roller in it. I give my face a healthy spray of hydrating mist, and go to town rolling to wake up and take down the inevitable puffiness. I add a layer of sunscreen (always with the sunscreen) before I open my window shades, reapply lip balm and hand cream, and am ready to hit the tarmac running !