Iceland
Another world
It was the summer of 2021, the world was navigating the "new normal" era. Covid had pretty much stopped everyone in their tracks and halted most international travel but it was slowly starting to revitalize. I was freshly pregnant with my youngest son when my friend (who conveniently lives next door to us) yelled across our fence and said "Holly! Flights to Iceland are so cheap! We should go!" That was it. We booked our flights and headed to Iceland that September.
Not only was this my first international trip since becoming a mother, it was the first time I've traveled while pregnant. I was deep into my second trimester and truthfully, it was kicking my ass. My travel companion Emily, was in incredible physical shape and is an incredibly peppy person. I was a tired, moody, hormonal, pregnant woman who could no longer button her pants. I extended many preempted apologies to my sweet friend who patiently took on the harrowing task of traveling with her pregnant friend. I hated the thought of slowing her down but my body was merely a vessel at that point. All of my energy went into growing a little human. The first travel day was the roughest. The late flight from Minneapolis to Reykjavik was only 6 hours but I never slept. By the time we landed, got through customs and onto a bus to Reykjavik I was pretty sure I was dying. Our Airbnb was
