Chances are, you made it here due to one of a number of likely possibilities, none of which were entirely intentional.  You may have been browsing your favorite Saverocity blog – mine is PFD – or maybe you accidentally clicked on the 12th page of google results.  Either way, you’re reading this and have probably noticed that this particular blog is very new.  Allow me to introduce myself.

I am first and foremost a dad.  I consider myself very lucky to have a wonderful wife and an incredible 2-year-old daughter.  They are in the process of forgiving me for all of the travel that we do.  As it often goes in the professional world, you end up where your career takes you.  Mine took me to D.C. for the better part of a decade where I worked as a consultant, went to law school and worked for the government – more or less the things people do when they end up in the Nation’s Capital.  I never did buy that navy blue suit, so that box remains unchecked.  It was there where I met my would-be wife and got married, and once we decided to raise a family, we moved away.  On the basis of enjoying our frequent weekend trips here, we chose Southern Maine, where we are today.

The reason I’ve chosen to present my abridged, sarcasm-laden story of adulthood is that it sets the stage for why I have any reason at all to write this blog.  In addition to being a wonderful place to live and visit, Maine also happens to be 400 miles to our closest family and 2500 to the most distant.  Out of necessity, we began to travel frequently on weekends, and in the course of doing so, I discovered the world of miles, points and elite status.  More importantly, we found ways to do more on a smaller budget.  And most importantly, we had our daughter up here, who took her first plane ride at 6 months of age en route to US Airways Silver status that year.  We travel because we love to do it, certainty, but what got us back out of the house after having our first child was the need to do it in order to see family and friends.  We learned many lessons along the way on how traveling with a little kid is a lot different than doing it on your own.

Are We There Yet? is about reaching an audience of new and prospective parents, beginners and seasoned travelers alike, that are starting to dream about getting back out there to show their little one the world.I can’t promise that I have a ton of answers, but I hope that I’ve learned a few things to share.  As you cross the threshold from carry-ons to checked baggage, coffee and a newspaper to car seats and gate tagged strollers, elegant writing to horrible metaphor, I hope that I can be informative – or at least, entertaining.