Travel Suvival Guide

Since Will & I just completed our 48th flight together in 17 months... & tomorrow we'll be taking our third flight in just over a week, I thought that maybe I should share some of our tips for surviving airplanes with a baby/toddler.

Disclaimers:

* These tips only apply to traveling with a toddler or baby

* These tips only apply to traveling with one child... one of my hugest (is that a word?) fears is how I will travel solo with 2 children! (Seriously, when I imagine more kids - which I definitely want- my biggest fears are not scheduling or sleep deprivation but travel!) I claim total ignorance in that department & I can feel my heart starting to race just imagining my future! (And by future, I am not implying in the next 9 months kind of future so don't start commenting about that! ;)

* The longest road trip I have done with Will is 12 hours... ask Megan P. for help in surviving road trips with multiple small children!


1. SNACKS! Even if you don't believe in giving your kids snacks on a regular basis... in fact, if you don't, this makes it a much bigger deal for traveling! I love the little goldfish singles packets as well as the Gerber fruit chews. Cheerios & puffs are always a good bet as are grapes. I do NOT recommend raisins or craisins- that sort of food combined with air pressure on the plane can make for a less than enjoyable flying experience, if you know what I mean. I keep "special" travel snacks in my pantry that W only gets when traveling & I don't pull them out for the flight unless necessary! Also, I like to keep a package of handwipes or "kleen handz" nearby as messy hands result from snacktime & the child might be in my lap!

2. Always pack a spare onesie. I didn't do this on our last long flight last weekend & it cost me dearly - thanks to some diarrea on 2 separate occassions.... & no air dryers for his pants in the bathrooms- thank you, DFW- could you please upgrade terminals A-C?

3. EXERCISE! Sometimes I see babies & small children stuck in their strollers at the airport gates & I dread the upcoming flight for them. This is your chance to exercise that kid in the hopes that he will then sleep on the flight! I know it means less time spent relaxing at the gate for you but seriously, did you think that flying with child would be relaxing?!?! Let them walk thru the terminal, explore the gate, do whatever you can as long as you are moving! In Boston last fall, we took a small ball & threw it for Will & made him crawl to retrieve it. Other people at the gate even got in on the game & Will loved all the attention. He then took a GREAT nap on the flight, by the way! I also always keep a truck handy - he can drive that all over the empty chairs (or sleeping passenger's legs... whatever) There's so much to see in an airport terminal - enjoy walking with your child & pointing out the sights, colors, shapes, letters, practicing social skills, etc.

4. Special toys- I keep a stash of small travel toys that W only gets while flying. Sticker books and sticker rolls are great & cheap at dollar stores. Balls with holes around them are convenient so that on the flight, I can attach my links to them & attach it to the armrest- that way when he throws it, I don't have to continually pester the person in front of me to return it!) Books are the best- expecially any kind of interactive ones or ones they can really engage with (animal books for instance.) We spend most of our flight time reading. Someone gave W a "story reader" for his bday & it is great! It comes with little books & it reads out loud for you. This can give Mommy a nice break from reading "Oso Pardo" over & over & over again! Coloring books & a few crayolas are good too - or just plain paper & a pen or pencil or colors. Megan P. once suggested a slinky to me & that has been a great travel toy!

5. Something soft- to lay baby down on the seat next to you for his nap- a hoodie or sweater will work just fine if you don't have room in the carry on for a blanket

6. Liquids- disregard the whole TSA liquid rules- they don't apply to children & if you act confident, they'll let it go with just a little test! I always take 8+ oz milk with me in my little FOGO thermos & they always test it but let me through. Some airports just don't carry whole milk (& if you mention "breast"milk, they'll quickly swab it & not say a word! You will definitely want your child drinking something for take off & landing to help them pop their ears (& avoid ear infections.) I also buy water (& sometimes juice for a special treat) after going through security in case he drinks all of his milk during take off.

7. For W's bday, he received a portable dvd player. This has been a lifesaver! He's only allowed to use it when travelling & again, we only pull it out when necessary, but it is really nice! I highly recommend one! If the buttons are on the front & accessible to baby, I recommend affixing cardboard or velcro straps to it to keep curious fingers off of it. Otherwise, you spend the entire flight constantly turning it on again.

8. For smaller babies, I loved travelling with my baby bjorn as opposed to a stroller. I didn't want strangers in my baby's face so the baby bjorn helped with that issue plus, it frees your hands which is nice when travelling. Also, when going through security with a stroller, you have to get your kid out, fold up the stroller, & send it through security. If you are travelling alone, this means dealing with the question of where to put the baby while you are dealing with stroller & stuff. This can be a real problem if the security line is busy, you are sandwiched in between businessmen or teenage boys as opposed to grandmotherly helpful travellers, and/or you have a crawler who takes off the minute you set him down & doesn't understand the command of "stay next to mommy while she folds the stroller, unpacks most of the bag, takes off her shoes, etc." The baby bjorn, on the other hand, never has to be removed for security - you get to wear it & baby right through! Need I say more?

ps- Stollers, car seats, & baby carriers like hiking baby backpacks do not count for bag numbers when checking luggage... fyi (Sometimes I take all 3 plus my 2 bags just to watch the grumpy American Airlines agent not be able to charge me for some of my things. Small pleasures.)

9. Scheduling... I prefer to schedule my flights during nap times if at all possible so that W will sleep on the plane. I realize, however, that this could totally backfire & I could end up with an overtired, cranky kid at some point. So far, however, it's worked & he takes great naps & I get some nice cuddling on the airplane.

10. Babies- always need to be nursing or drinking milk when taking off & landing for their ears. If your baby nurses or is used to warm milk (& you aren't planning on nursing on the plane), you can request a hot bag of water from the flight attendant as you board & use that to heat up your bottle. Just make sure you return it to them just before take off as you don't want to be holding hot water plus baby during take off.

11. Dirty diapers on the airplane- yikes! Not my favorite moment of flying! I've tried several times to change W in the bathroom when R was concerned about privacy. I don't recommend this for several reasons - 1. GERMS, 2. no room except for ontop of the toilet seat (see #1.) I prefer to do it in my lap, on the empty seat next to me, or just wait it out for landing if possible.

12. Speaking of germs, I love to take a little thing of clorox wipes or "kleen" hands to wipe down the tray that my child might be eating off of. I also like the disposable placemats to stick on the tray - available at grocery store in baby aisle.


13. This is my closely guarded top secret method to securing a seat for Will without paying for it.
I really like you guys which is why I share (if you've ever flown with a kid, you probably do this on your own anyway!) If you are flying United, Continental, or American & have an assigned seat: always beg/cry/create a scene politely ask the gate agent if you can move your seat to an empty row or a place next to an empty seat. Odds are, if the seat isn't purchased by the time you check in, you'll get lucky & it will remain empty! This has always worked for us & we get an extra seat for our multitudes of stuff & to place Will for sleeping or, as a toddler, he can just sit there, quite happily. If you are flying Southwest & don't have an assigned seat, head for the back of the plane. I like the back for 2 reasons: (a) it's louder & therefore masks sounds of a hypothetical tantrum should one occur & it helps lull a certain someone to sleep & (b) people are less likely to sit there, thereby increasing my chances of finding an extra seat! I always put Will in the seat next to me while I arrange all of our stuff (I like lots of books & a sippy cup in the seat pocket in front of me for easy access.) I also spend time praying that no one comes to claim the seat! Meanwhile, he sits there & looks angelic but also wards off other passengers. It's amazing how people will go out of their way to avoid sitting by a small child! Plus, I figure it's not lying if I stay quiet & people just happen to assume that because he is sitting there we must have paid for the seat. If they've never flown with a small child, they likely don't know about the "lap child flies free" policy & it's not my fault if they assume he has a seat & therefore they don't sit by us! Once, a SW agent actually stood in the aisle by our row & steered people away from us so that we could have the only empty seat on the plane! She must have been an angel in disguise! ;)

PS- if you're a scrapbooker or a wanna-be or just a sentimental type, when flying with your child for the first time, you can request wings for them & SW will also provide you with a certificate signed by the pilot. (FYI)

OK - that's all I can think of regarding my travel tips! I've got to go pack for our next flight!