Before we flew to California for Christmas I posed the question to Facebook-land: What in the world do I do to ensure a happy and peaceful flying experience with 2 small children?
I got a variety of suggestions, and so here is what I did and how it worked for us. Hopefully it will be helpful to someone else!
* The morning of our flight I took the boys to an indoor inflatable jump house to burn off as much energy as possible. The way I saw it, the more fatigued they were the easier it would be to keep them settled on the plane. RESULT: It worked! Elijah slept soundly (once he finally drifted off), and Ian was essentially glued to his seat the whole flight watching movies.
* I dressed them in comfortable, soft clothes. Sweatpants with elastic waistband and t-shirt for Ian. Layers for Elijah so that I could take off/add to as needed. Planes are so extreme with the temperature changes... RESULT: Can't go wrong with comfort.
* I used my carry-on allowances to the max. Elijah had his diaper bag, which counted as his carry-on (even though he was a lap baby). It was filled with diapers, wipes, medicine, tissues, and hand sanitizer (I also had all of my purse stuff in the diaper bag, like my wallet, phone, and lip gloss...packed my purse into the checked bag.) We had one activity bag, filled with small toys, board books, and the iPad. We also had a snack bag which doubled as my book/magazine bag (like I was going to get any reading done. Ha!) RESULT: I really felt prepared for anything, which was nice. However, an activity bag does you no good if the child is too sleepy/cranky to play with the toys. Elijah really just wanted to sleep on the flight out there, so once we figured out how to turn out the lights in the alley-way near the bathrooms at the back of the plane (where we were seated)...well, he fell asleep instantly.
* SUCKERS!!! A friend recommended these, along with candy canes and gum (depending on the child's age). Great for combating the pressure changes and who doesn't love a sucker? I found some all-natural "organic" ones made with cane sugar and fruit juice at TJ Maxx before the trip, and I felt less guilty letting Ian consume massive quantities of those. Hey, in a situation like that (small space with dozens of strangers who just want a quiet flight), you give 'em what they want. Even if it's massive quantities of suckers. RESULT: So glad I brought them. We all enjoyed them.
All in all I feel like the flights went OK. Our return flight (San Francisco to Milwaukee, where we had a layover) was R.O.U.G.H...Elijah had been sick and he was teething like make PLUS he was exhausted so his ears were really bothering him and he just could.not.sleep. There was much shrieking, soothing, and apologetic looks from other passengers. *sigh* I cringe when I think about it. But at that point, you know, you are just beyond caring what other people think and are only focused on getting your baby settled and happy again. He slept a little and finally settled down enough to play and read books. Milwaukee to Atlanta they were both perfect angels.
Still. I think we'll wait quite a while before we fly with the 2 of them again.
I got a variety of suggestions, and so here is what I did and how it worked for us. Hopefully it will be helpful to someone else!
* The morning of our flight I took the boys to an indoor inflatable jump house to burn off as much energy as possible. The way I saw it, the more fatigued they were the easier it would be to keep them settled on the plane. RESULT: It worked! Elijah slept soundly (once he finally drifted off), and Ian was essentially glued to his seat the whole flight watching movies.
* I dressed them in comfortable, soft clothes. Sweatpants with elastic waistband and t-shirt for Ian. Layers for Elijah so that I could take off/add to as needed. Planes are so extreme with the temperature changes... RESULT: Can't go wrong with comfort.
* I used my carry-on allowances to the max. Elijah had his diaper bag, which counted as his carry-on (even though he was a lap baby). It was filled with diapers, wipes, medicine, tissues, and hand sanitizer (I also had all of my purse stuff in the diaper bag, like my wallet, phone, and lip gloss...packed my purse into the checked bag.) We had one activity bag, filled with small toys, board books, and the iPad. We also had a snack bag which doubled as my book/magazine bag (like I was going to get any reading done. Ha!) RESULT: I really felt prepared for anything, which was nice. However, an activity bag does you no good if the child is too sleepy/cranky to play with the toys. Elijah really just wanted to sleep on the flight out there, so once we figured out how to turn out the lights in the alley-way near the bathrooms at the back of the plane (where we were seated)...well, he fell asleep instantly.
* SUCKERS!!! A friend recommended these, along with candy canes and gum (depending on the child's age). Great for combating the pressure changes and who doesn't love a sucker? I found some all-natural "organic" ones made with cane sugar and fruit juice at TJ Maxx before the trip, and I felt less guilty letting Ian consume massive quantities of those. Hey, in a situation like that (small space with dozens of strangers who just want a quiet flight), you give 'em what they want. Even if it's massive quantities of suckers. RESULT: So glad I brought them. We all enjoyed them.
All in all I feel like the flights went OK. Our return flight (San Francisco to Milwaukee, where we had a layover) was R.O.U.G.H...Elijah had been sick and he was teething like make PLUS he was exhausted so his ears were really bothering him and he just could.not.sleep. There was much shrieking, soothing, and apologetic looks from other passengers. *sigh* I cringe when I think about it. But at that point, you know, you are just beyond caring what other people think and are only focused on getting your baby settled and happy again. He slept a little and finally settled down enough to play and read books. Milwaukee to Atlanta they were both perfect angels.
Still. I think we'll wait quite a while before we fly with the 2 of them again.
1 comments:
And let's not forget about the pressurized sippy cup spraying the lady across the aisle on that first half of the return flight.
No one expects the pressurized sippy cup.
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