All who have traveled with toddlers on a plane ~ advice? Update!

[Sonoran Silkies]

Quote:
Unless leapfrog has earphone, I would NOT recommend talking books--they will annoy other passengers--reading to your child will not. Take lots of books, but not hte kind that make noises--ones with flaps to open and things to feel would be great, as well as simple picture books. Take along crayons and paper. I don't know if juice boxes are allowed, ditto for play-doh or the colour foam; call the airlines first. Also ask their recommendations, and what is available ON the planes. Take a photo album that you can show your son and talk about the pictures. Be SURE that he has something to drink during takeoff and landing--air pressure changes--adults almost subconsciously pop their ears to balance the pressure--kids do not know to do so, and it can be painful. Swallowing corrects the pressure imbalance. A blanket to keep him warm (airplanes tend to be cold when inflight). Extra diapers--way more htan you think you might need. Better to have too many than not enough. Check all luggage that you will not need during the flight--the less you have to carry between planes the better. Don't forget a book or two for you--toddlers will sleep at least part of the time--usually at the most inconvenient times, but that is life.

 

[Ernie]

Lots of extra sets of clothes. My son got sick on a flight once and went through several sets of clothes before he was done. It was nice having extras for him to wear, but he ended up puking on all of them and got off the plane with no shirt - luckily we were landing in Florida

We also used to give our kids a new treat or toy every hour - IF they were good and behaved themselves over that hour. It seemed to be a great incentive to get them to behave and I think they enjoyed the game as much as the reward at the end of the hour. Works great on road trips too

Have fun!

 

[ChickensRCool]

It is a good idea to take plenty of baby wipes and tissues and put them where you can get to them quickly.
Lots of snacks (way more that you think you will need) and juice. Or at least a sippy cup and then you can fill it with the expensive juice they sell after you go through security.

My kids always drink more traveling than they do normally.
Bubble gum for you (blowing bubbles with bubble gum can entertain a little one for quite awhile).
An extra baby blanket (to lay on any icky floors or counters) before putting the baby down is good.
I learned to always take a themometer and infant motrin/tylenol with me because they will come down with a fever at the most inconvient time. The airlines should let you take this on board.
Plenty of time between flights is very good.
If you are doing the red eye (flying out of Alaska in the wee hours of the morning) then you will not need as many toys to entertain him. If he is a good traveler in the car then he will probably be a good airline traveler.
And, please, do take some time on this vacation for a fun thing or two -- a totally touristy thing or something you can't do in Alaska. It is not much of a "vacation" if all you do is run around visiting relatives IMO.

 

[ibpboo]

I was going to suggest gum, but see some one ha already. Sometimes when flying, it hurts the ears, and tummies get upset. Chewing gum may help with the ear thing, also warn them of it perhaps happening.

 

[M@M@2four]

Okay, so I have to tell the funniest story I have ever heard about toddlers and planes! I used to be a teacher and the school guidance counselor, Linda and I were really good friends. Her and her husband had to go on a very long flight to Germany(hubby was in the military) and she prepared to the max for the trip for their toddler, Josh. Everything was going beautifully. Josh sat happily and played with all the toys and coloring books she had brought along for him. Hours had passed and she was so proud of Josh and herself for being so clever with her choices in the fun activites she had brought for him to do.

Well, they had a large tv at the front of their plane and everyone on the plane was enjoying the movie, wearing their head phones, which relieved her since her son although was being very well behaved, was still quite chatty and again had been on the plane for hours, which in toddler world is like months. So, she decided that she needed to use the rest room, which was located and a bathroom was open at the front of the cabin. She thought it would be the perfect time to take her son for a little stroll with her and let him stretch his legs. She got into the bathroom, padded the seat with tp(as we women do), sat down and as soon as she started to go to the bathroom, wouldn't you know they hit turbulance??? Well, Josh with his little toddler legs couldn't hold himself up so he GRABBED the nearest thing to help steady his little legs-- the bathroom door handle!!! You can imagine what happened next... the bathroom door popped open and came FLYING open so hard, which made Josh fall backwards allowing the door to fly completely open, smacking the wall and of course causing Josh to let out a blood curdling scream(unfortunately the ear phones didn't help drown out that sound). There sat Linda in all her glory and shocked on the toilet. Her eyes turned to the dozens of people with head phones on all now staring back at her as if she were more entertaining than the movie on the screen. Most looked embarrassed for her, some shocked, but then her eyes got to her husband(who again, is in the military and a pretty serious guy)! She said the look on his face was just of sheer horror.

Of course he didn't jump up to rescue her or help their wailing toddler...oh no...he just turned his eyes back to the movie, I guess hoping others would do the same. But no, people just stared...after several seconds, which felt like eternity, since no one was coming to her rescue and she had to get her pants up and get her toddler who was now changing octaves, she quickly stood up, trying to cover herself with one hand. She said of course she was wearing her favorite jeans which take some jumping up and down to get up and on, so of course her pants didn't just go up quickly! She had to stand up and jump up and down to get them up while trying to cover herself at the same time and she once more caught her husbands face while she was jumping who was now blood red with embarrassment! And of course, no one was looking away to make this any less mortifying.

She ran forward, shut the door, scooped up her toddler and literally stayed in the bathroom for a good half hour trying to figure out how she was going to graciously walk back to her seat with toddler in hand.

She said she finally gained enough courage to open the door..of course all eyes were on her(I guess for possibly a second show). She said she decided to go with the, "I don't care attitude(although she was dying inside from pure embarrassment)...so she held her head high, with toddler in hand, and if she saw someone still staring, decided to make it worse, and say, "No big deal" and, "I don't care!" LOL!!!!!!!!! By the time she got to her husband and sat down, she said he just looked straight ahead as if nothing ever happened. She was SO mad at him, but knew if she argued with him, it would only direct more attention on her...so she sat and stewed for the next few hours in silence.

That is until they got off the plane and boy did she let him have it!!!!!!!!!!!

So, this is my way of backing up my original suggestion...Benadryl....in BULK!!!

 

[Organics North]

M@M@2four :

Okay, so I have to tell the funniest story I have ever heard about toddlers and planes!

5 in the morning is too early to laugh hard.. You made my day~~~. That is a hilarious story. Made me think of my airplane/ toilet paper on the seat story....:
.... One time some stuck to me, and was hanging out of the back of my pants!! While getting off the plane some one was nice enough to say "excuse me sir, you have toilet paper sticking out of your pants." I could have said thank you... But no I was way to embarrassed for that. I said "oh that toilet paper is just in my pocket, it is not really hanging out of the back of my pants"..

ON​

 

[PineappleMama]

Last time my mom was raving about it (travel agent and frequent flyer) she was going on about the fact that you can't bring ANYTHING on the plane. None of your favorite juice, none of your favorite (salt/sugar free due to diet) snacks, etc. I could see that being pretty annoying with a child... particularly those notoriously picky toddlers!! Add to that that during entry the little one's favorite toy might be seen as a weapon and could be taken away... not good. Nope, don't envy you this trip.

Keeping the kiddo busy and happy is a big plus (and not too hard on a short trip) for their sake, your sake, and fellow passengers... check with the airline directly... ask them what you can and cannot bring on board. Crayons? Coloring Books? Stuffed Animals? Favorite Blankie? Better to ask in advance then to be stuck with an unhappy camper.

Also, as hard as it is, try and keep a good mood on. Children know when adults are stressed, nervous, sad, mad and they'll react to it. Which only gets the adult more stressed. Worse when you're in a small space with a bunch of other stressed adults. Easy for that to escalate to a screaming bloody murder child... yes, yes I have gotten stuck on a plane with one... horrible parents let the little monster just run up and down the aisle and then when the cart came and he had to sit down... KABOOM screamfest. Thank my lucky stars that was only a 33 minute flight. *shudders at memory*

Really, the airlines try to help anyway they can. They have to follow the regs, but within them they'll do what they can to make things good for everyone. And they know a screaming baby isn't going to make a great impression on passengers so it's worth it to try and help.

 

[tdgill]

be careful with tylenol with codeine. only give it with doctors advice and dosage. benedryl or its generic...if you know its affect on your child. some say it makes their child hyperactive. so test before you go. and guage the right timing. you dont want a tired cranky 2 year old to carry around the airport either.

 

[rnoyster]

For some reason a very large suitcase comes to mind! LOL! Don't envy you this trip! Good Luck!

 

[PineappleMama]

Oh, I must have missed the post about Tylenol... I won't give my kids that. Causes more liver damage every year than booze, yet doctors have told us to give it to our kids for every little thing for generations. Scary.

Codeine wise... I've seen my mom go through too many bad reactions to that, even when she tells the doc and pharm. that she's allergic they keep giving her stuff with that in it and tell her it doesn't have it... she swells up... and when she shows up like that they confess 'whoops it did have it' Anywho, point being that there is a risk of allergic reaction to it in the family, so I try to avoid it just in case. Sometimes you can't help it, but if I can I try. Plus, it'd take a pretty good dose to keep a kid knocked out for that long... scary. And if it didn't last then they'd wake up groggy and in a strange place (possibly with ear pain that you didn't realize was there while they were sleeping) and could freak out. I know I would, and I would know what if not where I was. For ours, I'd face it head on knowing the possibilities, rather than drugging and risking those much worse possible outcomes.