flying with 5 month old

eheba

Any tips? I'm a little nervous for him to be cranky and have his ears pop & hurt. It's only an hour 1/2 flight so it won't be too bad. Just wondering if any of you have experience with this! Thanks in advance!

AiramJ

I haven't got experience yet, but due to fly 2 hours next month, when he will be 5 and a half months old. With the ear popping issue, I think I will be feeding him, so he hopefully won't notice since he will be swallowing. I'll also take a soft toy and should he cry/scream, I'll try and find somewhere away from people to calm him down.

OliveOyl2014

Remember to bring a couple changes of clothes for each of you in case of spit up or blow outs! Good luck!

AmyCW421

I just flew with my daughter at the end of February when she was almost 5 months old and she did fine. I just made sure she was eating or sucking her paci during take of and landing to help with her ears. Definitely bring a change of clothes for both of you! A friend of mine was flying from Paris back to the US for the baby to meet some of my friends extended family and her baby had an explosive poop shortly after take off, she had clothes for the baby but none for her and had try and clean her shirt in the bathroom and then wear a poopy wet shirt the rest of the flight 

beebly

I just flew cross-country and back with my 5 month old (as a lap infant, no carseat) and it went fine both ways. I did a lot of nursing on the flight when she started to get fussy or antsy to calm her and get her to sleep. Some walking up and down the aisle a couple times also helped.

If you're bringing a stroller, I'd recommend gate-checking it and buying one of those bags to put over it when you do (BRU sells a huge orange one that fits most models) in case the cargo hold is dirty so that you don't get a filthy stroller when you land. Also, if you have a carrier like an Ergo, definitely use it in the airport since it will leave your hands free to carry a bag or push a suitcase. You'll also usually need to have a photocopy of the baby's birth certificate with you at the airport to verify age and get him a boarding pass. I think that's a policy on most airlines, and know for sure that it is on Jetblue and Southwest. Good luck!

kaylerjean

Just flew Southwest with my 5 month old as a lap baby. Our first flight was pretty empty and they let us bring her carseat onboard even though she didn't have a ticket which was nice! I nursed during take off and she slept the whole flight. On the way back our flight was full so we checked the carseat and had her on my lap. Nursed during take off again and she slept a little but woke up and fussed because it was past bedtime and she was tired. Overall, it was way easier than I expected. I definitely recommend wearing baby through security and the airport. Kept my hands free and all DH had to carry was the diaper bag!

carmv01

How does going through security work while you're wearing the baby, @kaylerjean? I haven't flown since I was pregnant.

sdnyc99

I just flew cross-country with my 5-month-old. We came back yesterday. It was our 2nd cross-country trip & I was nervous with her being older and more awake this time (she was 2-months & slept the last time we flew). I didn't know how I'd keep her occupied. But it turned out fantastic and she did great. She was awake a lot of the time but had fun playing on my lap & flirting with the flight attendants and other passengers. My mom said "it's because she was never more than 6 inches away from you for over 5 hours". Probably true. All she wants all day long is to be attached to me and whines when I put her down. So being on a plane in my lap was right up her alley!

samisargent

When baby wearing through security, they let you just walk through the detectors with baby attached I believe. I've heard that airlines let car seats, strollers, and diaper bags fly free. My LO will be 5.5 months old when I will be flying alone with her in 2 weeks. I plan on letting her nurse during take off and landing to avoid her ears from hurting. 

For other advice and to ask other questions, we'd love to have you in our Facebook group dedicated to he October 2015 moms! It's so much easier keeping up with posts and comments. 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/952121018180555/

lesben1016

I too am flying next month with my baby. I've been very nervous for months so thanks for the reassurance!