Need 2hour 30 min air plane entertainment for 18 month old!

darleenmonroe

We are flying on our first family trip to Florida the first week of June (1 week before DS turns 18 months). Luckily it's a direct 2 hour and 25 mon flight with no stops or plane changes.

What the hell do we do to entertain him for 2 and a half hours????? Ahhhhh! Help!!!

dreamscometrue*

the only suggestion I have is what my pedi said, which was to give our LO benadryl! And we're doing it! we have a 6 hour nonstop flight to Hawaii in 2 weeks. I'm terrified! She won't sit still for 10 minutes, much less 6 hours!!!

Other ideas - I bought her her very own backpack & am filling it with little new toys - like a bracelet, sticker book, other books, etc. This way the toys are new to her & hopefully will keep her interest. Also - if you have a smart phone, some of them have flashcard apps for toddlers.

sunandsand

We are bringing dvd player and elmo dvds, books, tons of snacks, and stickers. He is also sitting on our lap at 21 months...I'm incredibly nervous!

Mrs.0428

dreamscometrue*:

the only suggestion I have is what my pedi said, which was to give our LO benadryl! And we're doing it! we have a 6 hour nonstop flight to Hawaii in 2 weeks. I'm terrified! She won't sit still for 10 minutes, much less 6 hours!!!

Other ideas - I bought her her very own backpack & am filling it with little new toys - like a bracelet, sticker book, other books, etc. This way the toys are new to her & hopefully will keep her interest. Also - if you have a smart phone, some of them have flashcard apps for toddlers.

I do not suggest doing this unless you have given your LO benadryl before and it makes them sleepy.  On top of giving your child uneccessary medication, Benadryl causes some kids to become hyper, and then you have an even bigger problem on your hands.

I just flew across country with DS (22 months) alone.  In his backpack I had the following toys (most of which he didn't even play with, looking out the window, people watching and napping kept him occupied most of the flight).

* Re-usable sticker book
* Coloring book and crayons
* Bead necklaces (think madi gras beads-DS loves playing with these)
* Small new Thomas the Train
* Painters Tape (read this suggestion online, they can do all kinds of things with it, and since it's not very sticky it's easy to remove from anywhere they put it)
* DVD player with new Mickey Mouse Clubhouse DVD
* Snacks- Cherrios, NutraGrain bars, raisins, lollipops (for take off and landing to help his ears pop), etc.
* One of my scarfs (you can play peek-a-boo with it, and then wear it with an outfit while on vacation)

You can let your LO fly in their PJs to help them be confortable and hopefully encourage them to sleep.  Remember that with a toddler you can take juice/milk through security you just need to declare it to the TSA agent.  Encourage them to drink during take off and landing to help with their ears.

p.s. Did you get your LO their own seat? I know plane tickets aren't cheap, but you might want to consider getting them their own seat.  Having DS strapped in his carseat vs. him being a lap baby made a world of difference.  With him in his carseat he understood that he couldn't get down and walk around where when he is on my lap all he wants to do is get down and climb under the seats.

DEBBIE33CASEY

dreamscometrue*:

the only suggestion I have is what my pedi said, which was to give our LO benadryl! And we're doing it!

I am actually appalled people do this. I can't imagine drugging my toddler in hopes of it making her behave, or sleep...  I don't doubt this will just make your child irritable rather than actually sleepy.

To OP- MY advice is NOT to drug your kid.  DD and I took a 2 1/2 & 1 hr plane ride with a 2 hour layover about two weeks ago.  I brought a million and one things to entertain her.  It ended up being a waste, as she didn't want to look at anything.  She was so facinated with the plane experience and looking out the window that all I needed was some snacks and her sippy cup.  I wish I'd known that before going b/c it would have saved my back from carrying around all the stuff I thought i'd need through the airports.

DD slept at some point for 3 of the 4 plane rides.  One of the 2.5 hr plane rides she was awake the entire time. We had bulkhead seats so when the fasten seat belt sign was off she could play on the floor infront of my feet.  I will definitely ask for the bulkhead seats in the future because of this if I fly again with a toddler.  The downside to the bulkhead seat was that we couldn't put any belongings under our seats, they had to go above.  But like I said, my DD didn't end up needing any toys at all, so I kept her drink and snacks in my hand or tucked into the seat next to me and she did great.  I should also add that I did not buy her her own seat so she had to sit on my lap or my sister's lap when she wasn't able to play on the ground.  But she was surprisingly able to fall asleep in my arms, something I didn't think possible. 

I would make sure you bring a sippy cup that makes your kid suck the fluid out b/c it helps their ears pop.  I even flavored DD's water to entice her to drink it during landing/take off.  Goodluck with your trip!

AmandaToo

A friend recommended stringing cheerios on a string and letting her pick them off. (obviously take care with the string)

Other people will be pretty fascinating.

We let her look at videos on our phone, offered new toys when absolutely necessary, and played finger rhymes. Last time we flew, we saw a pair of twins having a riot in their moms makeup/jewelry bag. She had bangle bracelets in there specifically for them & they got to play with her makeup brushes.

Kelli2507

We went to Minnesota for Christmas (L was 18 months) we had a layover so you're lucky! but she did SO WELL on the way there (way back she was sick so it wasnt pretty). We brought her portable DVD player that worked like a charm and she eventually fell asleep. I suggest just bringing anything that is your LO's favorite things and don;t bother buying the Earplanes for his ears because they are a waste of money.. Go with a lollipop 

haleymay18

Just keep telling yourself that it is worse for you than it is for others. Or that it is worse for the others than it is for you. That is what I plan on doing when we take a 3 hour plane ride in may.

elliotandnicole

You will be fine!  I took DS on a 2 hour flight last month, and he stayed awake the whole time.  We played on my computer and my phone and hung out.  The only bad part of my flight was that I was flying southwest (by myself) and got stuck in the middle seat because our flight was a "stop" in another flight, so they let all the original people back on AND group A before us.    

We have another flight booked next month.  He has his own seat, because I think that will be better for him to be in his car seat.  I'm going to bring a dvd player.   

RD'sgirl

I would absolutely NOT recommend banadryl for a 2.5 hour flight, please don't do that!!  I flew to Italy with my then 16month old dd, that flight is at least 9 hours and my pedi did recommend benadryl because it was such a long flight (toddler sitting in a VERY confined area for 10 hours is just a complete catastrophe).

For your short flight I would just say bring some type of entertainment for him, portable dvd player, laptop, ipod, ipad etc, and tons of snack and a full sippy and maybe a few small toys that will keep his attention.  After flying almost 10 hours each way with a 16month old, I would take 2.5 hrs easily!!  My general rule with air travel is all my rules go out the window for the time being, you can stuff your face and watch tv LO as long as you're quiet!!

pharmernicole

If you're lucky, there will be someone who doesn't mind waving at him sitting in the seat behind you. This has been our saving grace a few times, strangers playing peek-a-boo or waving are much more interesting to her than us  

Also we bring snacks that are manipulative (raisins, pieces of cereal, etc) that take her a long time to pick up one at a time. 

My friend Jess and I posted three Toddler Travel tips on our blog last week (see link below) there are quite a few more air travel tips included in case you're interested..

Have a great trip!

kimberlyk921

Drugging your kid for a 2 hour flight is absolutely ridiculous! We just took a 2 hour trip on the plane and DS actually surprised me with how well he did. He was so fascinated looking out the window during take off and landing that the only time I needed to occupy him was during the flight, and the portable dvd player did the trick. By the time Toy Story was over we were landing. 

mrs_rodney

I second the DVD player and movie, no sound necessary!  Mickey mouse club was a hit with 20 month old over the weekend on 2 hr flight.  Mardi-gra beads were quite entertaining too.  We had lots of snacks- granola bars take her forever to eat so those were great. Lots of books, but DD really enjoyed reading the safetly manual more.  We had a few other things too, but I totally overpacked her bag.  We didn't have to start entertaining until the plane took off and once it landed we were good, so that knocks quite a bit of time off.  GL!!

One of our flights was late at night and we thought she'd sleep, but she didn't and she was really restless and on the verge of a meltdown the entire time.  The afternoon flights went SO much smoother.

dreamscometrue*

sorry if I offended people with my initial advice. I was half joking. Although we do plan to give our LO some benadryl, this was advised by our pediatrician based on the temperment of our child & the fact that it's such a long, nonstop flight, meaning she'll be confined to my lap for 6.5 hours! I didn't really think about the fact that a 2.5 hour flighti s much more manageable without "drugging" your child.

rnfromtn

dreamscometrue*:

the only suggestion I have is what my pedi said, which was to give our LO benadryl! And we're doing it! we have a 6 hour nonstop flight to Hawaii in 2 weeks. I'm terrified! She won't sit still for 10 minutes, much less 6 hours!!!

Other ideas - I bought her her very own backpack & am filling it with little new toys - like a bracelet, sticker book, other books, etc. This way the toys are new to her & hopefully will keep her interest. Also - if you have a smart phone, some of them have flashcard apps for toddlers.

LOL, I was just gonna say Benadryl, but she beat me to it!

darleenmonroe

WOW! Your blog is AMAZING!!!! I got soooo much out of it! Great receipes, too! Thank you so much for sharing! I wrote down quite a few things to prepare including the probiotics!!!!!!

Thanks, again!