Another flying question

bumpuser4307348

My DH and I will be flying in October on my DS's first birthday.  I am terrified!  I have yet to make the reservations because I'm not sure if I should get him his own seat or attempt to have him on our laps for the flight.  He barely sits still now, so I can only imagine the fun we are going to have!  Anyone fly with a one year old and have some advice for a FTM?  Thanks!

BabyBoyNYC

I just got back from Fl for DS 1st bday. It was about a 2.5 hours flight so not horrible. He was actually pretty good. A little jumpy on the way to Fl and then took a nap we entertained him with my iphone, cheerios, and books. On the way back he was crying before take off, finally fell asleep as we were lifting off and when I went to put the arm rest down I clonked him in the head and he lost it and then fell back asleep for 1.5 and was fine the rest of the flight. He did poop right as were descending and omg it smelled horrible someone even sprayed their perfume lol. idk if you buy their seat its not a gaurantee its going to be any better than if he was in your lap, especially if he is active and then you have this huge carseat in the way. If your flight is not crowded they may even move you a row with an open seat like they did for us (pretty much every flight we've taken with him)

Karen1998

I flew with a 9 month old overseas.  He had his own seat.  He also does not sit still.  It really helped to give him his own space so he could squirm and also so he could sleep comfortably.  He very rarely sleeps on me, so I knew that sleeping on me on a long flight would be hell on both of us.  I also learned, from multiple trains, buses and boat rides, that my limit for having him as a lap child is about an hour.  He decided being in any confined space meant spaz out time, so that was a lot of fun.  FWIW, he slept for about the last four hours going over and took two decent naps coming back.  This wouldn't have happened had he had to sleep on me as his nap limit on me is about 30-45 minutes (I've tried).

Also, not every plane has a space for you to walk around with him.  Ours did not have the space by the back exits, so we literally had no where to go for squirming other than the aisles.  Plus, in the US, we're very hesitant to let people roam the aisles.  So, go into this expecting that you'll have little ability to leave your seat. 

Ultimately, you have to decide what you think will work best for you and your child.  Are you comfortable on a plane yourself?  Do you think that you'll still be comfortable with a child on your lap?  Do you think that your child will be comfortable on the flight?  Are you flying with him alone or will you have someone to hand him off to?  Is he comfortable in his carseat?  Is the flight long enough that you can reasonably expect him to sleep a decent portion of it?  Will he sleep in his carseat? 

If the flight is long enough and you have a bulkhead seat (those are darn hard to get, BTW, as most airlines no longer reserve them for small children), then you can get a "bassinet."  They're small, but there was a 17 month old in one on our way over to Europe.  However, he was the calmest 17 month old I've ever seen, well at least until he was overtired and his mom decided to give him cookies and juice.  The bassinet can provide him with a place to sleep.  The aforementioned child was a lap child, but the mom was two things - (1) very small and (2) on the first leg of her flight to India and couldn't afford a third seat.  However, the bassinets that KLM had folded up really easily, which means that an active child, like mine, would figure out how to fold it up and run off in about 2 seconds. 

Karen1998

If he has his own seat and you want to gate check your carseat, then you can use this harness.  It's approved for air travel and considerably safer than doing that stupid seatbelt him into your seatbelt thing.  Plus, it contains the kid. 

Also, make sure your carseat SAYS ON IT that it's approved for air travel.  Otherwise, you may have the flight attendants (we had this) refuse to allow you put him into it for take off and landing.  Ours actually said it, but I didn't discover that it said it until the flight home. 

frlcb

Karen1998:

If the flight is long enough and you have a bulkhead seat (those are darn hard to get, BTW, as most airlines no longer reserve them for small children), then you can get a "bassinet."  They're small, but there was a 17 month old in one on our way over to Europe.  However, he was the calmest 17 month old I've ever seen, well at least until he was overtired and his mom decided to give him cookies and juice.  The bassinet can provide him with a place to sleep.  The aforementioned child was a lap child, but the mom was two things - (1) very small and (2) on the first leg of her flight to India and couldn't afford a third seat.  However, the bassinets that KLM had folded up really easily, which means that an active child, like mine, would figure out how to fold it up and run off in about 2 seconds.  

Domestic flights do not have bassinets on them.