Flying

Toni79 · October 2013

So I'm sure this has been discussed before! But DH and I just decded to visit his brother's family for Thanksgiving. We'd fly from Baltimore to Atlanta (about 2 hours direct flight), and then rent a car and drive another 2 hours.

So ...

1. To save money, I don't plan on buying DD a ticket. I can have her sit on our laps (since she's under two). We flew with DD once before when she was about 2-3 months old. And at that time I had no problem keeping her on my lap! She pretty much BFed the whole time! But now that she's active and walking I'm worried that I'm crazy to hold her on my lap for 2 hours! Even if it were around her BFing/nap time, I think she'd be more interested in all the people around her to BF or nap. Am I crazy to attempt to hold her for 2 hours?

2. If she refuses to BF during take off and landing, how can I make sure the pressure doesn't bother her ears?

3. What's the differance between checking the carseat at the gate versus checking it curbside? I plan to take one with us so I don't have to rent a nasty one at the car rental place. I'm thinking if I check at the gate, and there just happens to be an extra seat in our row, I may be able to put the seat on the plane. I'm worried about cheking curbsite because I don't want it tossed around alot on all their conveyor belts! I'm guessing if it were checked at the gate it wouldn't be tossed around as much?

Any advice would be apprechiated!

brandyleighxx · October 2013

No advice but interested to see the responses... we're considering a 2 hour flight with DS for Christmas. I also don't want to buy him a seat... he doesn't breastfeed but will take a paci which I guess could help. I think the only thing that would keep him contained would be food and the ipad.

BluepointToasted · October 2013

I would definitley check your carseat at the gate. I would think a snack would help with the pressure now that LO doesn't breastfeed anymore. And maybe some favorite actvities/shows to keep her occupied? She may be better than you think...I know DS is much more likely to sit nicely on my lap in a novel situation where he is not to sure of his surroundings. I'm sure by the end of 2 hours he would start to get more comfortable and squirrley though. Does she have a favorite show you could save for when she starts wanting to get down?

CrazyDaisy8 · October 2013

I am so happy you posted this! I am looking to go to Cancun in May and I had majority of the same questions besides the BF portions. No help from me but I am looking forward to seeing the answers.

shakinros · October 2013

We've flown a lot with DD, always cross country, so 5+ hour flights. We've always bought her a seat if her own but if it were a 2hr flight, I'd be more willing to try holding her.

The last flight we took (her first trip since she learned to walk) was AWFUL. we're not flying again until she's old enough to be interested in TV! She was so squirrelly and unhappy to be contained. She just climbed back and forth across our laps the whole flight. Couldn't walk her up and down the aisles because everyone has a laptop out and DD was grabbing for all of them.

Anyway, sorry to be so negative. Hopefully a 2hr flight will be less miserable than a 6hr flight. Bring snacks and new toys. Let her run around the gate area as much as you can. Use TV if she's into that. Maybe it'll all be so novel that she'll just want to sit back for the first hour!

rp-chicago-mom · October 2013

I try to schedule flights around naptime. That has been helpful. He falls asleep in my arms and often sleeps 3/4 of it.

He's really into his megablocks lately so for Christmas I plan to bring some of those in a ziplock bag. Also textured books and word books. He likes having those read to him but will while away a lot of time just looking through them. Someone on here suggested Cheerios necklaces. Otherwise it's snacks and walking up and down the aisles. You're lucky to have both parents going. I usually go alone for one reason or another. Actually for Christmas I am thinking of getting an 8:00 pm flight in hopes he falls asleep. I'll just put him in his pjs before boarding.

Toni79 · October 2013

Glad I'm not the only one wondering about this!

As far as BFing ... she'll do it if she tired. BUt then I'm torn ... do I intentially select a flight during her naptime in hopes that she BFs and falls asleep? Or could that totallt back fire on me! And then I have a really pissed of LO as well as a pissed off flight!

As far as shows or movies? We haven't been watching a lot of TV with her. She does have a baby einstine farm show (about 30 mins) that shes' watched 2-3 times, and that seemed to occopy her pretty well. I don't have a tablet, but I think the screen on my phone would be big enough (gallexy s III).

skooz · October 2013

1. We took an almost 2 hr flight a couple months ago and DD was already walking. We didn't have any trouble. I'm sure some of it depends on the kid's temperament. She actually did fall asleep because the flight was right during her naptime and we woke up early that day. I don't hesitate to bring out the ipad for flights if it keeps her happy. Otherwise she only watches stuff on there when I'm clipping her nails so she stays still.
2. DD still uses a paci for sleeping, so if she doesn't nurse I give her that. Or a sippy because it still requires a sucking motion. 3. I will never check a carseat at the ticket counter/curbside because a friend did that and the carseats were put on the wrong flight. So she was at her destination with no way to leave the airport because her kiddos didn't have seats. Plus I feel like the carseat gets tossed around less since at the gate it's one of the last things on and first things off. It is a hassle to lug it through the airport though.

iluvchris27 · October 2013

We actually just got back from Florida on Saturday and this was H's first plane ride ever. I was so worried how he was going to do because we had a 30 minute flight from OKC to DFW and then a 2 hour flight to Florida. I let him have his pacifier during take off and landing and he didn't have any issues with his ears. We also had him sit on our laps, I brought snacks and his favorite book as well. I was SHOCKED at how well he did. He didn't cry, fuss or anything the whole time we were in the air. We got so many comments from people on how well he did. We had a 4 year old boy sitting in front of us and a 3-4 year old boy sitting behind us on the way to Florida and they were terrible the whole flight!!

We brought his IPad with a bunch of movies and shows downloaded on it and bought him some headphones because I just knew he would be so bored, we never even took them out of the backpack. I think as long as you have a favorite toy and some snacks that she will do just fine!!

Toni79 · October 2013

iluvchris27 said:

We actually just got back from Florida on Saturday and this was H's first plane ride ever. I was so worried how he was going to do because we had a 30 minute flight from OKC to DFW and then a 2 hour flight to Florida. I let him have his pacifier during take off and landing and he didn't have any issues with his ears. We also had him sit on our laps, I brought snacks and his favorite book as well. I was SHOCKED at how well he did. He didn't cry, fuss or anything the whole time we were in the air. We got so many comments from people on how well he did. We had a 4 year old boy sitting in front of us and a 3-4 year old boy sitting behind us on the way to Florida and they were terrible the whole flight!!

We brought his IPad with a bunch of movies and shows downloaded on it and bought him some headphones because I just knew he would be so bored, we never even took them out of the backpack. I think as long as you have a favorite toy and some snacks that she will do just fine!!

Headphones? OMG, I can see it now! There is no way DD would keep the headphone on! However they might keep her occupied for a quite some time trying to put them on and off, etc!

iluvchris27 · October 2013

Toni79 said:

iluvchris27 said:

We actually just got back from Florida on Saturday and this was H's first plane ride ever. I was so worried how he was going to do because we had a 30 minute flight from OKC to DFW and then a 2 hour flight to Florida. I let him have his pacifier during take off and landing and he didn't have any issues with his ears. We also had him sit on our laps, I brought snacks and his favorite book as well. I was SHOCKED at how well he did. He didn't cry, fuss or anything the whole time we were in the air. We got so many comments from people on how well he did. We had a 4 year old boy sitting in front of us and a 3-4 year old boy sitting behind us on the way to Florida and they were terrible the whole flight!!

We brought his IPad with a bunch of movies and shows downloaded on it and bought him some headphones because I just knew he would be so bored, we never even took them out of the backpack. I think as long as you have a favorite toy and some snacks that she will do just fine!!

Headphones? OMG, I can see it now! There is no way DD would keep the headphone on! However they might keep her occupied for a quite some time trying to put them on and off, etc!

LOL! Yeah, on the way home he was getting a little antsy before take off so we gave them to him and he thought it was hysterical putting them on and taking them off! We flew pretty early so I think that helped, he slept the almost the whole flight home. Good luck!!

Toni79 · October 2013

@annieluvsjordan - haha! Your novel was helpful! Does a certain type of sippy work better for sucking / releaving pressure (i.e. hard spout, soft spout, straw cup, etc)? Just curious. DD uses a hard spout for water and a straw for milk. So I wasn't sure if it made a differance?

Toni79 · October 2013

Also ... curious if anyone can recommend any good apps for our LO's age? I might download a few to my phone in hopes that helps pass the time. (I just hope she doesn't start wanting to play with my phone more than she already wants to! She tries hard to get to it, but I don't let her play with it!)

Toni79 · October 2013

annieluvsjordan said:

My kids are just picky about their cups and mostly like straws so thats what we have. I am not sure if one is better than another for flights.

Turn the camera on your phone around so you are both "on tv". They like watching themselves and then looking back at the pictures.

OMG! Genius!

Toni79 · October 2013

Is it true that buying tickets on a tuesday is cheaper than buying them on other days? (Not flying on a Tuesday, just booing on a tuesday).

I've been looking at flights ... I think I've picked out what will work best ... depating on waiting until tomorrow to see if the price goes down! LOL! It's over thanksgiving, so I doubt it! :-(

sdlaura · October 2013

Yes, I think you're crazy to attempt to hold her at this age rather than buying her a seat. But then, I have never flown without a seat and DD's carseat, even when she was 2 months old. It is nice to have the space, she sleeps so much better in her carseat than on me, and then I don't have to worry about the carseat getting beat up while checked, or renting one at my destination that may not be in good shape. For us, the extra seat is well worth the money.

Also, I know it's standard advice to feed during takeoff and landing because of the ear issue, but DD never cared one way or the other. I would just bring a snack and sippy cup just in case.

Megispreg · October 2013

I think 2 hours with a lap child is NBD. We did a 4 hour flight at 11 months with no problem. Although she was not walking then, and she likes being held anyway. So that's probably dependent on the child's personality.

We have never had an issue with the pressure. She has slept through a few takeoffs without eating or sucking on anything, and it was fine. We have always gate checked car seats.

The key to happy flights for us is SNACKS. Giving her puffs and wagon wheels keeps her happy/busy for a good amount of time. I let her play with my cell phone and watch videos of herself. I packed a backpack full of dollar store toys that she had never seen before. Good luck!

shakinros · October 2013

Toni79 said:
Is it true that buying tickets on a tuesday is cheaper than buying them on other days? (Not flying on a Tuesday, just booing on a tuesday).

I've been looking at flights ... I think I've picked out what will work best ... depating on waiting until tomorrow to see if the price goes down! LOL! It's over thanksgiving, so I doubt it! :-(

Yes, this is true! Buy on Tuesdays or Wednesdays! Make sure to clear your browser cache before searching. The flights are cheaper if the airlines think it's the first time you're searching. They make it more expensive each time you search the same route because they're trying to pressure you into buying before the price goes higher.

This info courtesy of my husband who worked on an airline's web purchasing module last year. We learned LOADS about why airlines do what they do. It's so fascinating.

Toni79 · October 2013

shakinros said:

Is it true that buying tickets on a tuesday is cheaper than buying them on other days? (Not flying on a Tuesday, just booing on a tuesday).

I've been looking at flights ... I think I've picked out what will work best ... depating on waiting until tomorrow to see if the price goes down! LOL! It's over thanksgiving, so I doubt it! :-(
Yes, this is true! Buy on Tuesdays or Wednesdays! Make sure to clear your browser cache before searching. The flights are cheaper if the airlines think it's the first time you're searching. They make it more expensive each time you search the same route because they're trying to pressure you into buying before the price goes higher. This info courtesy of my husband who worked on an airline's web purchasing module last year. We learned LOADS about why airlines do what they do. It's so fascinating.

WOW! Thanks for the insight!

rainedrops117 · October 2013

1 - I would save the money. 2 hrs on your lap is NBD, esp if you're both snoozing. But that's just me. If you can time her nap on the flight and there's an available seat/row nearby, place her there for a bit and stretch.

2 - Does she sip on straws? Binkies? I would try a straw and squeeze it a little to make her suck a little harder. This will help.

3 - The only benefit is why lug the car seat through the airport to the gate when you don't need to? One less thing to deal with. Do you plan on asking if there's an extra empty seat beside you right before you board?

Safe travels!

Toni79 · October 2013

Any tricks to lugging the convertable carseat through the airport? The more I think about the legistics of getting all our bags through the airport, etc, the more worried I get!

sdlaura · October 2013

Toni79 said:

Any tricks to lugging the convertable carseat through the airport? The more I think about the legistics of getting all our bags through the airport, etc, the more worried I get!

We have the GoGoKidz travelmate cart - it turns the carseat into a stroller, essentially.

https://www.albeebaby.com/gogo-kidz-travelmate.html?utm_medium=shoppingengine&utm_source=googlebase&cvsfa=4248&cvsfe=2&cvsfhu=676f676f2d6b69647a2d74726176656c6d617465&gclid=CKDhuOOjuroCFeRxQgodS1kAkA

skooz · October 2013

Toni79 said:

Any tricks to lugging the convertable carseat through the airport? The more I think about the legistics of getting all our bags through the airport, etc, the more worried I get!

We have the GoGoKidz travelmate cart - it turns the carseat into a stroller, essentially.
https://www.albeebaby.com/gogo-kidz-travelmate.html?utm_medium=shoppingengine&utm_source=googlebase&cvsfa=4248&cvsfe=2&cvsfhu=676f676f2d6b69647a2d74726176656c6d617465&gclid=CKDhuOOjuroCFeRxQgodS1kAkA

That thing is awesome. Pretty sure I paid way less than that on Amazon though, so you might want to check around on prices.

Want a personalized experience?

Flying

Re: Flying

Choose Another Board

Search Boards