I’m on a long trip with my wees right now, visiting friends and family in Minnesota. Thought I’d put in writing some of my thoughts from our last flight.
- Let them pack. Little ones love to pack for a trip. Even the one year old will enjoy putting a menagerie of toys and a collection of small household objects in a bag, box, or basket for the journey. Especially with the under 4 set, there is no reason you must bring everything they pack, but it keeps them busy while you are busy. It also tends to prevent the removal of items you pack from the suitcase, a favorite pastime of young children who believe they are helping.
- Wee backpacks. It’s a good idea to give them each a little backpack with their in-flight entertainment to carry themselves. They feel good about themselves and you have to carry less.
- Sugar & Screens. There is a reason they invented tablets, smart phones, and skittles. While I’m usually pretty anti-screens and sugar, those things exist for times of trial. Like all anti-toddler activities (anything where the child has to sit or be quiet for an extended period of time), this is no time to skimp on the snacks. A well-timed packet of fruit snacks is really a sanity saver for times like these. And some inane children’s games on the tablet do pass the time.
- Nursing. Well, it’s a panacea for whatever is going on. It helps their little ears adjust to altitude changes. It stops up their mouth. It comforts them in times of trial. It helps prevent airborne infection from the plane air. It makes them happy.
- Use sippy cups. We bring empty sippy cups through security and fill them up at the water fountain. It can be a pain getting water for it from the flight attendants, and while it’s nice that they give you a top and a straw for your kid’s cup, you know as well as I do that a top and a straw are very interesting to play with and that they may not stay on.
- Use caution with sippy cups. So…pressure change affects the contents of the cup. Specifically if you use straw cups, when you flip the top open, you will create a geyser at 20,000 ft. This will undoubtedly spray some of your fellow passengers with toddler beverage, for which you will receive looks of very thinly veiled contempt from the three suits behind you. This is just my guess. We were NOT that family with the pink owl cup in row 14 yesterday. They were hilarious though.
- In flight entertainment. Little kids seem particularly enamored of stuff they haven’t seen. So I keep an eye out at dollar bins and garage sales for cheap stuff that I know will get their attention away from kicking the seat in front of them or sampling a well-placed bloody mary. Even if it only lasts 2 minutes, it’s usually successful in changing the situation enough that when the bloom has receded from that particular trinket, the bloody mary is gone.
- The potty. If your flight is short enough you can make a big effort to go right before boarding and hopefully avoid the whole catastrophe. Even if you do though, sometimes you’ll have to go anyway. With one child, it’s not too bad in the lavatory. I made a habit, when using public potties, of holding the little ones backwards, their back against my belly, my hands under their knees. (Disclaimer: I have only girls, so this might not work with little penises.) This keeps everyone clean and has a great advantage in the tiny stalls of airplane toilets. You can fit another kid in behind you. With two children, one stands behind/next to you while you pee the first. Then switch, then one stands on top of the potty while you wash hands. Not too bad.
- Layovers and stopovers. I always prefer to have one on a long trip when there are mobile children involved. They seem to really benefit from that refresher, the break from sitting there. Sure you would get there faster, but fewer people (including yourself) will hate your children if they get a break.
- Many people do love children. And will say nice things. Or help you. Smile. Talk to your children when they initiate conversation, or when they don’t. It’s not all mean people in their expensive corporate attire. I hear they are going to have no children flights on some airlines. I think it’s a bad precedent because if a suit can’t get the particular no-wee flight he wants and ends up on your flight, he will hate on you all the more. Right now, it’s just part of flying sometimes.
What are your favorite tips for traveling with little ones?
