About to Take a 3 Hour Plane Trip with a 1Yr old--HELP! Need Ideas!!

Keep her awake as long as possible prior to the plane trip. If you can get her to stay awake longer than usual, then hopefully she will sleep on the plane. good luck.

A.,
I would suggest also taking her carseat if it is airline approved. If there is an available seat next to you, then set her carseat up and have her in that. My little one felt more comfortable this way and it was "normal" to sit for a longer time in that instead of my lap the whole way. The airline will stow it away if there is not room for it. Other than that, it sounds like you have thought of it all.

Blessings,
T.

Like someone else posted, TSA may not let you take a whole box of snacks. There are lots of things available once you get through security though. One thing that mine loved on plane rides were the ziploc bags with the zipper thing...he just loved to open and close it. There were animal crackers inside, but he was more fascinated with the zipper thing. DVD player is a must for us. He was also fascinated with the window shade, in fact, he still is and he's almost 5 now.

One hint, try Benadryl at home first. It worked great with mine, but a friend of mine flew to Hungary with hers and it made him hyper.

We've never had ear problems, but take a bottle/sippy cup for take off and landing and that should help. TSA shouldn't have a problem with that, but you can always take an empty one through security and put water or something in it once you're on the other side.

A friend of mine just took her one year old on a plane trip and made a necklace out of cheerios and string for him to wear and eat as he liked (with supervision, of course). She said it kept him entertained for quite a while, and you can refill if they eat all the cheerios. Also, my son who is 1 1/2 loves sticker books. He likes to look for the right sticker for each item and it takes him a while looking for the right one, then sticking it and re-sticking it, etc. I'm taking my son and my 5 year old daughter on a four hour trip by myself this weekend so these suggestions have been helpful for me too!

DD is 2.5, and we've flown with her about 10 times since she was 4 month sold. Over half of those trips have been just me and her! Books are great! I don't know if your child will watch TV at all, but our portable DVD player has been a lifesaver! Aside from that, the best travel item I have come across are triangular crayons from Melissa and Doug. I found them online at One Step Ahead. They don't roll around, and stay on the tray so that DD can color without me trying to find MIA crayons! Sticker books are great as well, and DD is a big fan of those little travel Magnadoodles. I've even seen kiddos playing with play-doh on the plane. I say, whatever keeps them occupied!! Good luck!

You have it down packed. Nothing to change. Remember that she is a one year old and will get bored sometimes. it is normal but I am sure she will do fine. I have been travelling ten hour plane trips with babies from 2 months old and they have given me no trouble over time. Even when they were toddlers I just had to keep them busy.

Being from the East Coast, and having relocated to the DFW only 6 months ago, we have lots of experience with traveling with a toddler on a 3 hour flight. Our son will be 2 next month and over the past year he has taken more than 6 flights from TX to DC. So this is what we do.

1. It is much easier to travel with 1 toddler and 2 adults, we have both traveled with him alone and together.

2. Try to schedule the flights around nap time or at night. It is hard to keep the little on still for several hours when he is not sleepy.

3. Mortin/ Bendryl will be your best friend. We use either one, if he is having sinus/allergy troubles we will give him an age/weight appropriate amount of benadryl (makes him sleepy). Otherwise, you MUST take mortin or Tylenol with you, the air pressure on the little ears is horrible. We give him the medicine right before we get on the plane so it has time to work before we take off. This past weekend a passenger traveling with his son, shared a trick that I will try on our next flight. He gave his son the mortin and then had his son eat French fries as the plane was taking off to help with pressure in his ears.

4. We arrive to the airport extra early so we do not have to rush. And we walk him until is is tried. Don't forget your stroller, we use the little cheap umbrella stroller for flying.

5. We take lots of snacks, whatever the little on likes, juice crackers, milk, whatever. But be mindful of the TSA restrictions, depending on the employee, you never know what they will make you throw away before you get on the plane. One time I was forced to throw away all of our jars of baby food!

6. Take an item that brings your child comfort, favorite blanket, favorite toys whatever..

We just did a plane trip with our 1 year old this past weekend. He was good, but exhausting so rest up beforehand! Things that kept him occupied were the window shade and the seat tray. Even though we'd flow with him a handful of times before, he had never been mobile so we had to get more creative as he really just wanted to MOVE! On the return flight, I sat him in my lap strapped in to the seatbelt with me, and this really seemed to help set boundaries on his movement and he was happy. On the way down there, we let him stand in our lap once and of course after that it's all he wanted to do (and pull on the lady's bun in front of us!). Take a bottle or drink for takeoff and landing and totally overpack on food. Our first flight with him was only supposed to be an hour with one stop and then another 30 minutes and it turned into 7 hours on the plane. Just be prepared for EVERYTHING but try only to carry on what you need for your baby. People are really helpful and the flight attendants will usually do ANYTHING to make the flight an easier one for you!

If you are not anti-TV, purchase a portable DVD player and some old school headphones along with some of her favorite video characters DVD's( I suggest Baby Einstein at that age). It has helped me on several long trips and we found it to be well worth the investment. Also, consider giving her a dose of Benadryl and Tylenol 30 mins. before takeoff to reduce ear discomfort. There is nothing worse than a baby screaming in pain and nothing you can do. Our trips are much more pleasant after I figured that one out. Call your ped. for correct dosage on the Benadryl. Do not worry about security, they will let you carry that stuff through in a small ziplock bag, just have it ready to pull out for inspection. Some say nursing or a bottle durring take off and landing helps, but my little guy would not do that, acting like it hurt too much to suck.

There is a great website that gives advice on flying with chlidren. It is www.flyingwithkids.org. I've used it and researched other sites because I will be flying with my twin 22 month olds by myself. I know yours is only 1, but a portable DVD player is a great thing to bring along. DVDs like Baby Einstein should entertain your baby for while. Your idea of bringing snacks, toys, and books is great too. Good luck and have fun on your trip!

If you can afford to, get her a seat - that makes things SO much easier. Enough snacks to keep her happy of course. If she sits by the window, introduce her to the window shade - that keeps them occupied for a little while (LOL). If it's not turbulent, she'll want to walk a little and check out everyone. I got a "gogokidz" to attach to my car seat- basically turns it into wheeled luggage, onto which I pile my diaper bag and toy bag. I carry the baby on my back in an Ergo Baby carrier - I've traveled alone with him (he's 13 months) since he was about 5 months. Hopefully all will go well! Good luck.

We live in Rowlett, too and love it. My suggestion is to get one of those portable DVD players. Your child is at the age she's beginning to watch videos, if you haven't started them already. Baby Einstein Videos are great and very informative. That will also help take up some of the time. Most kids also, due to the pressure of the plane, take a nap as well.

Good Luck!! My name is J., mother of 4 children-- 8, 6, 3, 2 and loving every minute!!!

I can't say enough good things about Color Wonder. It has saved me on my plane trips with my little girl. The markers only write on Color Wonder paper, so you don't have to worry about getting marker all over the plane. I also carry a video iPod loaded with her favorite cartoons. Hope it goes well!

The whole box of cheerios probably won't be necessary. Most airlines have pretzels or other goldfish type snacks if you need a diversion.

One of the best toys I had with me when I traveled with my oldest, then 10 months - now 6+, was a small wind-up ladybug. I never left her alone with it (small parts) but it provided endless hours of entertainment. We even made it through an unplanned layover with extra kids all playing with this little wind-up bug. at 1 they like to stack things and watch them fall, so perhaps a FEW dominoes would be fun. Another suggestion would be a color wonder coloring book and markers. They only write on the special color wonder paper. They even have a small coloring book, but I would suggest the one with simple objects -- you'll find the selection in Target and Wal-Mart.

Pack only one or two more diapers than you thing you'll use. If you need an extra you can buy it at the airport. There is a fine line between the amount of stuff you need to be relaxed and so much stuff you get stressed trying to contain it.

Several rounds of pattycake, this little piggy went to market, itsy-bitsy spider, and other interactive song games with you will be your best option. She'll love just holding you captive without any other distractions.

I'm sure you've already thought to travel at/around naptime. This makes the trip go quickly, but its not great sleep, so don't expect your little one to be an angel when you land.

I'll begin to pray over your trip, that God would surround you with people who are understanding so your travel will be a joy.

Blessings to you -

i would definitely wear your lil one out so that she is extrememly tired when you board the plane. then give her a bottle or drink on take off so her ears dont bother her. i would take a lot of different snacks. dont take the box of cheerios ( too big) take several small bags if she eats them all the time. take lots of different small things that could help distract her if she is not sleeping the whole time. just remember that you will be her primary source of entertainment, b/c even if you bring all this wonderful stuff, you wont be able to reach it cuz you got a kiddo on your lap. if you need some help relaxing, just get a really early cocktail on the plane. it would be worth it as long as you dont have to drive when you get off plance! good luck!

DVD Player with headphones!!