Coast to Coast Plane Trip with a 2 Year Old! AAAAAGH!!!!

Try the Color Wonder Coloring Book and Markers. They only work on that special paper so you don't have to worry about the tray getting marked up. We also did flash cards on and off to keep her brain busy and lots of stickers to decorate with! Good luck!

I've come late on this post as well. The only thing I would add is the idea of wrapping up all those little toys, games, etc--time the gifts across the country and only when she's quiet and well-behaved. My kids always loved the anticipation of unwrapping the present as part of the distraction.

Good luck!

We've flown for 4 1/2 hours with our kids multiple times. (As young as 6 months up to 4 1/2 years old.)

Pack her a carry on all her own. Include:

+a couple new toys from the dollar store

+notebook with markers, crayons, pen, pencil

+pack of stickers to use in notebook

+small blanket and pillow

+snacks

+some favorite toys from home (I packed the bag 2 weeks in advance so their toys seemed "new" to them as well)

+balloon (to play with in airport and dispose of before boarding plane_

+beach ball (same as above, only deflate and save)

+small books

+water bottle or sippy cup (now allowed through security)

+juice box

+travel game (we had Trouble version)

+deck of cards (you can make up your own games!)

Small toys, snacks and juice. good luck!!

Just bring a bag of tricks... everything possible you can think of and more :)
My DIL is getting ready to fly from Georgia all the way to the Philippine islands with a 2.5 yr old for Christmas and she's pretty scared too. Try to exercise the baby as much as possible before getting on the plane, I'm sure while in flight you can walk up and down the aisle once the seatbelt ban is lifted and other passengers will totally understand. It will be fun. Enjoy.

Oh the joys of traveling with little ones!!

Here are some games our kids liked to do on the plane when they were little tikes. Get some pretty string and a bag of cheerios or froot loops and string them on and make necklaces(make one for Grandma! Heck..you will have time to make one for EVERYONE at the reunion)..or use pasta...or all ove the above...it's a loooong trip. Little containers of playdough with little cookie cutters, lacing/sewing shapes, Lisa and Doug puzzles are fabulous for little ones. Wrap up a few of these activites in pretty paper and tell her that she can open one every hour. Books are always good and kids c.d.s that you can pop in your dvd player with some earphones. Don't forget a lollipop or two for releasing pressure on eardrums on takeoff and descent...dum dums are perfect size! Good luck my dear and have a fun and safe trip! Say hello to granny from someone in California...wow 100!!

Don't stress about the other passengers because that will just make you anxious and on edge. When we travel we are very sympathetic to those parents on board with little ones...I remember those days and how I felt. Just focus on your precious cargo and enjoy the trip!!

I have done this trip myself with two little ones (my girls are 13 months apart) and it is best to have favorite blankie/toy, lots of snacks, some movies, coloring books/paper and crayons, books and a couple new (small) toys to keep her happy. Make sure you let the airline know it is her first airplane ride and they will give her "wings" which made my girls super happy 8-).
Praying for a safe and happy trip for all 8-)

Lolly pops! They will keep her happy in an emergency (i.e. meltdown) and the sucking may help with her ears popping.

I also brought Tylenol. This helps with the pain of the pressure in her ears.

DVD player - GOOD CALL!

You've definitely gotten some great advice here. One thing I suggest, if it's not too late is one of those light-up spinny wand things. I've seen them at Target for $1. These always stop my son mid-tantrum on a plane. (It's that "Ooh! Something shiny!" reaction.)
Also, if you've exhausted your arsenal, look for things around you that can be entertaining. The barf bags can be instant puppets with a few crayons, we've had fun finding pictures in the Skymall magazine and even a paper napkin became confetti to throw (which we cleaned up when we were finished).

We love to travel and so our son was destine to be a traveler as well. He is 2.5 and we have a pre trip plan. We go out and buy some small, quite toys for the trip. I pack these in a plastic lunch box that he can carrry around. Usually it is coloring items, a car or train, little figurines, etc.. I also try and put in a fork, spoon, bib and sippy cup for the trip. All of this is kept hidden away until we get on to the plane and it does not come out until we need that quite time. In addition to that I come with a pre- portioned dose of benadryl(sp?) and some gum and lollypops for the altitude change. The DVD player also worked for us but not like we thought it would. Our last trip we down loaded some games on our phone and he kept busy playing thoses. Best of luck.

Lots of snacks, favorite blanket/toy and lots of mom's attention!

GEt a soft set of ear phones for the DVD player. Get movies she has never seen, and a couple old favorites. Try to have snacks that are different and nutritious to keep her calm. On the other end of that scale, gummy bears are great for plugged ears. Gum works too, but she might be too young not to swallow. On 12 hour car trips (totally different, I know) my Mom always made us activity binders. The front pack had crayons, felt pens and tiger striped gum. Then all sorts of coloring and activities all contained inside. Good time to teach her nursery rhyme songs and their movements - clapping, slapping her hand to yours etc. "If youre happy and you know it" makes people around you smile too.

You can keep coloring book ,crayons or some stickers with sticker book to keep him busy.Dvd is a good idea too,you can take any hand held games with you too.

Good luck & have a wonderful & safe trip.

Here are some tips!
http://www.bigbluetrunk.com/ourcorner/550

I came on to this post late. About the only thing I don't see mentioned here is that when you walk up or down the aisles, whether it's to go to the bathroom or just to take a walk occasionally, there are likely to be some fellow passengers who will enjoy seeing your little one on board and they will spend some time talking with her and 'entertaining' her for a little bit. We took a train trip with our 5 month old granddaughter one year. She found another child on the train and they would have to 'visit' each other every so often during the trip. Just watch for the unexpected opportunities.

We do the x-country trip 3-4 times a year, from when my daughter was 10 weeks old to now, when she's 4.5. What works for us is:

- Carseat so she's more comfortable sleeping in her own space
- DVD player with lots of her favorite movie options
- Paper/notebook, stickers and triangularly-shaped crayons so they don't roll off your tray table (Crayola and Melissa & Doug make them this way)
- New paperback (for less weight) storybooks
- Sticker storybooks where I can read her the story and she decorates it with the stickers - makes it interactive
- Reusable sticker scenes
- I Spy/Look & Find books
- Favorite stuffed animal & thin flannel blanket for naps
- Snacks & water

Although, like another mom who responded, I sometimes take all this stuff and my daughter winds up playing with an empty plastic cup from the plane the whole time. But better safe than bored with 200 witnesses! And I'd suggest that you make as much of the stuff a new surprise to her once you're on the plane.

Good luck and don't stress -- if you're more relaxed your daughter will be, too.

Best wishes,
A.

My youngest was 23 mos when we flew from NY to Pheonix - the flight out wasn't soooo bad because we had a flight leaving around 5PM or so but the return flight was a red eye & that was a nightmare. There is only so much you can do to keep a child quiet on a plane, only so much tv they will watch, so many activities they will do, blah, blah, blah, but one thing that was a life saver was our older daughter had her nintendo ds so that occupied our little one for a bit too. I'm not saying to run out and buy one but just so you know the airlines do have the tv's that u can watch i think u just have to pay a dollar or so to buy the headset. Something else we took along w/us in a backpack was crayons, coloring books, those magic erase boards where you have the transparent sheet & u write on the gray one over the black background & it erases - we used that a whole lot. Plus tons of snacks & stuff - I think the hardest things was getting passed the excitement of the bathroom (that we had to visit just about every 5 minutes). As far as the passengers, try to ignore the stares & comments - u aren't the first nervous mom to be on a flight w/a child and i'm sure u won't be the last. All the best to u! PS I'll leave u w/one bit of advice - if you are even thinking about, even considering trying Benadryl......try it out first. We didn't and when we gave it(with the okay of our ped of course) to our daughter 1/2 way thru our flight (did i mention it was a red-eye) she was so cracked up - oh my gosh - she was running up & down the aisle of the plane with her hands at her side making airplane noises - it definitely didn't slow her down a bit.

I see you already have a lot of great suggestions. I'd like to add in a MagnaDoodle toy. They come in lots of sizes and I used to keep one in my purse to distract my kids. Even though your 2 year old won't be able to write much, you can. Draw animals, shapes, etc. Draw 2 shapes and have her point to the __. Help her learn to make the shapes herself by guiding her hand. Trace her hand, let her trace yours. You get the idea.

Good luck and have a great time.

I've only done international flights with my kids (most recently when DD just turned 1 and DS was 2.5) which in some ways I think is easier because they feed a lot :)
I bought a TON of stuff to prepare for our 22 hr flight and ended up only using a small amount. Amazon sells some little sticker books for about $1 (though I'm sure you could get them other places as well) with reusable stickers. I also went to the local thrift store and bought a random assortment of little toys that I wouldn't care if they got lost and would provide a quick distraction if needed. We brought storybooks (some new ones about riding on a plane). We bought a ziploc of duplos (like 8-10). Snacks and sippy cup are a necessity. If your daughter has decent fine motor skills you can try stringing Fruit Loops onto a string (fun to do and eat).
In the end, my DS played with the travel toothbrush the airline gave us and my DD with a water bottle almost the entire flight.
More helpful hints to remember: ask for juice boxes for drinks--they don't spill as easily or pour the juice right into her cup. Bring a water bottle for yourself (empty through security if needed)-- the little cups they give you on the plane spill so easily when you're with a little one! I know other people like the bulk head but I didn't when traveling alone (it was better when I travel with DH) because you can't keep your bag at your feet and it's impossible to have your kid on your hip and reach to get your bag of distractions out of the overhead compartment.

Do you have a seat for your child? If so, if you can take your carseat on, that will help a lot. I don't know how well your child travels in the car, but if he/she travels well, the familiarity of the seat will help. Try for a window seat because that can eat up a bunch of time just with the looking out during takeoff/landing. Good luck!