Flying with a Toddler

Mine are 2 (boy) 3 (girl) and we usually take wonder color markers, dolls, cars, doodle magnets, lots of snacks, ipod loaded with there favorite cartoon, and there favorite stuffed animal. They will love to get a drink and snack on the airplane so this will take up sometime. Best of Luck!!

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Hi S.,
I think the biggest thing you can do is to buy her her own seat on the plane and let her sit in her car seat.

My husband and I flew with our little boy when he was 1 1/2 years old and it was SUCH a difference from when we flew with him at 5 months old (think nightmare-, versus dream-baby!!! :-).

By 1 1/2, he was soooo independent and no longer our cuddly baby that wanted to sit on our laps and be held all of the time (in fact, his favorite word while holding him was "down", repeated several hundred times, of course!!). So, our big mistake on that trip was bringing him on as a LAP baby!! (duh! it all seems so clear NOW!). Anyway, we vowed that the next time we traveled with him, he'd have his own seat!! Hopefully, you can benefit from our painful lesson...

Now, that being said, I would definitely bring snacks and drinks---the stronger the chewing or sucking that is required, the better---to help her ears pop!! We brought some low/no-sugar lollipops, along with some sippy cups, that required stronger suction, as well as carrots, that required stronger chewing or mashing, to really get the jaw working during both the ascent and descent.

We also brought some things to color, a few of his favorite toys/books, and some completely new toys / books that he'd never seen before---all to maximize the level of distraction.

And, definitely a change of clothes (or two) for any mishaps...

I hope this helps!
D.

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as a former Flight Attendant I will tell you that these are all good ideas, keep in mind that what ever you bring will have to be carried by you and your other children and getting through security can be a lot of work, I have three boys and we traveled a lot wen the first two were little so I've done the 2 yr old thing a lot.... the best advice you have received is to bring your child's car seat with you on the plane, this is a familiar item for them and they know they can't get up and down while sitting in it. but if you chose not to bring it reinforce the fact that the airplane seatbelt is the same as the car seatbelt, you have to leave it on ALL the time.

DVD players are great, my kids even watch without the sound, as well as toys that they haven't seen before, Preferably toys without small pieces that could fall and get lost easily. also don't forget you can also sing favorite songs, I think I sang hokey pokey for an hour one time, but hey it was easy to pack and carry... lol

a few technical things to think about, ear trouble is most likely to occur on decent, going into landing, if she has problems have the FA get you a cup with a hot towel (or napkin) and you can steam open the ear. And the pressure of decent also tends to encourage a bowel movement, be prepared, my son had a BM every time and we often had to wait till we reached the gate to change his stinky diaper

best of luck to you

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Coloring book and crayons. Also, a trip to the dollar store to purchase some little toys just for the plane might be good. That way these are NEW things to do that she has never seen before. I know my 2 year year old loves to color, little toys that have containers. She likes to try to put them together and/or open and close them. That usually can entertain her for a while.

Hi S.,

We just flew with our three year old during spring break. We took coloring books and crayons and we took a couple of books to read to her. We also took a portable DVD player, headphones, and some of her favorite (and a couple of new) movies and it worked like a charm.

We also took her booster seat. We flew on Continental and did fine on the first flight. On the last flight, the flight attendant told us we could not use the booster seat during take off and landing! Say what?!!! I thought that was the stupidest thing I had ever heard. She actually made us unbuckle our daughter and stow the booster seat and then buckle her into a seat belt!! So, if you choose to take the carseat, I would suggest checking with the airlines and finding out their policy first so you don't have to carry a heavy seat around for nothing!

Have fun!
J.

good news is it's only about a 3-3.5 hour flight, so it won't be too bad. Have her favorite toy and some books to read. Also, a good snack would be good. It shouldn't be too bad. Good luck.

Lifesavers, lots of individually wrapped lifesavers. The last time I made that flight with mine (then 3 and 5) the promise of lifesavers for every half hour of great behavior was a big help.

I always fall back on the bribery method when flying, and since I don't do it any other time, it really works to have candy and little prizes and little snack packages. I go to the dollar store and buy cheap coloring books and stickers and other tiny toys and books. Anything she has never seen before will buy you 15 minutes. Also, don't forget a sippy cup for any of your kids that are young so you aren't juggling little plastic cups. I also take a little DVD player which is worth its weight in gold for longer flights. And take a ton of baby wipes for everyone's dirty little hands.

Good luck. Most of all pack unlimited patience. Breathe deeply and just embrace the fact they you will be moving slowly. Security will take forever...and if you just embrace that it will make you far less crazy.

Have fun.

One thing that my friend did was buy the triangle shaped Crayola crayons...she said they were a life saver! They didn't roll off the tray like the normal ones would. I would have never thought about that! Other than that, I 2nd what most have said...snacks, etc.

Good luck!

Hi S.,

I have flown with my daughter about 10 times in her life (she is now 4.) I think that the age of 2 was the most difficult because she didn't want to stay in her seat buckled up and she got bored very easily. I took the usual crayons and coloring books, but also tried to entertain with things already on the plane. We would flip through the pages of the Sky Mall magazine and I would ask her to see if she could find a puppy on each page. They have a lot of dog products, so that kept her occupied for awhile.

I also went to the dollar store and bought a bunch of little toys and wrapped them up. I would pull one out when she got antsy and she would get to open a present for being good on the plane. Some of the gifts my daughter liked best were: little sheets of stickers, mini puzzles, and a miniature tea set.

I bought the Rainbow goldfish and fruit snacks and we would make little piles of each different color and talk about the color and what other things were those colors that we saw on the plane. Even though my daughter was potty trained, I made sure she wore a Pull Up because there really isn't enough room in the bathroom for two people to be in there.

I hope you get lots of hints you find successful! Enjoy your trip!

Ronnie

Stickers!!!
i flew overseas in december with a 2 1/2 and a 9 month old....stckers were the best entertainers. I gt her a book with stickers that you would place in specific places (activities) and antoher book just full of sticckers... she stuck them everywhere, and stickers accountedfor maybe 1/3 of the flying time (a 1 hour flight)...plus, they are light, easy to carry and inexpensive!
Good luck!

Hi S., I have 2 kids (6 & 7). When we travel, we usually get them a new activity for each leg of the trip. It has worked out well. Because it's "new", it tends to hold their attention a little longer. A portable dvd player with their favorite movie helps pass the time as well. Good luck! L.

Hi S.,

I used to have flight benefits with AA so traveled all the time when my boys were young. With your older boys with you, this trip should be a breeze. Just make sure their carryons do not prevent them from helping you with yours.

My first word of advice is, get your daughter her own seat. You may be tempted not to if the airline allows lap children but it is so important for her safety and, most of all, comfort. You can bring your full-size car seat right on the plane and strap her in. That way, she's not wiggling around, opening the regular seat belt herself and trying to get out of her seat every two minutes. Just like in a car, she will probably be so comfy in her car seat that she passes out for most of the trip.

Make sure she's got something to drink on takeoff and landing so her little ears stay clear during the changes in altitude. Also bring lots of snacks, a change of clothing and maybe a special toy she has not seen before so its novelty will keep her happy the whole way.

Those are my top 2 tips; email me if you'd like more.

Good luck and have fun!

M.
"Our pediatrician misses us. So does the pharmacist."
Visit my Mamasource profile to find out why!

One toy my daughter LOVED was the magnet cased toys: princess, dora, just about anything these days. There are little cut outs that are magnetic and stick to the carry case so it is all together and the magnets helps the pieces not drop to the floor. I did not give it to her until we were in the plane....she LOVED it.

S.,

Good advice here!

One of the things we did on a flight was to pack our daughter a "purse" full of "real" things: make-up brushes, gum wrappers, safe jewelry, happy meal prizes...anything you'd find in Granny's purse that you'd let her play with. We opened that up after about 30 minutes in the air, and she was content for a long time!

Also, I don't know if you have a portable DVD player or even a small video player (I use my iPhone now). You can download children's shows on iTunes for your phone and play them when you need to.

And snacks...don't forget the snacks. Take some that are new to her and some that are familiar. Airport food is not what you want to feed her, and you can't count on the airlines for anything.

Have fun!

Hi S.,

I have a 4 year old little girl. When we have traveled with her in the past (since she was 1 1/2) we purchased a portable DVD player with headphones. She loved it! To this day, when we fly, we always take it with us. We also took along books to read to her and ones to color. The doctor recommended giving her Motrin before flying so that her ears won't hurt. What you might find is that depending upon what time you fly out, she may sleep the whole trip. Will she be in her car seat? Hope this helps some, have a great trip!

M.

I flew from Phoenix to Dallas when we moved back here and I was alone with my 6 year old daughter, my 2 and a half year old son and our 8 week old baby girl- and believe it or not, after packing every boardbook and treat I could fit in my bag- it was a tiny little container of PlayDoh that I happened to always have in my purse that kept him entertained the entire 2 hours! It was great because it stuck to the traytable, it was quiet and there a million and one things you can make with it! Best of luck to you!

I recently just took my 4 and 2 year old on a flight....by myself! I took a bag w/ coloring books, SNACKS, new toys they haven't seen...look at Targets dollar items. The aqua doodle is great. it's just a 'pen' filled w/ water..no mess! I also brought a dvd player. HOpe this helps!

If she likes TV/movies, an iPod or portable DVD on a plane is wonderful! Also, plenty of good snacks, or if the flight crosses a mealtime, pack her a lunchbox. The novelty of having her own lunchbox on a plane is a treat and can occupy a decent chunk of time. By the time I administer a meal, a couple of DVDs, and (if all the planets are aligned, a nap), the flight is almost always over. I always also bring coloring/activity books, dolls, cars, etc., but at age 2, my children's attention span was too short and I was really just rotating things in and out of the bag, with only a few minutes of playtime for each.

S.-

I'm a mother of 5 and have flown quite a bit with all of my children since they were infants (flying from CA to VA often). Something I have found that works well with the younger ones is to have some new coloring books or "quiet" toys packed in their backpack that they have not yet seen and when they start to get fidgety during the flight, bring the new items out one at time until they get bored with it and then bring out another item......it has worked well with all of my kiddos (ages 17years- 15 months!)
Have a great time!
K. M

Always bring snacks. There is nothing worse than starving because of a delay on the tarmac. As for things to entertain. Not small items, they will fall off the tray and roll away thus ensuing the crying jag from your child. Favorite books are great. A new book that she has never seen. A new toy that she has never seen that you introduce at the hard times. And bring tons of patients for yourself.

I wrote an article - How to Fly with a Toddler - that tells what we do. It is here: http://burbmom.net/how-to-fly-on-a-plane-with-a-toddler/

You should be fine with the boys helping you...my older boys are younger than yours and they do great with their DS's.

It may seem a little counter-intuitive but the other thing I do is take as LITTLE AS POSSIBLE through security. That is the hardest thing to negotiate with a toddler, especially if you take my advice and take the car seat with you. If you wonder if you really need something, then don't take it.

Good luck!