My husband is going to be traveling with my 9 month old alone to meet me at a business trip so I dont have to be away from her for more than 1 night. We have traveled with her in the past but not since she has been mobile so I am trying to come up with some things for my husband to have to keep her entertained on the plane rides. Wondering if there are any aps that others have tried? We don’t typically give her 'screen time' but since it’s a special trip I am looking for ideas!
My son's favorite has always been Peekaboo Barn. There's a free 'lite' version but my son liked it enough that I paid the $1.99 for the full version.
He also likes bubble wrap and there's a piano one he likes. My son doesn't really like the book ones...he'd rather just have me read to him.
Search baby/toddler aps and you'll find a lot.
The Wiggles have 2 read aloud books. Disney's fairies have a game that includes some fairy shorts that are cute. You tube is great, and free.
I just got an eye twitch thinking about a drooling baby playing with a $500 phone that you can't buy insurance on...
How about you just get a cheap little mobile DVD player and use that? We bought one that we take along when we know the kids have a high probability of getting bored (waiting around at sports events, long car trips, etc) - I think it was $50 at Target. If the kids break it, I don't care (although that thing has lasted about 3 years already!). We bought a couple pairs of headphones, and we have a little CD case with a few movies in there, and voila - hours and hours of entertainment. You could get a few Baby Einstein DVDs for her and she'll love it. Best of all, if she drools on it, crushes Cheerios into it, or drops it, you don't have to go without a phone until you have another $500 to cough up at the Apple store... I'm just sayin'...
Mom,
I would pack a little child's backpack for him to take on the plane with some small new toys, a few new little board books, bottles and baby snacks for her. She is way too young to be entertained by games on your phone Mom. TV and DVD/video exposure is not good for a baby or toddler. You may want to do some research on-line or in books on child development on this.
We traveled with our daughter at that age and I doubt very much that a phone ap would have kept her entertained for longer than two minutes lol! I would get a few small, new toys that she hasn't seen before and pack those in the bag. I took an old baby bottle and put a paper clip, small erasers, anything I could find that would fit and then filled it with rice and sealed the cap. My daughter liked the noise and looking at the stuff inside. Also, you may already know this, but if you are not buying a separate seat for her, see if the flight is full upon checkin. If not, carry on your infant carrier, check the base and stroller, and then she can be restrained for part of the flight in something familiar next to your husband. Good luck, hope it goes well.
connect to you tube and look up things like sesame street , and Dora.
My daughter loves to play with the aqaruim ones, the fish will move when you toch them and you can feed them. They have a lot, like ABCs and stuff that are really neat as well.
How about some small books instead? Or maybe some pictures of family members she can play with? Can she look at photos of herself or her toys or people she knows on the iphone?
Chain Rxn is also a fun one. It's just a little game where you blow up balls with different colors and they chime. Simple little thing, but amusing for hours.
Sprout tv on the iphone has DORA, DIEGO, BLUES CLUES and SESAME street.
ibaby buddy
World of Lullabies
White Noise Maker
Shake the Farm
Peekaboo Farm
Peek-A-Boo Baby Rattle
Bubbles
Tozzle
Kidsongs (abc, monkeys and bed, etc)
Wheels on the bus
also just search Preschool apps there are some geared to babies.
Agreed that the screen may not entertain for long.... I often travel internationally with my now 2.5 year old and when she was 9 months, we did lots of trips up and down the aisle - I would let her crawl a little ways up then pick her up and carry her back to our seat! I also let her crawl in our row (we had bulkhead and I put down a blanket). Also, as others suggested - bring a few of her favorite toys - the trick is that we used to wrap them in tissue paper so that she could "open" them like presents and be surprised at what she found!
Favorite snacks also help and take up lots of time if she is feeding herself - Cheerios, my little one LOVED the gerber puffs, etc.
Good luck.
blessings,
Stacy
9 months old? OMG, that is way too young IMO! At that age, some lamaze toys should entertain her for a long time, and are much better for her development.
I'm firmly anti tv but few hours of iPhone is not going to stunt her development. But I've traveled with babies at that age and I think they are just too young to care or be entertained by it (I tried!). Snacks worked well for me. So did big stickers (I grabbed some labels from the post office).
my hubbie has some elmo stuff that my daughter likes.....
Peek-a-boo Barn - It's fantastic!
I agree that there are other (better) ways to keep your girl occupied. I took a 4-hour flight alone with my girl when she was 7 months old and she was a wonderful passenger. Bring snacks, extra bottles, and a few new toys (preferably that do not make lots of noise or have small pieces). If there is a layover, let her move around as much as she wants to let off some energy.
If you're insistant on using the iphone for distraction, I suggest "I Hear Ewe." It makes lots of animals noises and is very, very simple to use. Also, you can upload videos or whole movies through itunes and let her watch.
Good luck!
I traveled cross country with my son when he was 10 months and 14 months. You can do it without tech - you have a lot of great ideas here already. My friend gave us a great idea - she took plastic Easter eggs and hid small toys in them (finger puppets, mainly). Her daughter spent hours opening and closing the eggs.
