A couple years ago I flew for the first time on my own with our (then) 1-year old son back home to Maui. It was a loooong flight with a child who will not sleep in public, so I was nervous and waaaaay too uptight about it then. But I packed a lot of activities for him to enjoy and had some electronics for back up. Overall, he did pretty well, although I definitely had not yet learned to chill out, so I was more the one that didn’t do so well!
So, this past weekend, I got to experience flying solo again but this time with our son as a 3-year old and also a 3-month old in tow. Although I certainly have not mastered flying with kids, I felt like there were some things I did differently that really helped us get through it all much happier and less stressed! Thus, I thought I would share with you in case you find yourself flying solo with kids as well and clueless as to what to pack or maybe finding yourself stressed.
- Make it a fun adventure! I remember when my parents took us back and forth to Maui, I felt like it was a magical experience! I would get so very excited and my heart would pitter patter when we had to wake up early and go to the airport! My heart would race as the wheels of the plane charged faster and faster down the runway and then finally lifted into the air. I looooved the feel of soaring and looking out to see the tiny houses, trees, and cars down below. And then when we approached our final descent and started to see both my home in Maui and in Georgia, it was like an incredible overwhelming rush of joy like a great, mighty waterfall. Flying was (well and even still is) a happy place for me! And this trip I determined for my kids to experience flying just as I do and to help them find the wonder in it all! When you enter the eyes of a child and set your mind on the trip as a time to explore new things instead of just a means of transportation, you’ll find your whole trip takes on new life. Instead of worrying and getting anxious about your baby or child crying or having a fit, set the tone and make it something to which they look forward! Some airports even have unique hidden treasures! This past week we took off from the Atlanta airport and so everything from getting out of the shuttle to dropping off our check-in-bag, to security, to the concourse train, to the elevator, to the gate…every bit of it was a chance to make the airport come alive as an experience to feel and see! On our return, instead of taking the concourse we walked (well I walked, they rode the stroller) so we could see the little tidbits the Atlanta airport offered in between gates like the African museum, the colorful lights with leaves and birds above, even the moving walkways. So, start off with an excited attitude and ready for a fun adventure!
Plan EVERYTHING ahead. Think through what time of day the kids are less grumpy and happier if possible to book your flight. If you can, get a window seat and closest to the front. The reason I like the front is because you still get to board first especially when you have children, but you also can get off first, so your children aren’t having to wait as long, and you can grab your stroller as soon as they put it at the terminal. It’s worth it to pay a little extra for seats with more space should your child need to move or to put the bassinet down at your feet or to put something for your child to lay down and stretch out comfortably (see below). If it is going to be an early morning, go ahead and stay at a hotel close by that has a shuttle to drop you off and that offers long term parking. It was such a huge blessing to take our time the day before, get relaxed and rested before leaving our room at 7am (plan a couple hours in before flight departure for feeding, bathrooms, fits, long lines, and just managing everything solo). Plus, our littlest HATES car rides so we got our bad day out of the way so we could reset. I knew he would be fine the next day because I could hold him and he could see me the whole time unlike the car. Pack a great kid’s bag (see below). If you are debating what stroller and all to take, test it out on a short trip first. I wanted to condense as much as possible, so I tried out the compact gb pockit stroller thinking I could put my 3-year old in that and wear my littlest one in a carrier. So, I did a shopping trip where my hands were full and found out veeeery quickly that was so not going to work. I went back out to the car and switched it for my regular stroller (see below as well) and we had a radical change in attitude. Thus, the pockit stroller was returned and I took our Uppababy stroller. Which I also spent time practicing beforehand how to quickly put into the travel bag with two boys practically on me. Practice makes perfect! I even had compliments from other passengers saying “You clearly have this mastered! Your whole mom management was impressive!” And it was my first time actually traveling with them. So, practice, prepare, think ahead! Your practice may reveal things you need you wouldn’t have known and could have made things more challenging.
- Have a really good stroller! We have the Uppababy Vista double stroller and I can’t praise it enough! Both boys love it and our 3-month old sleeps amazing in the bassinet! You can actually get three children on it for those older kids that can ride the piggyback attachment so that’s also a huge plus. For this trip I condensed attachments, so I left that and the other configuration options at home and stuck with our favorite: toddler on top, baby in bassinet below. We used the bassinet for everything!! When I needed my hands free to put up/take out the stroller in and out of shuttles or for boarding or to take care of my toddler, I could put the baby in the bassinet and he was totally content. It fit perfectly at our feet on the plane (with the extra space) so my arms were relieved when he would fall asleep. It also flattens and fits in the overhead compartments (another reason to board first so you can get a good spot). It was also his crib at the hotels. I couldn’t have managed as easily without it! The only downside of the double stroller is that it isn’t very compact and does take more effort to put into a travel bag. They do have smaller ones but I wish we had started with the double so we could have grown with it easier. Once you’ve folded it a few times it is not that hard and it makes another fun adventure when the stroller becomes a “transformer”!
- Baggage tips! Do everything possible to pack one check-in 360 degree rolling bag and just carry your diaper bag and kid’s bag (well and stroller). Pack light with necessities but plan for messy days so more than one outfit for each child and yourself…because spit up and blow outs are always when you least expect! Also, you can get inflatable tubes as bed bumpers that fit great in luggage and go under the fitted sheets on the hotel beds for young children. You can also borrow a crib from the hotel. I prefer not to use them and just use the bassinet when I can, but when the baby is older the cribs are better so be sure to call ahead to reserve if needed! To make sure I had something to help with activity, we packed our postal threads ball since it is just fabric that folds up and uses a balloon to inflate and make it into a ball. Absolutely love this thing! And children can play with it in the hotel room with no fear of breaking anything! Tag your bag with something easily recognizable and with your name and number so it doesn’t get mixed up or easily lost. When you carry the travel bag for your stroller, put a baby wearing carrier of your choice in it. So when you put the stroller up you put the carrier on and if you have to carry more than one child at the same time, you will be very thankful for that carrier! Especially if the toddler gets scared of the sounds entering the plane! Or if your younger child doesn’t want to pull his bag, you have more hands to carry both diaper and kid’s bag. I also highly recommend a diaper bag backpack! Lastly, put all your liquids in a Ziploc bag at the top of your diaper bag so it is easily accessible when you get to security.
- Pack a fun bag! Prior to the trip, I let our toddler choose one out of the three roller backpacks I found for him on Amazon and then hid it until the actual trip so it was an exciting thing to find! And I STUFFED it! My toddler loves reading, alphabets and numbers mostly so there are a lot of those things in his bag but I wanted an assortment of activities without little or rolling things so here’s what I included with lots of new (*) things he had not seen or experienced before:
- Books
- Water doodle cards*
- Color wonder pad and markers
- Wikki sticks*
- Magnet doodle board
- Doughberry playdough and playdough cut outs (I like hers best because it doesn’t crumble, super squishy without the mess and smells amazing so perfect for the plane and helping calm down especially if you want lavender!) I used the protective sleeve of the window clings as a mat for him to play on.
- Window clings* (you can find an assortment of clings to fit your child’s interests)
- Edible candy bubbles* (great for letting them get some fun and energy out while you wait to board but have something to open it with that is good through security)
- Kaleidoscope*
- A couple small airplanes
- Snacks all in ziploc bags (goldfish, strawberry cheerios, freeze dried fruit, teddy grahams, strawberry bars and craisins…minimize the mess! Pouches work great too! Think something that can get them chewing to clear ears. For us it was the strawberry bars and I did give him the pacifier for take-off and landing for that too even though we are trying to do away with it.)
- Headphones
- Ear plugs for anyone around me if they cried
- Two empty bottles, one with a straw and one sippy cup. Both I filled with water when we passed security at water fountain bottle fill up stations. It gave me a way to pour the juice we got from the plane as well without worrying about messes.
- Glow sticks are fun for night travel!
We were able to make it without any electronics, but it was only a 2-hour flight and I didn’t want to have any meltdowns when I needed to take it away for take-off and landing. So, use your own judgement. It can help and be a treat or it can make matters worse. I rewarded my son with it after when we had to go on a long shuttle ride to the hotel and because I could take it away once we got to the room.
- Check out airplane accessories that can help. I tried the baby hammock and my little boy just didn’t like it, so I just packed it in the check-on bag when we returned. But some babies do love it! Fly Legs Up has some great flying feet hammocks for both kids and adults that are great especially for longer flights!
- Let people help! The first time I tried to be super mom and that was stupid. I’m not super mom. I’m just a mom. And a mom who was on her own for the first time flying and my hands were very full! This time, I learned to say “Yes please! That would be wonderful!” when anyone offered to help carry something for me. I took care of the boys and people all around were amazing to help me with the bags! I was less exhausted and had much more energy and my brain was much more at peace which meant the boys were also much more at ease! So TAKE THE HELP!
- Don’t stress when baby cries. It happens. On the way to our destination, I was incredibly blessed and amazed that we had absolutely no problems! No cries. No tantrums. Nothing. All happy and smiling. I knew not to get too confident for our trip home and sure enough, we had crying. And LOTS of it before we boarded the plane. It started off soon after I got to our gate (we were an hour early yay!) and the baby started crying and just got madder no matter what I tried, even nursing didn’t help. After I started walking around he finally quieted. But immediately after he quieted, the toddler started crying and having a melt-down. And it literally went back and forth while I was trying to put the stroller in the bag and almost all the way up until the actual boarding. I know everyone around me was praying they did not sit next to me on the plane and I was praying that I could sit next to someone other than my kids at that moment! You can’t exactly discipline the same way you would at home sometimes so public correction can be challenging with toddlers. Learning the art of distraction and being calm no matter how agitated you feel helps remedy the situation best with still a firm, correcting hand. I let my frustration get the best of me at one point and was getting too harsh in my correcting instead of remaining calm. When I realized it, I took the boys for another little walk around the gate where I could still watch our luggage and took that chance to cuddle them and reset myself as well. We did great and were all happy again at boarding until we sat down on the plane and the baby started crying for food before we were settled. Yep…even though I fed him right before we boarded (always helpful to do so right before boarding and when you take off), I could feel the inward groaning of the passengers in front of me and see their shoulders droop. He goes from 0-10 in just a few seconds, so I had to pause what I was doing and feed him and let my sweet neighbor sitting next to me help get the toddler situated and my bags where they needed to go. After that the flight was great! If it wasn’t, I was prepared to shower my area with ear plugs and snacks! As a side note, you can often (definitely not always) diffuse meltdowns by telling everything you are getting ready to do and what they can expect and what you expect them to do. Be a narrator to the story unfolding but foreshadow it a couple pages ahead.
- Dress up! This may not seem necessary but when you are all good looking, it helps with the frame of mindset to be even more positive and bring smiles to everyone else around you! Yay! Sprinkle on the joy every chance you get! In fact, if you like/use essential oils, there are some you may want to include in case you need! But back to the dressing up, I like to have the boys in something cute and matching but also very comfortable and easy to layer if the plane, airport or destination varies in temperature. For me, I like non-wrinkly, light-weight, dark (because of spit ups etc), quick drying top and bottoms with slip on shoes and an easy access top for breast feeding. I also like to wear a chewable necklace for little one to play with and be distracted when I need. A light sweater and nothing with metal or pleats because of the security you’ll have to go through. Minimize any extra delays you can!
- Plan time to chill after. Nap, play with the ball, run around, whatever you need after you get to your destination. Everyone will need some chill, free time without having to sit still!
I hope these tidbits help you plan your upcoming trips! It can be lots of fun to fly if you go prepared!
**I do not get paid to advertise for any of the recommendations.
