Air Travel with a Toddler Part 2

Neil had his 4th trip that we took by airplane, previous posts are here, here, and here. The other ones had connecting flights and this was direct, which was a bonus! I also figured I would continue to update with tips I've found to make things easier for us.

Just for the record, the seat belt is not positioned correctly here but we did this in a hurry so he wouldn't fall out as we wheeled him around. I didn't think he'd actually WANT to sit in it but he did. Usually he prefers walking/being carried over riding in a stroller or something like that.

Tips based on the trips we've made so far:

• If you're breastfeeding, TAKE advantage of it. It helped on takeoff, landing, and in general getting Neil to sleep.
• Bring new toys/books for them to play with but nothing with wheels or you could easily lose it. (And nothing that you'd be really upset about losing.)
• Plane travel, to me, is survival mode. This trip, Neil was really tired on our flight out- it was past his nap time by quite a bit and he was fighting going to sleep especially because there was commotion around us. I panicked initially but then pulled out his pacifier and that did the charm for us. (Yes we need to get rid of the pacifier, I know.)
• Once they are in a convertible car seat, buy something like this: Gogo Kidz Travelmate, which transfers your car seat into a stroller for use through the airport. While you're at it, it's nice to have a gate check bag to put the stroller in. And if you do buy this travelmate, practice with it
  (attaching it to the car seat, etc.- it doesn't all fit through the x-ray machine at security so you have to separate it) ahead of time, especially if you're traveling by yourself with a kid.
• Similar to the survival mode above, this is the one time I don't care how much television Neil watches. He loves music and on the return flight did not nap. We used a tablet with kid headphones and it kept him preoccupied the entire time.
• I also bought some airplane books for Neil and he started to recognize things as we walked through the airport and the plane was taxiing. We read these books at home and in our previous trips took them with us. This time I left them at home and opted for paperback books because they are lighter.
• Let them run around and walk as much as you can get them to while in the airport. It gets energy out and lets them stretch their legs.
• My carry-on has turned into the diaper bag unfortunately. But with Neil I don't really have a way to read or anything anyways. So far because he's been under 2 he's been in my lap. I do use the Kindle on my phone to read books and I've been so tired that I nap myself when he's napping, which is not normal for me.
• We usually leave enough time to make sure we can get some food at the airport, especially for Neil. If he's hungry he's not going to nap as well. We also carry on pouches, which so far are okay to take through airport security. I'm not sure if this will change after 2 but we could probably also just bring crackers and stuff. Someday maybe he'll be able to eat those somewhat neatly.
• When the flight attendant offers drinks, ask for an extra cup. It makes a great toy. They are also willing to fill sippie cups with water.
• We got a US Airways credit card for a few different reasons and one of them is one piece of free checked baggage per person traveling. Since Neil was a lap child, this gave us two free checked bags. We were only gone a few days so we took one suitcase for the 3 of us and brought the pack n play. It was nice to have our own in the hotel. Note though- if you check baby equipment (pack n play, car seat, etc), they don't come out the normal baggage claim and are with the oversized baggage in the airport.
• This time we did not let Neil take a blanket or stuffed animal on the plane or in the airport. He had a hoodie on so he was warm enough on the plane, and we found last time that he just dragged the blanket and stuffed animal all over, getting them dirty. He didn't notice or care that he didn't have them. I'm sure this is probably kid dependent.
• Any tips to add?

We took Neil to the play area, Mr. Roger's Neighborhood (called Kidport) in the Pittsburgh airport. I love that they have this area and each time we've been here Neil has been the only kid in there.

This trip, Neil slept on the first flight. He was past his naptime and the flight was slightly over an hour, which actually wasn't long enough for his nap. We got a comment from the guy in the same row but other side that Neil is a good traveler. Helps when he sleeps most of the flight! I bet with his initial crying and carrying on some of the other passengers were worried but it turned out fine.

His hair after waking up.

Neil woke up before we landed and was excited to look out the window as we were landing.

On the return trip, Neil napped in the car for awhile and was wide awake for the flight. He spent most of the flight watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on Dave's tablet, which kid headphones in.