A few weeks ago Jack
had his first plane ride and it went better than expected.
had his first plane ride and it went better than expected.
Granted it’s not an experience that I’m eager to repeat, but
it went well enough.
it went well enough.
The flight to Aruba was the hardest. We got up at 3 am to
drive an hour to the airport, to catch a 7:30 flight.
drive an hour to the airport, to catch a 7:30 flight.
I do not recommend doing this. If you can avoid a 3 am wake up do it, we couldn’t.
By the time we landed
in Aruba and got to the hotel it was about 2:00 and Jack was all over tired and
hyped up to see his grandparents that there was no chance for a nap. Add to
that, that my Dad was convinced that the later we kept him up the later he
would sleep in the am.
in Aruba and got to the hotel it was about 2:00 and Jack was all over tired and
hyped up to see his grandparents that there was no chance for a nap. Add to
that, that my Dad was convinced that the later we kept him up the later he
would sleep in the am.
Dude, the kid had been up since 3 am, going to bed at 6:30
isn’t going to hurt.
isn’t going to hurt.
I did some research about flying with a toddler before we
left. This site provided a lot of info and toy suggestions. The majority of
which was helpful.
left. This site provided a lot of info and toy suggestions. The majority of
which was helpful.
Unfortunately Jack was too young for a lot of it. So the
colorforms, crayons and magnadoodle I brought were sort of useless.
colorforms, crayons and magnadoodle I brought were sort of useless.
The biggest mistake we made during this trip was not booking
a seat for Jack. When we booked this trip Jack was 6 months old and flying with
him on our lap seemed like the right idea.
a seat for Jack. When we booked this trip Jack was 6 months old and flying with
him on our lap seemed like the right idea.
It was not. I will never do it again.
During the fligh the man next to us moved seats so we could
have more room. He was an awesome guy with 7 grandchildren. So I set up the CARES
harness, for Jack to sit in but it wasn’t happening.
have more room. He was an awesome guy with 7 grandchildren. So I set up the CARES
harness, for Jack to sit in but it wasn’t happening.
This lasted but a moment.
That’s because the second mistake we made was letting Jack
stand up on the plane. John let him walk around in the space of the new seat
and what would be our leg room. Once he knew he could be mobile there was no
chance of restraining him without fits of tears.
stand up on the plane. John let him walk around in the space of the new seat
and what would be our leg room. Once he knew he could be mobile there was no
chance of restraining him without fits of tears.
I packed 2 carry-on bags for this flight, a bag of tricks (toys, books, etc)
and a diaper bag filled with necessities and snacks. I was glad when the flight
was over because I was quickly running out of rabbits to pull out of my hat.
and a diaper bag filled with necessities and snacks. I was glad when the flight
was over because I was quickly running out of rabbits to pull out of my hat.
Besides trying to keep Jack entertained during the flight I was constantly on “poop watch”. I was so afraid he would poop mid flight. I inspected the changing table in the bathroom and it was impossibly small.
Every 30 minutes or so I would say to John, “I think he pooped”. Then I would check Jack and there was no poop. It took this happening at least 5 times before I realized we were sitting in front of the bathroom. It wasn’t Jack I was smelling.
The third mistake I made was that I forgot to give Jack his
Benadryl before this flight. We boarded early and I got flustered and just
forgot.
Benadryl before this flight. We boarded early and I got flustered and just
forgot.
As the pilot said
that we were making our final descent in to Aruba and that we would be on the
ground in 7 minutes Jack grabbed his ear let out a few wails and fell asleep.
It was a glorious 5 minutes.
that we were making our final descent in to Aruba and that we would be on the
ground in 7 minutes Jack grabbed his ear let out a few wails and fell asleep.
It was a glorious 5 minutes.
Thankfully the pressure did not seem to bother his ears on
take-off or landing too much. I purchased earplanes (which his ears were too
small for ), gave him Motrin (only on the flight out not the flight back), and
had him eat and drink.
take-off or landing too much. I purchased earplanes (which his ears were too
small for ), gave him Motrin (only on the flight out not the flight back), and
had him eat and drink.
And he didn’t poop which I think was the best part of the flight.
Jack clinging to his blankie on his all too brief nap.
Have you flyed with your kids? How did it go? Would you do it again?
We've flown with babies mostly… and my youngest has yet to go on a plane. I think they just like to stay up because it's something new and different for them. It sounds like it went pretty well! But isn't that how it always goes? They fall asleep at the end… 😉
It did go much better than expected and I think you are right it is all new to them, so why bother sleeping.
You survived, yikes, you had it bad. I flew with a 2 year old and a 2 month old by myself and let's just say many suckers were involved.
I can't imageine flying with a 2 year old and a 2 month old alone. Double yikes!
Having been there you are so right the not pooping part is the best! My philosphy is that if you are flying with a child under the age of 3 and you don't get kicked off the plane than obviously you are a superior parent! 🙂
That's a great philosphy!
OMG, you are brave!!! We once flew with Cole and Bella when they were about 18 months old but it was a very short flight. And then I flew again with them last summer to Boston which was a very long flight but they did relatively well, but only because we flew Jet Blue and they had access to several television stations. The Animal Planet just happened to running a series on BigFoot which kept Bella happily entertained for most of the flight.
Having access to TV is such a huge help on a flight.