Flying with a baby ?

Question

what are some things you brought to keep your baby occupied on the the flight. My daughter will be 10.5 months old when we go.

Answer 1

You might be lucky and she'll sleep right through lol but just incase shes not bring crayons and paper, her favourite toys and blankets/muzzy, make sure you have enought food/milk because if you run out of that it will be a nightmare lol, Good Luck and enjoy your flight!!!

Answer 2

Any lovies blinkies blankies ect. Snacks, something to chew on or suck on is good for dealing with ear popping. A few toys, maybe a book if she's good about it. And keep in mind, everything could go wrong, or she could sleep like an angel the whole time.  

Answer 3

A pacifier to pop her ears, a few books like the cloth ones that are interactive, & favorite books to read to her.

I always filled a small backpack with small, new toys to give my girls while flying. They were always so excited to look at and play with their new things that they stayed happy the whole trip.

Answer 4

Paper, crayon, book, toy, you guys could play games like peekaboo, walk around on the plain. Food. You have to be creative. 10 month olds can play with almost anything (safe), plastic cups, plastic spoon, keys, every day items. Good luck. I flew back and fourth from Europe to CA many times with two kids, made it (I got really tired).

Answer 5

How long of a flight is it? I'm a former Flight Attendant and I now fly a lot with my own three children. We usually travel between Europe and California about twice a year plus other flights in between.

At this age, just the new surroundings will keep her interested. Make sure any toys you bring are *silent*. Even one that plays a soft song can drive your fellow passengers batty since babies love to play things again and again.

Bring something new, that she's never seen before and give it to her once on board. At this age, simple cheap toys work best. A bag of plastic animals or cars she can wheel around on her tray table, a pin wheel, play dough, etc. Bring chunky books with flaps that open (that could be her "new toy")

I think she's too young for a portable DVD player. I got one when my youngest was 3 years old. They are kind of heavy to cart around and could easily break or something can spill on it. Also, many have short batteries and if it's a long flight, you may not get much play time after the effort of lugging it on board. There is also the problem that she would have to wear the headphones or watch it without sound.

I really recommend bringing a car seat and using it onboard. Make sure your car seat is approved for use on aircraft. See the below link for information on if it's approved. Most car seats, including infant buckets, sold in the U.S. are.

http://www.faa.gov/passengers/fly_childr...

If it's a non-U.S. company, check your airlines' website for information.

This way, the seat will get there and back without risking it being damaged or lost in luggage. Last winter, after a transatlantic with my kids, three of our four bags didn't make it but since we had the car seat with us, my daughter was safe for the 2 hour drive home (the bags arrived 2 days later). I saw at least two other seats while looking for our luggage. I wonder how they got home...

If you have booked a seat for her, under FAA regulations, it is your *right* to use a FAA approved seat. It can't be refused.

If you don't have a seat for her, request it at check-in. Ask if the flight is full, and if not, they can "block" the seat next to you, only using it if they really need it. They often do this for families.

Bring the seat to the gate, even if they are unsure that you'll get a seat. This way, if you don't manage it, they will "gate check" your seat, sending it down with the strollers and wheelchairs. This is gentlier than checking it in at the desk.

Make sure you have at least one change of clothes. At that age, I simply dressed mine in sleep suits for flying. No one will care so keep her comfortable. Bring extra socks since she probably crawls so that she doesn't pick up anything nasty on the floor and to keep her hands clean.

At 10.5 months, she might still fit on the airplane baby changers but it depends on how big she is and how big it is. If she can stand, even with support, you may want to practice changing her standing up. I found this super-useful for not just travel but anytime outside the home. She's getting more active and it can be hard to fight them to lie down in a strange place. I used the handicapped lavs where I had more room. Try this at home first, having her put her hands on the wall.

I have never used any sort of medications to get my children to sleep on any of those flights. At that age especially, they do nodd off at some point of the journey, more if it's at night. I've seen it done with older babies, especially more active toddlers on really long flights.

Hopefully you have a good baby carrier. They're so useful for flying, especially at this age. I had a sling but other parents swear by their wraps and pouches. The Ergo and Beccos are other popular carriers for travel that go on the back.

I liked the sling because I could slide my babies from into and out of a stroller or car seat without waking them. It also doubled as a blanket, baby changer, breastfeeding cover-up and sunshade! My sling was magic for calming my babies during the flight. Other parents wanted one when they saw how easy it made my travels. Avoid front packs like the Bjorn since they're so bad for both the parents' and child's back. A good carrier should go to at least age 2.

Many flying tips say to make the child suck on something or drink during take-off and landing. This isn't accurate. ENT specialists say to have the child awake about an hour before landing (top of descent, landing or touch-down is too late).

http://www.entcda.com/AAOHNSF/earsandalt...

I can confirm that is when I saw problems at work. Take your child to the doctor in the last few days before you fly to make sure his ears are clear and infection-free. Heathy ears can handle pressurization changes. If she falls asleep on take-off, as babies often do, don't panic and wake her up. Let her sleep!

About 8 years ago, I wrote an article on flying with children for an expat newsletter. Over the years many parents have contributed. I later put it on a blog so that parents had access to non-commercial information from someone with both practical and professional experience on the web.

http://flyingwithchildren.blogspot.com

Have a good flight!