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Advice wanted for flying with kids

IHateMyJob2004

IHateMyJob2004

Lifer
Monday, we leave for vacation.

The flight is 2.5 to 3.0 hours.

So far, we've already tought our 4 year old to chew bubble gum and he'll get it for the plane ride.

And we are bringing plenty of things to entertain them. Any advice on things especially good for airplanes would be nice.

The big fear though is that my kids get sick. The bubble gum will help my 4 year old with the change in pressure. What can I do for a 20 month old?
 
I waitied to feed my son when I would travel with him when he was less than a year until we would do the take off / decent. Applesauce or anything like that will probably work pretty good at clearing their ears.

For entertainment I brought a mini dvd player but cards, books or anything with LOTS of pcitures will work. Coloring books went over well too. I also kept him up during his normal nap so he was really, really tired and that bought me about an hour of him passed out in my arms.
 
If they start to act up, please take them to the bathroom and calm them down. Nothing is worse than sitting next to a kid who's voice is echoing throughout the entire plane. You don't want an entire plane mad at you and your screaming kids.
 
last time we flew to florida (3 hrs) the girl was 4 and the baby was 20 months. what worked for us is keeping the kids up later than usual the night before and waking them up earlier than usual the day of the flight. usually we schedule the flight to be right at nap time so they are really tired. then they usually fall asleep for the length of the flight. we also brought our mini dvd player with their favorite shows.

the 20 month old fell asleep the entire way there and back. the 4 year old was fine except on descent on the return flight her ears started really bother and she freaked out loudly but we had to stay in our seats. a very helpful woman behind us gave us some gum and that really helped to calm her down though she swallowed the gum. next time we will make sure to have gum with us.

ps - they both loved disneyworld. we did too. one thing that we could not have done without is the double stroller we brought with us. it's made by jeep and is very lightweight but strong. there's always places to leave the stroller when you go on rides and it helps with carrying around all your assorted baby gear.
 
Originally posted by: IHateMyJob2004
Monday, we leave for vacation.

The flight is 2.5 to 3.0 hours.

So far, we've already tought our 4 year old to chew bubble gum and he'll get it for the plane ride.

And we are bringing plenty of things to entertain them. Any advice on things especially good for airplanes would be nice.

The big fear though is that my kids get sick. The bubble gum will help my 4 year old with the change in pressure. What can I do for a 20 month old?
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Give him/her something to suck on like a pacifier or a bottle of formula.

I second the DVD thing. It's so easy to pop in a movie and let them watch it. Bring along a few movies so they don't get bored with one and don't bring one they've seen 100 times.

Man, I'm glad Disneyland is only about an hour from here by car.
 
Can't speak for the 20 month old, but my first plane ride was 5 hours when I was 3. All I needed was a book and the kid's entertainment "radio" station United provided via the seat jacks. I just thought the very fact that I was in a plane was awesome. 🙂

That said a DVD player would have been welcome. (Had they existed at the time)
 
Originally posted by: Turin39789
Originally posted by: IHateMyJob2004
Originally posted by: dug777
don't.
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agree, but I am not the genius that thinks that a 20 month old needs Disney world. The 4 year old I can comprehend.
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Then don't take him/her. You don't have a say in this?
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Well, maybe he doesn't have anyone that he feels comfortable leaving the child with. You know, it's not exactly easy to find someone to take your 20 month old child for 5-7 days.
 
Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
Originally posted by: Turin39789
Originally posted by: IHateMyJob2004
Originally posted by: dug777
don't.
Click to expand...

agree, but I am not the genius that thinks that a 20 month old needs Disney world. The 4 year old I can comprehend.
Click to expand...

Then don't take him/her. You don't have a say in this?
Click to expand...

Well, maybe he doesn't have anyone that he feels comfortable leaving the child with. You know, it's not exactly easy to find someone to take your 20 month old child for 5-7 days.
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I understand that. I don't understand choosing to take a 20 month old to Disney over staying home and waiting until the child is older. It sounds like he doesn't either.
 
You think you guys got it bad? I was on a 9 hour flight next to a family with the world's worst kid. The guy was running around the cabin, shouting, climbing chairs and throwing stuff. His parents didn't care, they just sat there watching movies. When it was time to sleep and the kid started yelling, I was ready to slip some tequila in his orange juice.
 
They are the perfect age. Airports are wonderful places to ditch your kids. Fly to your destination, take the kids into the men's room and strap them to the baby changing table. Then fly home. The reason you want to use the men's room is that men instinctively avoid looking at the baby changing table, especially if there is someone on it, even more especially if that someone is screaming at 170 dB. You'll be home, happy, and free before the cleaning folks find the kids. The kids are probably young enough that they won't be able to identify their home town. During the weekend mention living in all sorts of places just to confuse them.
 
Fly jetblue if possible. TV will keep the 4 year old zoned out and if the 20mo old starts yowling, at least the rest of the plane has a fighting chance with something to drone out the wailing. Seriously, seatback TVs are the greatest thing to happen to air travel since the jet engine.
 
Originally posted by: loup garou
Fly jetblue if possible. TV will keep the 4 year old zoned out and if the 20mo old starts yowling, at least the rest of the plane has a fighting chance with something to drone out the wailing. Seriously, seatback TVs are the greatest thing to happen to air travel since the jet engine.
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TV on Jet Blue is a good idea. My toddler loves books as well.

Buy a couple new inexpensive toys and keep them in your bag. Bring a new one out once every 30/45/60 min (your call) to keep your kid amused.

Pack lots of snacks.

If you're worried about noise, you can request a seat near the rear of the plane. But since this is a daytime flight to Orlando that's bound to be packed with families, I wouldn't worry about it too much.

We did a trip down to Orlando with our then 15 month old and another couple who had a 4 and 2 year old. Same approximate flight time on Jet Blue and things went fine.
 
Originally posted by: blackdogdeek
last time we flew to florida (3 hrs) the girl was 4 and the baby was 20 months. what worked for us is keeping the kids up later than usual the night before and waking them up earlier than usual the day of the flight. usually we schedule the flight to be right at nap time so they are really tired. then they usually fall asleep for the length of the flight. we also brought our mini dvd player with their favorite shows.

the 20 month old fell asleep the entire way there and back. the 4 year old was fine except on descent on the return flight her ears started really bother and she freaked out loudly but we had to stay in our seats. a very helpful woman behind us gave us some gum and that really helped to calm her down though she swallowed the gum. next time we will make sure to have gum with us.

ps - they both loved disneyworld. we did too. one thing that we could not have done without is the double stroller we brought with us. it's made by jeep and is very lightweight but strong. there's always places to leave the stroller when you go on rides and it helps with carrying around all your assorted baby gear.
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This sounds like the best plan.
 
I recommend that dad and mom take different flights. Dad takes the kids. Daddy flying alone with kids will get all sorts of help, sympathy, etc. Mom flying alone will get to rest and hopefully have energy to deal with the kiddies once you get to your destination. Win for all.

We did this for years. Four kids.
 
My son is 6.5 years old now and he's been to Maui, New York, Spain and Portugal ranging in age from 3 months old to almost 6 years old on those trips. By the time we took him to Spain he was already pretty used to the routine of flying.
 
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