Toddler on a plane (breastfed, milk, baby, parents)

[JerZ]

God help me, in two weeks I'm going to be taking a toddler on a plane.

I'll be visiting my family on the east coast and it's a long trip. I purposely chose stopovers so that we can fly for a few hours, get off, see new scenery for an hour and then get back on again. I figure that will break things up for E (he is 16 months old).

He is riding with me as a lap passenger.

(I can hear people busily calling to reschedule their plane trips right now so that they don't accidentally get on the one with JerZ and a whining, kicking toddler...)

Anyway, does anyone have any tips on how I can entertain E on the trip? I was thinking of bringing this little portable DVD player we have (it's smaller than a laptop). Unfortunately we don't get the window or the aisle for either trip but I'm sure my fellow passengers will give us a wide berth...

If anyone has good suggestions on how to entertain a toddler on a plane, I'd welcome them.

[ayannaaaliyah]

Wow, good luck - hoping you don't get stuck on the tarmac for 2 hours because of a flight delay.

I would suggest plenty of snacks, dvd player w/headphones, and coloring book/crayons. How did you manage to get a toddler as a lap passenger?

[JerZ]

Originally Posted by ayannaaaliyah

Wow, good luck - hoping you don't get stuck on the tarmac for 2 hours because of a flight delay.

I would suggest plenty of snacks, dvd player w/headphones, and coloring book/crayons. How did you manage to get a toddler as a lap passenger?

Thanks! I didn't think of crayons. He loves to draw. Children under two can fly as lap passengers. They don't have to--you can buy a ticket for them and put a car seat in it--actually, that's what I did when my older son was 20 months old and we flew out here to live. But this time the funds just weren't there.

The flight does go rather late according to west coast time (gets in after 10PM east coast time--so, like 1AM according to E's internal clock) so I'm hoping and praying that at some point he dozes off...that would be a bit of a relief as well.

I have this horror of disturbing other passengers so I'm always hyper-vigilant when it comes to taking my kids anywhere, but in a plane it's ten times worse because, well...you can't go anywhere.

[Wi_Girl]

To help you feel better, we traveled last December from Norfolk, VA to Hawaii with our daughter who at the time was 17 months old. SHE DID GREAT! That was also her 2nd time flying and she just happens to be a great traveler. We also flew with her on our lap and my inlaws came too so we passed her around and she enjoyed being with us and then going to her grandparents as well.

She slept a good amount from Dallas to Honolulu and vice versa. We made sure she had comfortable clothing on, lots of toys, etc. Instead of using crayons (we were afraid she'd drop them etc and they'd roll all over the plane) we got a magnadoodle which she loved. We also brought a portable DVD player with lots of Elmo videos. It wasnt loud at all and we actually had people comment to us how well she was on the plane. There were other kids crying, etc. and she did great. If she started getting restless, we'd walk her up and down the aisle. We had plenty of snacks, water, milk, juice, etc. Anything to keep her happy.

People thought we were crazy taking her along with us to Hawaii but I was so glad to have her there and that way I didnt constantly have to worry or think about what she was doing. She enjoyed the trip as well because she got to do a dolphin swim!

Good luck!

And for the one person who asked about getting a toddler on the plane without a seat, the age limit is any children UNDER the age of 2 can ride on a lap. 2 years and up needs a seat.

I think about any flights we take in the future and the thing that scares me now is that my daughter is alot more mobile and into things now as she was then!

[ayannaaaliyah]

Originally Posted by JerZ

Thanks! I didn't think of crayons. He loves to draw. Children under two can fly as lap passengers. They don't have to--you can buy a ticket for them and put a car seat in it--actually, that's what I did when my older son was 20 months old and we flew out here to live. But this time the funds just weren't there.

The flight does go rather late according to west coast time (gets in after 10PM east coast time--so, like 1AM according to E's internal clock) so I'm hoping and praying that at some point he dozes off...that would be a bit of a relief as well.

I have this horror of disturbing other passengers so I'm always hyper-vigilant when it comes to taking my kids anywhere, but in a plane it's ten times worse because, well...you can't go anywhere.

Oh okay, well good luck. Airlines these days suck in terms of being on schedule, which really makes it hard for parents who have active children.

[FarNorthDallas]

I went to Europe with my then 20 month old, 4 flights to our ultimate destination and he had his own seat for just the jump over the ocean. He was on my lap on the other 3 flights. I gave him Benadryl. I had a snacks, tons of diapers, extra shirts for both of us. I used an umbrella stroller that I wheeled right on the plane with him in it.

I had 3 small toys, one was a hotwheel and I don't remember the others. Changing a diaper in the bathroom is a total joke. You have to do it standing up unless you can find a spot somewhere else on the plane to lay them down which freaks out other passengers. Bring zip lock bags to put dirty diapers in since they reek. The noise of the plane will drown out a lot of the crying noise. I would get right by the engine, the louder the better. It lulled mine to sleep eventually.

Are you saying you are in a middle seat?? Yikes on that!! Hopefully someone will switch with you. When I flew it was back when there were empty seats on planes. I think planes are full now.

[sbd78]

We went from Illinois to Florida when my son was a week shy of turning 1 year. (He is now 16 months.) I was very worried about how he would behave on the plane, but he slept the whole time! It was wonderful! He did have his own seat, and we brought his car seat with. (He always sleeps in the car.) But from the moment we strapped him in, he was asleep untill we landed in Forida. Maybe he would be worse now, I don't know.

[ayannaaaliyah]

Fortunately with my daughter, I've been flying with her since she was born and never had an issue. Although, I have been on planes with children who were just not up for it, not feeling well, or just overactive and it was distressing for passengers, as well as the parent. I think for the most part however children usually fair quite well on flights provided that they are accustomed to having to sit in one spot for hours and are not overactive.

In terms of flying on the lap, when my daughter was 2yrs, I had to purchase a ticket for her (don't know why but I did). I just assumed that there was some new law passed regarding children on the laps of parents (or either widespread news coverage a few years ago) - either way most of the flights I take (which I try not to, unless absolutely necessary-hate TSA), the children are in their own seats, which was why I posed the question to the poster because I assumed it was mandatory.

[JerZ]

Originally Posted by Wi_Girl

To help you feel better, we traveled last December from Norfolk, VA to Hawaii with our daughter who at the time was 17 months old. SHE DID GREAT! That was also her 2nd time flying and she just happens to be a great traveler. We also flew with her on our lap and my inlaws came too so we passed her around and she enjoyed being with us and then going to her grandparents as well.

She slept a good amount from Dallas to Honolulu and vice versa. We made sure she had comfortable clothing on, lots of toys, etc. Instead of using crayons (we were afraid she'd drop them etc and they'd roll all over the plane) we got a magnadoodle which she loved. We also brought a portable DVD player with lots of Elmo videos. It wasnt loud at all and we actually had people comment to us how well she was on the plane. There were other kids crying, etc. and she did great. If she started getting restless, we'd walk her up and down the aisle. We had plenty of snacks, water, milk, juice, etc. Anything to keep her happy.

People thought we were crazy taking her along with us to Hawaii but I was so glad to have her there and that way I didnt constantly have to worry or think about what she was doing. She enjoyed the trip as well because she got to do a dolphin swim!

Good luck!

And for the one person who asked about getting a toddler on the plane without a seat, the age limit is any children UNDER the age of 2 can ride on a lap. 2 years and up needs a seat.

I think about any flights we take in the future and the thing that scares me now is that my daughter is alot more mobile and into things now as she was then!

This is really great news...thank you for posting this. And congratulations to your daughter on being such a good little girl! I'm going to get a Magna-Doodle for the trip. We have one at home but it's one of those big huge ones...I know they make smaller ones.

[JerZ]

Originally Posted by FarNorthDallas

I went to Europe with my then 20 month old, 4 flights to our ultimate destination and he had his own seat for just the jump over the ocean. He was on my lap on the other 3 flights. I gave him Benadryl. I had a snacks, tons of diapers, extra shirts for both of us. I used an umbrella stroller that I wheeled right on the plane with him in it.

I had 3 small toys, one was a hotwheel and I don't remember the others. Changing a diaper in the bathroom is a total joke. You have to do it standing up unless you can find a spot somewhere else on the plane to lay them down which freaks out other passengers. Bring zip lock bags to put dirty diapers in since they reek. The noise of the plane will drown out a lot of the crying noise. I would get right by the engine, the louder the better. It lulled mine to sleep eventually.

Are you saying you are in a middle seat?? Yikes on that!! Hopefully someone will switch with you. When I flew it was back when there were empty seats on planes. I think planes are full now.

I know diapers are a pain on a plane...we actually made this trip a year ago, and OH, what fun trying to change my poor baby. I started out balancing him on that teeny tiny stick-out part next to the basin and of course his foot stuck out, turning on the automatic sensor for the water, so we got soaked. Other than that, the trip was great. But he was just a baby and I basically breastfed him off and on for five hours, LOL. That's not an option this time around.

Thanks VERY much for the advice, I'm taking notes over here.