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Old 05-10-2018, 12:57 PM
 
Location: on the wind
23,077 posts, read 18,456,708 times
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First off,, not a parent, just a bystanding passenger. The tip about avoiding squabbling between the parents was golden. Once spent 10 hours on a plane with a young couple/toddler. OK, very very long flight, kid had his moments which everyone could certainly appreciate, but the thing that annoyed people the most were the PARENTS. Every time we hoped they had settled everything one of them would start a new topic and go to town on the other. Bickering, nitpicking, and smartmouthing each other endlessly, which in turn got the toddler going. By the 6th hour I suspect the attendants were ready to throw the parents out the door, not the little one.
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Old 05-10-2018, 01:37 PM
 
5,462 posts, read 3,020,305 times
Reputation: 3271
Quote:
Originally Posted by CincyExpert View Post
After completing a short roundtrip to see my parents around Xmas time (on the plane for a little over 2 hours each way), we're making the same trip this evening and hoping for better results.

Our first trip saw mixed results (slept for 90% of first flight, screamed for over 50% of 2nd flight) and I'd like to see what advice experienced parents had for dealing with their own babies on the plane.

Our little one will be sitting on our lap for the flight but hates to sit on our lap in general and is typically very squirmy and loud when he's in an uncomfortable position.

Some things we'll be trying to make the flight easier...

-trying to keep him up during the afternoon so he avoids his 2nd nap and is more tired later on
-bottle feed him during the flight's ascension and descension
-Ipad with his favorite sing-a-longs downloaded
-Ibuprofen and Orajel before the flight (teething)

Thanks for all suggestions in advance!
Fly business.
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Old 05-10-2018, 01:48 PM
 
10,196 posts, read 9,848,445 times
Reputation: 24135
Quote:
Originally Posted by Axxlrod View Post
How wonderful for all the people around you to have to listen to kid's sing-a-longs.

I get that you're trying to keep your baby from screaming like he did before, but forcing the people around you to listen to kid's music is just as bad.
I doubt anyone will be able to hear the ipad when in flight. But they do make kid safe head phones...you can get them at target.

I don't know about the ipad. My kids weren't entertained by screens until much older. But if this kid is, it might help.
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Old 05-10-2018, 01:56 PM
 
Location: Florida
7,195 posts, read 5,705,767 times
Reputation: 12337
Quote:
Originally Posted by HighFlyingBird View Post
I doubt anyone will be able to hear the ipad when in flight. But they do make kid safe head phones...you can get them at target.

I don't know about the ipad. My kids weren't entertained by screens until much older. But if this kid is, it might help.
I sat near a family with a toddler last month. I was in seat C and they were in DEF one row in front of me. I could absolutely hear their iPad. I think everyone within 5-8 rows could. I tuned it out and was happy enough that the kid wasn’t screaming, though the screeching laughter and kiddie music was annoying after a while. Definitely look for some headphones if possible.
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Old 05-10-2018, 02:30 PM
 
2,957 posts, read 5,884,725 times
Reputation: 2286
Quote:
Originally Posted by CincyExpert View Post
After completing a short roundtrip to see my parents around Xmas time (on the plane for a little over 2 hours each way), we're making the same trip this evening and hoping for better results.

Our first trip saw mixed results (slept for 90% of first flight, screamed for over 50% of 2nd flight) and I'd like to see what advice experienced parents had for dealing with their own babies on the plane.

Our little one will be sitting on our lap for the flight but hates to sit on our lap in general and is typically very squirmy and loud when he's in an uncomfortable position.

Some things we'll be trying to make the flight easier...

-trying to keep him up during the afternoon so he avoids his 2nd nap and is more tired later on
-bottle feed him during the flight's ascension and descension
-Ipad with his favorite sing-a-longs downloaded
-Ibuprofen and Orajel before the flight (teething)

Thanks for all suggestions in advance!
That's pretty much what we did. Interestingly enough, we noticed late night flights seem to work best, so maybe try that if possible. 2 hours isn't bad at all either.

Oh, bring some snacks. When the kid is older you can bring activities (coloring books, crap from the dollar store...).
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Old 05-10-2018, 06:36 PM
 
12,003 posts, read 11,851,991 times
Reputation: 22684
Too late now, as the OP and her little one are probably already in flight or about to take off, but it's far better to sing to a baby or small child, or to read to them from an actual book, than it is to depend on gadgets and gizmos to do the job for you.

Personally engaging with your child leads to stronger attachment and earlier language comprehension and use, and can be tailored to the child's specific, this-very-moment interests and needs. Plugging the kid into an iPad or popping headphones on him or her does none of these, and instead creates distance between parent and child.

It saddens me to see parents pushing their babies and toddlers (often quite large toddlers) in strollers, all while gazing and texting into their own hand-held devices and ignoring the little ones - who in turn, have their own little hand-held devices.

Both parents and children are missing so much.
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Old 05-10-2018, 06:40 PM
 
Location: Foot of the Rockies
90,316 posts, read 120,475,124 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by CraigCreek View Post
Too late now, as the OP and her little one are probably already in flight or about to take off, but it's far better to sing to a baby or small child, or to read to them from an actual book, than it is to depend on gadgets and gizmos to do the job for you.

Personally engaging with your child leads to stronger attachment and earlier language comprehension and use, and can be tailored to the child's specific, this-very-moment interests and needs. Plugging the kid into an iPad or popping headphones on him or her does none of these, and instead creates distance between parent and child.

It saddens me to see parents pushing their babies and toddlers (often quite large toddlers) in strollers, all while gazing and texting into their own hand-held devices and ignoring the little ones - who in turn, have their own little hand-held devices.

Both parents and children are missing so much.
Good grief it's for an airplane ride, not an eternity! It's called "survival".
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Old 05-10-2018, 06:55 PM
 
12,003 posts, read 11,851,991 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Katarina Witt View Post
Good grief it's for an airplane ride, not an eternity! It's called "survival".
You can't survive with a small child for two hours without an iPad??

Wow, wonder how earlier generations ever managed to raise their kids to adulthood?

I repeat, screens are not good for babies and small children. Not just my opinion - there have been controlled studies. Language acquisition and parental bonding are stronger without these props. Pediatricians agree. So do other early childhood specialists and children's librarians.

Keep little kids off of screens. Or if you really think you can't manage your kids without them, minimize and supervise their screen time.
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Old 05-10-2018, 07:06 PM
 
Location: Foot of the Rockies
90,316 posts, read 120,475,124 times
Reputation: 35920
Quote:
Originally Posted by CraigCreek View Post
You can't survive with a small child for two hours without an iPad??

Wow, wonder how earlier generations ever managed to raise their kids to adulthood?


I repeat, screens are not good for babies and small children. Not just my opinion - there have been controlled studies. Language acquisition and parental bonding are stronger without these props. Pediatricians agree. So do other early childhood specialists and children's librarians.

Keep little kids off of screens. Or if you really think you can't manage your kids without them, minimize and supervise their screen time.
Well, I did survive, because iPads didn't exist when mine were little. In fact I raised two to adulthood and both have advanced degrees and are not living under bridges. Don't break your neck falling off your high horse.
Parents have always had a few "mother's (father's) helpers", wind up toys that played music and such.

Don't get so sanctimonious about this screen time stuff and the "research". I worked in a peds office and we had no official policy on iPads or other electronic toys. One of the docs did suggest limiting screen time to 2 hours a day for the older kids.
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Old 05-10-2018, 07:49 PM
 
12,003 posts, read 11,851,991 times
Reputation: 22684
Hey, cool down! No need to be insulting. My post about the inappropriateness of iPads for babies and very small children was not directed at you personally, yet I seem to have hit a very hot button. Goodness.

That plane's already flown. Let it go. Obviously it's not going to make a huge difference in the fate of the world - or even one baby - if said baby is given an iPad while in flight.

But I think of at least a dozen other things which would be more appropriate and more productive for that child to receive in that circumstance.

Working in a pediatrician's office is not the same as conducting scientific research. But, just in case you are a pediatrician, I expect you'd agree that if a parent is introducing an iPad or similar device to a 13 month old baby for the first time, a plane trip is hardly the ideal setting in which to do it.

Or, if said infant is already accustomed to an iPad, you'd agree that limiting that infant's exposure is in his or her best interest, as you already noted this. A baby's brain is still very malleable at this age, and he or she deserves more than an iPad.

Look, I AM a professional with many years of working with small children and families. The problem is not so much screen-devices such as iPads - it's the over use of such things to babysit and to placate small children, often to the detriment of personal one on one (or one on two, or even three or four, if you have several small children) time spent with and attention paid to the child or children, minus such devices.

Children who are not exposed to these things but who DO benefit by having parents or other caregivers reading to and involving them in the picture books, reciting nursery rhymes and singing to them, talking and engaging with them about everyday activities, etc. acquire both receptive and expressive language more rapidly, have larger vocabularies at an earlier age, and are more attached to their parents. It's not hard to figure out why.

They're also more creative, more imaginative, tend to have longer attention spans,and are often more academically successful than are many little ones left to the tender mercies of the iPad. They know how to interact with people and how to use their imaginations from early ages, not just interact with iPads and play the already in place games and other activities offered therein.

IPads are not comparable to traditional wind-up toys at all. Those have been around for centuries, and they can provide small muscle exercise and some degree of creativity. Nonetheless, the best, most creative toys remain those non-mechanical toys which engage the child's creative imagination and do not impose limited activities upon him or her.

Usually these toys have stood the test of time, and understandably so. They work: wooden blocks. Little red wagons. Rocking horses. Picture books. Dolls. Dollhouses. Toy stoves and refrigerators, toy pots and pans and dishes. Toy trains and cars and trucks and boats. Stuffed toys. Modeling clay. Tinker-Toys. Lincoln Logs. Balls. Sand-pails and shovels (and a sandpile or table for digging and building). Toy pianos and rhythm band instruments. Tricycles and bicycles and scooters. Crayons. Finger paints. Poster paints. Things that stimulate the imagination and don't limit it.

If you're not familiar with the Waldorf or Montessori educational philosophies and practices (I expect you are), check them out. No iPads in either. Again, time tested.

Meanwhile, I hope the OP and her family are having a pleasant flight.
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