I'll give some info/tips from our three round trips with Reed:
We have flown with Reed twice before and he did great, but he is much more active now, so we were a little skeptical. Reed is always on the move. He wants to crawl, pull up, and walk everywhere (with assistance) so being cooped up on a plane seemed like a bad idea. So we had a plan, and a lot of supplies...
Here is what we took on the plane:
-I like a backpack instead of his usual diaper bag. It's easier to throw on my back and not worry about it falling off my shoulder, or hitting people on the plane as I pass by. It's worked really well the last two trips we have taken.
-The usuals: diapers, wipes, changing pad, burp cloth, change of clothes, pacifiers (with straps: don't want to know whats on an airport/airplane floor, do you?), sippy cup, cheerios
-The Extras: baby food pouches and bib (I never buy baby food, but it's worth it for a trip like this), travel size diapering products in the required plastic baggie, hand sanitizer and various baby meds (no I did not give Reed medicine to be calm/sleep on the plane, but you never know when you'll need Tylenol), quiet toys, Mom's wallet, iPad (WOW was this a life saver when loaded with a few cartoons; Bubble Guppies is Reed's favorite), tag for your bag and baggies to put soiled diapers in.
All of the supplies we took were perfect. We weren't wanting for anything. But, by far the most helpful thing was the Moby wrap. SERIOUSLY, this was awesome. We've taken it on our other trips and it was great, but Reed is bigger now and I wasn't sure how it would work. But we decided to use it and it was the BEST.
Let's talk security for a minute if you haven't flown with a baby/child:
They didn't make me take the wrap off through security which made it really easy. I understand some kinds of baby carriers must be taken off and put through the scanner, so double check beforehand.
You don't have to take your child's shoes off if they're under 12. Good deal.
You cannot take the stroller through the metal detector. It has to go through the scanner, so you have to carry your child through.
When carrying a child/baby you can just walk through the metal detector (not the x-ray machine or whatever it is). They do check your hands after you go through. No big deal.
They DO allow formula/milk and baby food in larger than 3 oz amounts, but, in their words, "in reasonable quantities." It says they may ask you to open it to test some. I haven't had this happen, but safety first, right?
That's pretty much it. Our three round trips haven't had any problems.
Back to the wrap: Reed loved being able to see everything and was perfectly content. He stayed in the wrap from our car to the plane. Once on the plane I had to take him out for takeoff (which led to a few squirmy moments) but once I put him back in the wrap he immediately calmed down. After a few episodes of Bubble Guppies, he eventually fell asleep. YES! He stayed in the wrap most of the flight and through landing (this time they didn't bug me to take him out and I was grateful) so he was snug until we got picked up by my mom.
We have been blessed to only need to bring the bare minimum with us because my parents lived there. They have a pack-n-play and bought a carseat, so we have only brought a lightweight stroller which we have gate-checked each time. Very easy. Next time we go it'll be a little more difficult since my parents won't be there with all the supplies we need (oh, and the fact that we'll have another child!).
It'll definitely be interesting. Next post is the fun stuff: family!
Enjoy!
The Turners
No comments:
Post a Comment