I seem to be living up to my name this week, first asking for ways to rescue me from the doldrums of lunch and now inquiring about traveling tips. I’m always amazed by the resourcefulness of my reader’s, though, and I know you’ll have some awesome tips for me.
We’d originally planned our vacation so that hubby and I would travel together with the kids. Being the cheapos that we are, we decided we could endure 10 hours of flying time, 2 stops, and 1 plane change together. And I bet we could. Now his work is changing things up a bit and we’re leaving dad behind, so I’m traveling solo with our kiddos. I am not renowned for my patience, so 10 hours flying with 2 kids sounds like the pits of hell to me. Luckily, I was able to find a non-stop flight with a price that seemed worth the upgrade traveling alone!
So, I’m thrilled to be heading home soon with the kids for vacation (but sad to leave my husband behind). We’ll get to see dad, it just won’t be quite the way we imagined things. But I can’t wait to go home, spend time with family, eat at all the restaurants I miss, see my friends, and just be near the ocean! We haven’t been home since Christmas of ’07 and some of our family has never met Ezra (or even Ella), so this will be terrific!
So, here’s the part where I need your help. I’ll be traveling by myself with a 20 month old and a nearly 4 year-old and could really use some tips for making this trip run as smoothly as it can! Here’s some info about our trip:
– We’ll travel a little under 2 hours by car just to arrive at the airport, then the wait to board, then a little under 4 1/2 hours in flight.
– She has not flown since she was 1. He has never flown.
– We just bought a used laptop, so we could use that for movies. The battery life probably won’t last the entire flight. We don’t have headphones for the kids yet. Do you think a 20 month old will wear headphones? If so, I was thinking about getting a splitter and double headphones.
– We have a leapfrog system, but I think this will be too loud for the plane.
– My daughter (4 year-old) could be entertained for a long time by books, but not my son.
– She has a seat, but he doesn’t. I’m planning on bringing his car seat in case they have an empty seat for him. I don’t have a car seat roller thing and they are $89!
– When these kids get bored, they want food, food, food. It’s a crazy phenomenon.
– Our flight is at a decent afternoon time, so we won’t have to leave at the crack of dawn.
– Flight will leave about an hour past nap time.
– I am planning on cloth diapering while traveling and I do have flushable liners.
Whew. My mind is whirring thinking of everything to get ready and I am so excited!
Any recommendations?
Oh, and don’t forget to enter to Win 1 Year’s Worth of Robby Wash Eco-Friendly Detergent on my blog!
My first advice, and I totally mean it, even though I don’t know if you drink at all—is to order some sort of alcoholic beverage for yourself on the plane. Your kids might be the best on earth, but those ages plus non-stop and a long car ride could be difficult.
Headphones are hard sometimes for little ones.
Pack TONS Of snacks, stickers, crayons, coloring books, mini magna doodles. Buy new/small/cheap toys that you will onnly reveal once on the plane and IN flight. pack extra sets of clothes for everyone in your carry on.
Bring antibacterial wipes to wipe down tray tables, seatbelt buckles, window shades, etc. Your kids will be touching everything.
Books. Small dolls for Ella. Suckers. Sippy cups. trash bags.
small /m ini containers of play doh that you might want to pitch after trip (after they’ve picked up plane bacteria). portable dvd player (ours holds charge for 3 hours and you can’t play it til you are up to 10000 ft and have to turn it off upon descent, so you just might be okay for most of it)…..
will email you, too.
Okay, our flights to Seattle are 4 hr flights and I’ve been flying with my DD since she was 5 weeks old. Here’s my scoop. The previous commenter covered most of it. I’ve never taken a DVD player. 2 reasons: 1) it’s one more thing for me to lug around and 2) I know my luck. I might get 10 minutes out of it, then she would need to go to the bathroom, etc and I’d be stuck trying to stow to get out, etc.
Are you taking Ella’s carseat as well?? I took Natalie’s as long as she had an FAA-approved one. She was used to being strapped in the car, so it was just like that. I just piled our stuff on the stroller … took a stroller more for stuff than the kid ;-))
The playdoh was one of Natalie’s favorites. I usually hit up the Target Dollar Spot or the dollar store before travel and got little things. Coloring books, stickers — a whole book of them!, and snacks, snacks, and more snacks. It’s amazing how much food you can go through on the plane!
Have a wonderful trip! The weather has been beautiful up there from what I hear, so I hope it holds out for you!
Um seriously, they wont let you have playdoh anymore, so dont pack that. It’s too much like explosive elastic stuff. I saw that somewhere recently. Really pissed off the kids for getting their playdoh taken away.
I didnt realize that Ezra was so close to Keeley’s age. Okay first of all, I’m assuming you’re leaving from the biggest major hub near you. If that’s the case, we are half way along the way by car, if you need anything.
Second, not sure how luggage goes anymore, but give Ella her carry on to be RESPONSIBLE FOR if you can. One with wheels so she can drag it or a backpack. That leaves at least one hand for your hand. If you still have a carrier, put Ezra in it, and your purse (full of nothing but snacks) over your shoulder. That should leave at least one hand for a suitcase. If not, you need to start practicing now for the 2 of them holding hands and walking with you as the ‘thing’ to do, so neither of them strays.
Keeley had my brother hold headphones up to her ears once and she saw a completely unrelated pair in a drawer 2 weeks later and ‘got’ that they were the same thing and mutely pointed to it and whined, requesting music. If he’s exposed once, he’ll know it again and if you have ‘over the ear’ ones, he might keep them on. The inner ones might not stay ‘in’.
I haven’t ever flown so I don’t know much about it, but my guess is that once you’re on the plane, they’ll settle down, and as long as you keep snacks and drinks coming, they’ll be okay.
Take 1/2 of what you’ll need and wash while you are there, assuming you’ll have access to say your parents’ washing machine. Take some crush resistant stuff for you, or things like simple sundresses or things you can dress up or down, and don’t be afraid to borrow from anyone else while you are there. Stick to one neutral pair of shoes you can wear with anything, and pick mix and match for Ella & Ezra. If one thing gets trashed, pull out something else.
I heard someone say that they put their carseat in a big plastic bag (they should ‘ride’ free in the cargo area–but check on that)… and along with the carseat, they put the diapers in there to save suitcase room! Just a thought!
Just some suggestions from the flight virgin… sorry I couldn’t be more helpful.
Oh jeez. My kiddos are about the same age. My son will be 4 in Oct and my daughter 2 in Oct. I can’t even go grocery shopping with the both of them, never mind an airport and a plane. Sophie won’t even sit still for 5 minutes, and they can’t even make it in the car for longer than a 1/2 hour with out someone having a meltdown, or puking. I will pray for you. Good luck!!
Gear up for the joys of the security check point. It is a major pain:
1. Everyone’s shoes must be removed then replaced once clearing security.
2. all your electronics have to be unpacked for inspection (cameras, computers, phones etc.)
3. You have to make sure that all your liquids are placed in a clear, one quart zip bag (hand sanitizer, juice pouches etc.) Also, you need to make sure that all your liquid items do not exceed a certain ounce limitation (I think it’s 3oz, but I’m not positive. Juice pouches for the children are an exception.)
4. You have to get all your other paraphernalia (diaper bags, jackets, backpacks, strollers, car seats etc) loaded through the scanners.
5.AND through all the chaos, you still have two little children to keep track of, AND all the boarding passes/Identification documents that have to be guarded with your life.
So, here’s what has helped us in the past:
1. We always take one of those plastic folders with a clasp on it to hold all of our copies of birth certificates, boarding passes, Driver’s licences just to help us keep things safe and organized while making sure that the documents are avaliabe at a moment’s notice. You have to be very vigilant about getting everything back in the folder each time you have to present your documents so you don’t misplace anything. We did have an incendent where my ID was left behind and I assure you, that trip was a nightmare, complete with missed planes and hours of secruity clearances.
2. Leave your baby in the stroller (did I mention that the stroller has been our lifesaver on our flights with the kids-just be sure to check it at the desk once you get to the gate.), safely straped into place until the last moment when loading everything onto the belt to go through the security scanners. The last thing to go on, and first thing to come off should be the stroller…it just helps to make sure that your little one is in a semi-secure place while you are busy loading/unloading/reorganized from the whole security ordeal.
3. I will tell you that I was VERY surprised the last time (April 2010, SEA-SLC) that my husband flew alone with our son, and I was offered a special pass that allowed me to assist them through security and to the gate. I don’t know WHY this has NEVER been offered to me when I’m the one traveling with our TWO children but for some reason, this little-known-airport secret was let out of the bag when Joel tried his hand at traveling with a child. So, I would absolutely find out what it would take for your husband, or whomever will be taking you to the airport, to assist you up until you board the plane.
As for the flight itself, I think you have a pretty good idea of what your kids will need. I loved the idea of bring sanitizing wipes–they are very helpful and can help insure that you don’t spend your vacation being sick. I also think that on a long flight, your plan to bring the car seat is probably wise…it is really hard to hold a baby for hours while they nap…and you will want them to nap.
I hope you have an uneventful flight, and very fun time with your family!
Coloring. My kids will color forever! If I color with them, they will go even longer! lol