First flight for kids?

[Scottishbrit]

We are leaving in 3 days! And it's now just hitting me.....the plane ride. It will be a first for my kids, 5 and 3. My 5 ( DD ) is noise sensitive. And my 3 year ( DS ) old is scared of up and down kinda rides. So other then a ton of activities, snacks, iPad, Leap pads can you recommend anything that might help ease the tension? It's a 6 hour flight. Were in So. Cal. We have a 1 1/2 lay over in Texas then hop on another plane. I thought this might be good for them to break up the flight and they can get some energy out.

 

[Lisa71]

We have good headphones for the kids that block out a lot of noise and we discuss what it will be like, who will sit where, etc. The break will be good and they will like moving. Mostly breathe and know it is what it is. My son vomited on me during a landing at Austin and I had clothes for him but not me...so I know have a Texas longhorns t-shirt!! He had too many snacks and the bumps got him. Have fun!!! We also have my husband board first and I wait until the end of boarding so the kids sit less.

 

[bella2117]

I brought a TON of stuff for my 5 and 3 year old last year for their first plane ride. My kids LOVE sticker books and they were a big hit. My 5 year old was awesome but my youngest had a epic meltdown before takeoff not to scare you but prepare for anything. He was totally fine when the plane started to taxi and then he fully enjoyed himself and all the toys I brought

 

[Betty Rohrer]

make sure they are prepared to send lovies thru the scanners as they can not be carried thru with child. also have them practice walking thru security without touching sides. if you have 2 adults have one watch for this as a touch of side will lead to a patdown search. if 2 adults send one thru and have other send each child thru to first adult then the second adult. might let younger to hold hand of an adult but that adult then has to go back thru. headphones for any sound item. if taking crayons, try to find ones that are not round as those roll off tray tables

 

[epsmith921]

I practiced sitting on the plane with my toddler. She wasn't so sure about he headphones for the iPad at first but she loved them and I got to pack while she practiced!

For your older child you may want to consider noise cancelling type headphones to help with the noise sensitivities.

My toddler also loved coloring and sticker books. I personally found it was easiest for me to bring her and my stuff in a backpack so I could be hands free in the airport. I also brought a blanket on the plane to help her feel comfortable.

But practicing and letting them know what to expect is a great piece of advice I read on here and I really thought it worked for us as well.

 

[Perditamarie]

Plan for possible ear discomfort...chewing gum, fruit chews and yawning can help during take off and landing. Possible pain relief med if they are really bothered....I know I always, always am.

I also buy drinks after security, and I brought empty sippy cups to pour them in so we wouldn't have to wait for in flight service: there is no danger of a spill in a sippy cup versus a tiny plastic cup. I think drinking could also aid w/ear discomfort at take off and landing.

If their ears hurt, could make the 2nd leg of journey scary for them, so plan for that contingency!

Just wanted to add to give yourself plenty of time to get through security and go to the bathroom, and limit carry ons. One flight I brought so much stuff for the kids, I spent the whole trip pulling stuff out and packing it up....never touched my book and kids had too much, they couldn't settle w/anything!!

Happy planning and hope your flight goes well....that is a long one!

 

[msmama]

My son is almost 6 but I still take a sippy or straw cup with us on the plane. The sucking motion can help with ear pain. If they have pacifiers still, make sure you have them for the same reason (even if it sis usually only a bed time thing).

I usually put a couple of every apps on the iPad (try them out first to make sure they work on airplane mode).

Movies work well for us, too.

We are doing a cross country flight next month and I'm nervous even though my son has flown many times.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

........
I usually put a couple of every apps on the iPad (try them out first to make sure they work on airplane mode).

Excellent point; a lot of iPad games require internet access to work.

 

[Pesky]

I prepare them for what the plane is and how the airport works. Check your local library or bookstore. Also, prepare, prepare, prepare! I warn them it can be loud at first, that we will climb and then we just fly and then we go down. I also prepare their carry-ons with some surprises. We go to the bookstore and they each can pick out 1-2 books (and I usually plant one in as a surprise) and they CANNOT LOOK AT THEM until we are on the plane. I also have a little lunch box for each with things like an apple, bag of cheerios, a small lollipop for take-off and landing or gummie fruits, etc. (I do avoid artificial colors for these -- tends to make DS hyper). Each has a water bottle they fill up after security. I also include a favorite toy or two, favorite blankies and each can bring a stuffed animal. Each has a change of clothes in the bottom and a container of band-aids just in case. I also throw in things like wiki-stix, stickers, coloring book, pad of paper and crayons or coloring pencils. I have in the past included a small new toy but refrain from that now. Maybe you can grab a nice picture book about WDW to include if possible. Might help pass the time by being eager to get there. We have only one iPad in the fam so have some portable DVD players and invested in some KidzGear headphones which are fantastic.

 

[MandiC]

My 7 year old is normally a pretty calm, good kid but on our flights, especially the descent she screamed and cried about her ears. So my recommendation is look for the ear plugs that are supposed to help with flight discomfort and see if they'll work on your kids sizes. My daughter went into a panic, I had gum, tried getting her to swallow or yawn and she was just too freaked out. Traveling with kids you just have to be prepared for anything, I had everything that was 'recommended' for traveling with kids and thought we'd be fine with the gum

 

[BubblyTrip]

I hold back on giving mine his drink until take off. That way I know he will be thirsty and drink when it is important for pressurizing his ears. The first time he filled himself up and didn't want it when it was time.

Also, dole out your treats and toys one at a time.

And talk about how you can't get up whenever you want and walk around on planes. We spend the pre flight time walking or running around the airport getting energy out.

I also do a wipe down everything on our aisle first thing

 

[cleverclovers]

Several years ago I prepared my young nephews for take off ahead of time by telling them to close their eyes. Then to think that they were on Grandpa's boat. (vibration). Think that Daddy is on skis in the back. Grandpa "guns" the boat and the front end goes up (takeoff and acceleration) as they are pushed into the back of their seats. Don't forget to chew your gum and swallow! This seemed to help since they had noises and motions to relate to.

 

[mm1971]

We are leaving in 3 days! And it's now just hitting me.....the plane ride. It will be a first for my kids, 5 and 3. My 5 ( DD ) is noise sensitive. And my 3 year ( DS ) old is scared of up and down kinda rides. So other then a ton of activities, snacks, iPad, Leap pads can you recommend anything that might help ease the tension? It's a 6 hour flight. Were in So. Cal. We have a 1 1/2 lay over in Texas then hop on another plane. I thought this might be good for them to break up the flight and they can get some energy out.

We were in a similar situation on our first flight. First, bring plenty of activities for them to keep busy and take their minds off of it. Second, each one has a good pair of noise reducing headphones(for music) and we bring movies on the iPad that they can watch. That makes it easier to break up the flight time.

I would bring gum or lollipops for the ear blocking and to relieve the pressure changes. Fun snacks can also help. One quick tip. Make sure to bring water to stay hydrated. My DS had a bad experience the last flight home from our vacation and did not gel well. After a day or so at home not feeling well, we brought him to the doctor and he was severely dehydrated and it took a few days to get him back to normal. Drink plenty of fluids! It's easy to forget.

My kids love to sit by the window and see everything go from big to ant sized and also like to see the landing. They loved flying the first time and look forward to it now as part of the trip. Your kid may feel the same or not, but I found that kids are usually more resilient than us adults.

Good luck.

 

[GillianP1301]

Have your kids told you that they are feeling anxious about the flight? If not, and you haven't already, then don't say anything to them that would connect their known fears that you mentioned, to flying. I would definitely talk to them about what to expect, from waiting in lines at the airport, to going through security, to having to sit quietly while on the plane, etc.. I find with my DS6, talking about what to expect always works well for him. His first flight was when he was 4 and he did fantastic. He was so excited about going to WDW, that he would've stood on his head and whistled dixie if I'd asked him to in the airport, he was that cooperative.

Noise cancellation headphones for your DD with noise sensitivities would be a really good idea. I also highly recommend gum/lollipops to help with ear pressure. We had no issues on the flight down, but on the way home my son was in extreme pain from the pressure and we weren't prepared for it since he had done so well the way down.

Oh, and do a bathroom break before the landing seatbelt sign is on. During the flight with the ear issues, while he screamed for the last 20 minutes, he said he needed to pee, literally about 2 minutes before touch down. I asked the flight attendant if we could go and at first she said no, but quickly changed her mind and said you have 30 seconds, go... We ran to the toilet and back to our seat and the wheels touched down about 1/2 minute after we were back in our seat. Now, I always take him to the lav about 20 minutes before landing time.

 

[Stephaniesue]

Our flight is about 2.5 hours long, and we are traveling in the evening time. I plan to bring their kindles with us (great tip above about airplane mode! Thanks! ). My kids will be 11 and 9 when we travel, I am going to bring materials for them to make autograph books on the plane too. I thought they would like to design their own instead of buying them premade.

I think we will also do some envelopes for mouse keeping, decorate one for each day of our stay.

I will also have bribery candy, as a parent we know it's almost always needed! LOL

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

.......

Oh, and do a bathroom break before the landing seatbelt sign is on. During the flight with the ear issues, while he screamed for the last 20 minutes, he said he needed to pee, literally about 2 minutes before touch down. I asked the flight attendant if we could go and at first she said no, but quickly changed her mind and said you have 30 seconds, go... We ran to the toilet and back to our seat and the wheels touched down about 1/2 minute after we were back in our seat. Now, I always take him to the lav about 20 minutes before landing time.

Wow! What airline was that; I want to be sure not to fly them. Do you realize how unsafe that was? I would rather my child peed in his pants than done that.

 

[Scottishbrit]

wow, thanks everyone! I have a ton of crafty type things, books, stickers, a new toy, snacks, and a backup Loli that I really don't want to use but will If I have to! haha. Also we have a few new movies on the ipad and 4 ( 2 on the way and 2 on the way home, 1 each.. ) new games for their leap pads. My husband printed out our boarding tickets tonight and he said that the flights over booked. AND to make it worst when we get on our 2nd flight ( 50 min layover in TX ) they mixed up our seats. Basically when I choose the seats they were 2 front to back but now they have us at 2 sitting together, 1 behind and the other 3 rows back. Ummmm Im pretty sure they cant make a child under 5 sit alone. Im hoping this wont be a problem especially if the flights over booked. Oh and my son is starting to catch a cold...YAY!!!!

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Did you try and straighten out the seat problem? I would call; don't wait until you arrive in TX to try and fix this, unless the airline is unable to do anything now.

Don't worry about your overbooked flight; it is highly unlikely that you will be denied boarding. If they need seats, someone almost always volunteers.