First time flying with 2 children

[eeyoreali]

Hi! This September we'll be heading down with our two children. This will be the first plane ride for them. Our daughter will be 6 by then and our son will be 2 1/2. Will our daughter need a carseat or not? I thought I've read that they don't need one at that age. I was planning on bringing a carseat for our son for safety and to keep him contained, but he does get antsy if strapped in too long. How have people dealt with the antsy child that wants out of the carseat? Any other advice would be great!

 

[msmama]

Neither child NEEDS one for the plane, strictly speaking.

I used a CARES harness for my son at that age (they're rentable on ebay). It straps around the seat and works like a harness instead of just using the lap belt. Especially if you're relying on Disney transport (and therefore don't need a carseat in Fl) it's a great option.

I only used the carseat for my son when he was 18 months old and it was a disaster. He made it about 2 hours before he wanted OUT. Which meant he sat on my lap with a nice empty carseat next to us.

 

[maxiesmom]

Keep in mind that any toy or gizmo that makes noise either needs to be used with headphones, or with the volume off. So if your kids are not comfortable with headphones, work on that now.

As far as the antsy child wanting out of the car seat, that will not be easy. It is hard to tell a child that young that you must stay buckled in, but maybe showing that mommy is all strapped in might help a tiny bit? Maybe save an extra special toy that would work as a distraction if that ends up happening.

 

[Pesky]

I got a couple of books to educate my kids on the airport process, more for DS than DD. One was a book called Airport and I forget the name of the other -- it's Dover book that is also a coloring book. But it got them familiar with the process and DS used to love looking at it when we were taking off.

Distraction will be your friend. I'd use snacks, toys, books, crayons and paper and coloring books, and games and videos. Try to get him used to headphones if you can. Both of mine were willing to wear headphones at a young age and that included my DS who was also antsy and couldn't sit still. I used kidzgear headphones I got off amazon which are comfy. He wouldn't wear them more than 1 hr but that worked just fine, because he'd cycle through the other stuff and then we'd go back to videos -- Elmo or Calliou or Mater's Tall Tales at that age usually.

 

[ABCastillo]

Neither child NEEDS one for the plane, strictly speaking.

I used a CARES harness for my son at that age (they're rentable on ebay). It straps around the seat and works like a harness instead of just using the lap belt. Especially if you're relying on Disney transport (and therefore don't need a carseat in Fl) it's a great option.

I only used the carseat for my son when he was 18 months old and it was a disaster. He made it about 2 hours before he wanted OUT. Which meant he sat on my lap with a nice empty carseat next to us.

I rented a CARES harness on eBay. Worked out really well and super easy to carry on with you.

We read a lot of books during the flight. People don't seem to mind. We also practice watching movies with headphones the week or so before.

 

[kboo]

Yes, to all of the above. No need for a car seat for either one on the plane. Our 3 yr old has been on 30+ flights since she was a newborn, when she started having her own seat we bought the CARES harness and talked about the flight, what was going to happen, the "rules" about seat belts (and noted that the rules are made by others, not us, and if we don't follow the rules we won't get to ride the airplane in the future). Also the only time she is allowed to watch movies on the Ipad is on a flight. We got Tangled, UP., Frozen, TOy story, etc but all she wants to watch is Frozen, over and over and over again. Another thing that is good for the 2.5 year old is Melissa and Doug removable/reusable sticker books. Depending on your child's personality, you may want to tell them there are special treats/things they can do, or let them see the activities/movies, what have you and tell them that they are special for good behavior on the plane. Also, make sure the kids are not tired or hungry before they get on the plane!

I'm also more relaxed about having them strapped in for the whole flight. we make frequent trips to the potty, allow them to get unstrapped if the seat belt sign is off, etc. Also if there's particular snack treats they don't normally get at home, make little goody bags for them to have on the plane.

Oh - and for the 2.5 yo definitely remember to bring their security object or blanket. Even if it's not something they use all the time when at home, they may want to hold it while on the flight.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

.....

I'm also more relaxed about having them strapped in for the whole flight. we make frequent trips to the potty, allow them to get unstrapped if the seat belt sign is off, etc.....

I cannot agree with this. Do you let your child unbuckle his/her seatbelt in the car? When you're in your seat on a plane, you should always have the seat belt fastened, whether or not the seat belt light is on. You never know when you will encounter unexpected turbulence.

 

[PollyannaMom]

Some children's ears are bothered during take off and landing. Gum works great to keep them from "popping", so I would bring some, at least for the six-year-old. Maybe a lollipop to suck on would be better if the little one is not ready for gum?

 

[luvmy2babies]

Once my son was 2.5 he was big enough for the CAREs harness and I rented it through ebay. Since we weren't getting a car once we got to Orlando, this was much better than carrying his car seat (which I had done on 2 previous flights). I travel alone with my two children; so this was a welcome relief. He liked it fine and with the CARES harness he didn't have to be by the window, which meant my daughter could sit there and with the window to gaze out of, she didn't make a peep the entire flight. And since he was in the middle, I could sit on the aisle; so we were all happier. And since his behind is flat to the airplane seat, no worries about him kicking the seat in front of us.

He had some toys I brought along and we had some books. It's only a 1.75 hour flight for us to Orlando. As far as ear pressure we have had the most success with a gummy fruit snack.

Dress comfortably and wear shoes that are easy to remove and get back into so there's not a lot of hassle at the security checkpoint.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

if your child has a blankie or lovie that is important to them remember to have in carry on until you get through TSA screening as it will have to go through scanner can not be carried by child through. have seen many meltdowns because child could not carry lovie through check point plus it disappears inside scanner and can not be seen. just be prepared for this if need be and a meltdowning child will not change it

 

[ariane37]

Some children's ears are bothered during take off and landing. Gum works great to keep them from "popping", so I would bring some, at least for the six-year-old. Maybe a lollipop to suck on would be better if the little one is not ready for gum?

I most definitely second this. DS12 was only bothered by this until about age 5 or so, and he never fussed much - chewing gum during take-off would solve the problem. I don't even know if his ears really bothered him or if he just wanted the gum after we offered it to him the 1st time we flew lol.
However, younger DS's (now 9) ears REALLY bother him. Gum, mints, lollipops - they help, but he still dreads taking off. Good idea to have something on hand for this situation

 

[pixiemama91]

We fly early in the morning usually so we grab some breakfast once we get through security that we can eat while waiting to board the plane. I also put a few movies on the iPad. My DD was fine wearing headphones but if you are unsure you should use them a few times before the trip. I also try and buy a few new coloring books, crayons and a couple small toys that I don't break out until we are on the plane. This way they are more intrigued to play with them, plus its a little surprise for them. My DD never had a problem with her ears, but I would make sure you have a sippy cup with some juice or water in it ready so that he can drink that during take off. It could help with ear pressure.

 

[AlexisMaxMommy]

For those of you that are putting movies on the iPad, how are you doing that? Is it through a particular app? Do you already own digital copies of movies or is this something you can get through iTunes?

I agree with what everyone else has said about not needing car seats. The older child really doesn't need anything, but you could get an additional CARES harness just for piece of mind.

 

[ABCastillo]

For those of you that are putting movies on the iPad, how are you doing that? Is it through a particular app? Do you already own digital copies of movies or is this something you can get through iTunes?

You can download movies from iTunes or apple's built in video app on the iPad.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

You can also digitize movies you already own on dvd; many programs are available for this.

 

[kboo]

(reply to lost in cyberspace) The chances of encountering turbulence so strong that your child "becomes a projectile" are far lower than the chance of something like that happening in a car. But, it's all about your assessment of risk. If you (or the OP) are not comfortable with it, no one is telling you to unbuckle a child if you are uncomfortable with it. But I'm also saying that in my experience flying (30+ flights w DD and many many more without), I have never seen a young child sit in a seat, cares harness or not, and *never* need to get up and move around a bit. thats an unrealistic expectation and sets one up for failure for your first flight.

 

[kboo]

I cannot agree with this. Do you let your child unbuckle his/her seatbelt in the car? When you're in your seat on a plane, you should always have the seat belt fastened, whether or not the seat belt light is on. You never know when you will encounter unexpected turbulence.

Also why this isn't a good analogy: the seat belt sign is never off when my car is on.

 

[DopeyDame]

Your six year old definitely doesn't need anything for the plane.
2.5 is about the age where we stopped using the carseat for our kids, so you have to make some assessments yourself. Do you trust your child not to unbuckle the plane's seatbelt? It's super easy to unbuckle, even for a toddler. The carseat, on the other hand, is a lot harder to undo. So if you think your child will be so antsy as to try and unbuckle the seatbelt himself, you're probably better off sticking with the carseat. Will your child intentionally slip through and wiggle out of the airplane buckle? Again, if that's a real risk then stick with the carseat. The other benefit of the carseat is that the child knows the drill - get in the seat, get buckled, sit still.

As for staying in it the whole flight... our rule has always been the only reason to get out is to go to the bathroom. No getting out to walk around or just to play. (The major exception being the 14 hour flight from Korea to DC) It's partly for safety, and party because my kids seem to do better with "all or nothing" rules. The one time we let my son out to go for a walk, the jig was up and he was really hard to handle the rest of the flight. When we just put forth the flat rule that you don't get up, period, they seem fine.

 

[DopeyDame]

Oh, and if you bring an ipad/dvd player - make sure you bring headphones that the kids have used before and are very comfortable with. Last flight we forgot my son's over-the-ear headphones. I tried to have him use my regular ear buds and he was miserable and they kept falling out. I ended up playing a looooooot of tic tac toe on that flight.

 

[maxiesmom]

Also why this isn't a good analogy: the seat belt sign is never off when my car is on.

Even when the seat belt sign does go off, the captain will tell you it is smart to keep it on. Rough air can come out of nowhere.