Flying with a 6 month old

[maxiesmom]

Maybe I worded it incorrectly, but it is still early boarding before the general B group. In my post, I consider A preferred seating because the person pays a premium to board first.

Just keep in mind that sometimes they decide to forgo family boarding if there are a lot of families flying. It is up to the discretion of the gate agents.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Maybe I worded it incorrectly, but it is still early boarding before the general B group. In my post, I consider A preferred seating because the person pays a premium to board first.

Not true. You can get A boarding without paying for a Business Select seat or EBCI.

 

[HCinKC]

In my experience, flying wshen they are babies is, by far, the easiest time. They tend to sleep more, have the bottle and/or the pacifier to assist in the pressure change and dont move around nearly as much as older ones.

Agreed. Babies are typically quite easy. Have a bottle/nurse/paci for landing and take off. Otherwise, baby will likely sleep or be content to watch other people/out the window. For me, it is important to have a toy/paci clip, too. YDS is a major chewer, so I don't want his toy falling on the nasty ground.

IIRC most airlines have changing tables, but you could also have your husband (or whoever is in your party) take a bathroom break and you can change on their seat...or their lap if necessary. I have also changed my kids on my own lap. Not the easiest, esp in a tight seat, but doable if needed.

If you are flying SW, I have found that preboarding for families varies by airport. Sometimes it is with the other early boarding, and sometimes it is after A, always before B though.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

IIRC most airlines have changing tables, but you could also have your husband (or whoever is in your party) take a bathroom break and you can change on their seat...or their lap if necessary. I have also changed my kids on my own lap. Not the easiest, esp in a tight seat, but doable if needed.

.......

Please do not change your baby on an airline seat, even on a pad. That is DISGUSTING. Use the lavatory.

 

[maxiesmom]

IIRC most airlines have changing tables, but you could also have your husband (or whoever is in your party) take a bathroom break and you can change on their seat...or their lap if necessary. I have also changed my kids on my own lap. Not the easiest, esp in a tight seat, but doable if needed.

Please do not ever change a baby in your seat! People eat in those seats! Not to mention how do you clean up, and the smell. Just not a good idea at all, and pretty darned gross.

 

[HCinKC]

Honestly, if that were only the worst thing to happen in those seats...

I would most certainly wipe down the seat afterwards. Good grief people.

I don't know why I bother ever responding in the family threads. People in this forum can be quite judgmental. It gets a little exhausting, and certainly doesn't promote community.

 

[maxiesmom]

Honestly, if that were only the worst thing to happen in those seats...

I would most certainly wipe down the seat afterwards. Good grief people.

I don't know why I bother ever responding in the family threads. People in this forum can be quite judgmental. It gets a little exhausting, and certainly doesn't promote community.

I'm sorry you feel judged, but I can't imagine thinking it is ok to change a dirty diaper inches away from other people. Even if you wipe down the seat, you can't contain the smell. Their are bathrooms on the airplane that should be used. Not the seats by other people.

 

[HCinKC]

I'm sorry you feel judged, but I can't imagine thinking it is ok to change a dirty diaper inches away from other people. Even if you wipe down the seat, you can't contain the smell. Their are bathrooms on the airplane that should be used. Not the seats by other people.

I'm not sure why you are assuming there would be a smell. Other than the plastic smell of a diaper that I can smell in general, my son's wet diapers have no odor. If a wet diaper has developed an odor, it has either been on for too long or your child is dehydrated or another issue. As for a poopy diaper, I would certainly do my best to change that in a restroom. Realistically, that is not always an option. I have been on flights where you were not allowed out of your seat for the entire flight. I most certainly would not let my child sit in poop for several hours. Once a diaper is rolled up and put into a bag, there should be no odor.

As for feeling judged...I constantly see it in the family forums. Not necessarily "attacking" me, but constant quoting of posts with a shocked, disgusted, otherwise flame-inducing response. It is fine to disagree. I often disagree. I, however, do not feel the need to publicly share it, especially when it is not constructive. It is counterproductive to the purpose of these forums. People come here for advice, ideas, varying points of view. They come here assuming a friendly environment. The negative vibe is a turn off. I just find it interesting, and admittedly irritating, that of the forums I visit, I only find this behavior prevalent in the family forum.

 

[maxiesmom]

The only way you can change a diaper when you are not allowed out of your seat is when you have a lap baby. Otherwise the child has to be in their seat too I can't believe a poopy diaper when you are unable to get to the bathroom to change it is a common occurrence, as flights where you are stuck in your seat for a long period of time are not all that common. For the two things to meet has to be fairly rare.

But in your first post you did not say changing in a seat or on your lap should only happen in case of emergency. You stated it is an option if your husband or travel partner are in the restroom. If they can use the restroom, so can the diaper changer. Changing a baby in your seat should at best never happen. At worst happen only in a case of extreme emergency. And not as a matter of course because someone finds is easier, or thinks it is ok in general. It is not.

And I've changed my fair share of diapers. There usually is a smell, but maybe you have gotten used to it.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Honestly, if that were only the worst thing to happen in those seats...

I would most certainly wipe down the seat afterwards. Good grief people.

I don't know why I bother ever responding in the family threads. People in this forum can be quite judgmental. It gets a little exhausting, and certainly doesn't promote community.

I fly frequently (I'm a United 1K) and I haven't seen anything happen in an airline seat more repulsive than changing a baby's diaper. Use the bathroom, unless it's an emergency and the seatbelt light is on.

 

[Bluegrrl]

Seriously guys - sometimes you have to do what you have to do. I usually change in the little bathroom, but there was one case (it was a layover and I had to stay on the airplane) and I was by myself and I had to change on the seat. Had a changing pad, he was only wet, and the airline person helped me out (he was all, "it's ok, I've got cousins at home, I know it's hard!". Just clean and go. The worst was when we were in the bus going to Disneyland. NO toilet, no nothing and baby had the blowout. What could I do? Had to change him. Luckily my mom was with and we could juggle him. It happens folks. But you shouldn't worry about traveling with your little munchkin. Everything will be OK. Also, consider breast feeding on plane since breastfed poop smells "less" (or at least less than formula fed). Noticed a HUGE change when we started feeding real food. Ick.

 

[Crystal824]

Not true. You can get A boarding without paying for a Business Select seat or EBCI.

You can, but it is unlikely at least for the flights we have taken. Most of the time the A boarding passes are taken by the Business Select or those who upgrade to EBCI. We don't upgrade, but we generally check in at 24 hours before our flight. We haven't gotten an A pass since SW has started doing EBCI. It really just depends on if people on your flight are willing to pay for EBCI.

 

[WriterGina]

All babies are different, of course, but after 3 kids, I absolutely agree that the easiest age to fly with (until they're about grade-school age) is infant until about 9 months. They're not mobile yet, and they can usually be soothed with breast, bottle or pacifier. My kids are now old enough (almost 5, 7, and 9) to be reliably entertained by books, tablets, etc. through almost all flights, but when they were toddlers, I found myself wishing that we had done a lot more traveling with the oldest when she was a baby and still the only one!

You've gotten good advice so far--my top flying with baby recs are:

- Be prepared with plenty of extra formula/bottles just in case (TSA has really eased up on this from what I've seen), or be ready to nurse a lot
- Have pacifiers handy if your baby takes them
- If you don't have one of these, Google "baby safe feeder"--if you've started your baby on solids at all, these things are *awesome*. They're like a giant pacifier with a little screw-off net bag at the end, into which you can put pretty much any food you're eating. Baby can gnaw at it to his/her heart's content and get whatever tastes of the food come through the tiny holes. Apples and pears are great in these, but we've put tons of different foods in them.
- Put more diapers than you think you'll need in your carry-on, a full container of wipes, two changes of clothes for baby and at least one for you. The time you don't pack your change of clothes will be the time the baby decides to have explosive diarrhea all over you, five minutes into the flight.\\

Have fun!

 

[brockash]

So far I've flown with DD at 3 months, and 7 months and in May she will be 10 months. I've found taking a few bottles of the liquid was easy enough, they do scan it. I wouldn't pour into bottles before flying mostly because they may then ask to open it, which I dont love.

Ive found the following helpful when flying, board last, I know they let you board first but I board last and give DD the bottle for take off and it decreased the amount of time stuck on the plane, worked well for us! I also brought powdered formula in case we were delayed and ran out of liquid, that stuff is heavy to carry.

If going to Disney consider getting some items shipped to your resort so you don't need to bring a weeks supply!

We are also going in May and can't wait! Have Ana amazing trip!

I agree with the board last. Unless you need space in the overhead or something, definitely board last. - Less time for you and the baby to be in one confined spot. In my experience 1-2 yrs of age has always been the worst, then infant to 1, then 2-3...after that kids know the rules and can generally entertain themselves.