Flying with extremely active toddler - Need tips!

[hlbrink]

We are taking our son on his first flight in May (he turns two in April). I'm getting nervous because he is always on the go and doesn't handle it well when he feels like his movement is restricted in any way. I think we will be fine at WDW as long as we give him ample time to blow off steam away from a stroller / harness but I am getting worried about our flight. I'm afraid we will be one of those families that are asked to get off the plane due to a screaming kid.

Anyone out there have advice on how to temporarily tame a two-year old tiger for 2.5 hrs? (Looking for tips that don't include Benadryl, please )

Thanks!

 

[kim_o]

No Benadryl?...How about some scotch? (j/k)

Make sure you bring his car seat on the plane. At least then he's seated and strapped down (and safe). As far as keeping him happy about it - there's a few options that could work depending on the child. Portable DVD player and watch a movie. Snacks. Coloring books. New toys (buy cheap toys before you go and give them to him on the plane) hold a novelty for awhile.

 

[2Kds2K9]

Ah, Memories. My DS is now 14. His first flight was at 13 months and we were extremely worried about his inability to be active. Our solution. We got to the airport early and walked, and walked, and walked, and walked some more. Kid was pratically begging to go for a nap! Once we got on the plane we gave him some milk and he was out like a light. We had a layover and did the same there. I would also avoid any sugery snacks before the flight.

Good luck!

 

[laughinplace199]

Will he have his own seat on the plane? If he will, I suggest bringing his car seat since he's already used to being strapped into it. Also, try to pick up some small, inexpensive toys to surprise him with during the flight. A couple of small tubs of Play Doh might be fun. I've also heard of people buying window clings and letting the child decorate his window. There are also small magnetic playsets where you can set up the magnets to create different scenes - as long as he won't put the magnets in his mouth. Also, maybe some special treats to snack on will keep him busy.

My youngest will be 18 mos on our April trip so I've started to think of things to keep him busy as well.

Have fun!

 

[Tnkrbelle565]

I second bringing his carseat. It's something he is used to and (hopefully) knows he has to sit in. Definately bring some toys and the DVD. I would like to offer you a ray of hope that in my experience, DD was always better behaved on the plane than I gave her credit for.

 

[juliana_sd]

DVD players are worth their weight in gold. No, diamonds. Have one parent board early with all the stuff. Then the parent with the kid should be pretty much the last ones to board. Lots of snacks, a few sheets of stickers (the acid free ones don't seem to be as sticky so they are easier to get off the tray tables and stuff).

I could go either way on the carseat at that age. My son was so big that his feet were touching the seat in front of him and it was impossible to keep him from kicking. He did well with just the plane seatbelt by age 2.

The hardest age to fly with was about 15 months. It's gotten better every time since then.

BTW Benadryl can backfire anyway. When I give it to my son (for allergies, not for flying) it makes him super tired and cranky but unable to fall asleep.

Good luck!!

 

[hlbrink]

We plan to check his car seat and have rented one of those "CARES" systems for both DS and DD (she's 4 but very small - 34 lbs. and DS is only 23 lbs. - both are below avg. in height as well). The idea of lugging two car seats through the airport in addition to our two kids and our carry-ons was making my head spin. I do agree though with what some of you are saying though about his car seat being more familiar...I'll have to think on that some more.

I like the walking idea to wear him out and I think I will let DH board first with DD and all our stuff.

We are bringing our laptop, so we can play movies on that. I also like the new toys / stickers and play-doh ideas

Thanks - it helps a lot to hear from moms who have "been there"!

p.s. I think I will be the one needing scotch, but will wait until we land

 

[Kae]

We always tried to travel at nap time. My kids were alway so excited about going on a plane that they worked them self crazy on the way to the airport & fell asleep on the plane. ColorWonder stuff is great on planes too. Getting a drink & a snack on the plane was cool for them also.

Kae

 

[all4fun]

What about using the CARES for your four yr old but bringing the car seat for your ds? We have "lugged" a car seat thru the airport numerous times. I really think that the difficulty of the situation is a little blown out of proportion sometimes but that is jmo. There are numerous ways to get a car seat thru the airport w/out feeling like a pack mule. If you'll be gate checking your stroller, you may be able to just let your kids walk, and use the stroller to do the heavy work. Or you can strap the car seat to a luggage dolly, or put it in a bag with backpack straps which can make carrying it easier. Whatever you do, don't carry it by the harness straps (the mfgr usually has guidelines on how to carry the car seat in the manual). I have done it all. I think the easiest way was bagging it. Also, dh and I always would board seperately. I would go first with the car seat, held upside down so I didn't have to hold the whole thing over my head to get it down a narrow aisle. My hands are also smaller and I'm shorter, so I had an easier time working in a small space. DH would board a few minutes later with ds, that way we weren't blocking the aisle while the seat was installed. It's not difficult to strap the seat in with the lapbelt, especially if you recline the airplane seat first. Sometimes for ffing seats it's a good idea to flip the latchplate part of the buckle over once so when you go to lift up to release it, it's not facing the car seat shell.

Just some tips in case you do decide to take the car seat along.

hth

 

[TaraZ]

My DD (age 2)flies with me at least 5 trips a year-- just the two of us. Here is what I do:

-bring her carseat on the plane. sure, it is a slight hassle, but she is safe, cozy, and comfortable in her own chair
-SNACKS!!! never underestimate the power of goldfish, teddy grahams, and cheerios!
-try to schedule flights near naptime. the roar of the engines often puts her to sleep
-DVD player with a few favorite videos (we are a Dora family)
-magnadoodle-- no crayons to lose
-a few books, esp a new one!

Hope that helps!!!

 

[bedillamouse]

Where are you renting the CARES system?? I've seen them and they are interesting but I've not come across where you can rent them.

 

[2thfairy]

These are great tips. We will be flying with a very active almost 2 year old also. I don't think he has sat still more than 2 minutes at any one time. He even protests during long car rides. I'm hoping he naps on the plane but we have a 2 hour drive to the airport that I'm going to have to try to keep him awake during. We have lots of relatives going with us so at least not everyone can hate us when we get off the flight.

 

[TaraZ]

Also forgot to add-- on trips with both DH & me... we trade who sits next to DD. That way she doesn't get too bored and we don't get too frustrated!

 

[tinkandpan]

I would also like to second bringing the carseat rather than the CARES system for the 2 yr old. We had such a horrid time two flights ago when dh decided he didn't want to lug ds2's carseat through the airport- what a mistake. She really need to have the comfort of her seat and requested it the next time we flew. Good luck and def take a dvd player and lollypop to help ears for takeoff

 

[hlbrink]

We rented the CARES from someone on Ebay - she charges $15 plus s/h. I think it will be great for DD but......we will probably still bring DS's car seat on the plane, based on what I am reading. I think it will help keep him calm since he is used to it and he knows that he has to get strapped in.

We are bringing our double stroller to the gate so we will push the car seat and carryons and let the kids walk - they need to get used to walking as we will be at WDW for a week, right?

 

[Minniemouse07]

We use a Samsonite Micromover to pull the car seat through the airport. It works great!

I echo everyone else's sentiments about using a car seat. My dd always fell asleep on her flights (5 round trips before she was 4yo) in her car seat. When we flew in December dd (now 6yo) didn't use a car seat but ds (2yo) did. He is NOT like his sister.

Our flight is just under 3hrs each way and he was WIDE awake for every second. Both there and back, dh and I switched seats halfway through and we both worked REALLY hard at keeping ds happy.

He was fine, it just took some effort.

Another hint... sit each child next to the window in sequential rows...w/ a parent next to each. Put your 2yo BEHIND your 4yo. That way if there is any seat kicking, the 4yo won't complain to the flight attendant!

FWIW, I don't like checking car seats. There is too much chance for them to not only get lost, but if they do arrive with you at your destination...they can be easily damaged. You don't want to arrive in Orlando only to find you have no safe way to transport your kids!

Here is a great resource for info on using car seats on airplanes.

HTH!

 

[TaraZ]

I use the Go Go Kidz travelmate to transport our carseat. It creates a temporary stroller for the airport if needed and is SO easy to put on and take off the seat!

 

[DevilDuckie]

*****CAVEAT! WARNING! WARNING!******

THIS MUST BE CAREFULLY SUPERVISED!


Okay? Getting a little one through take off without drugs can be accomplished with chewing gum. This is NOT done by handing the child a piece of gum and going about your business. 2 year old gum chewing requires the full attention of an adult unless you want to spend an hour de-gumming someone's hair.

The nice lady meant well. She really did. Unfortunately she didn't speak to the mother first and by the time we caught it the kid had chewed it, spit it out and tangled it in my hair. This was when my hair was past my hips. Oy.

 

[taitai]

CAR SEAT. Bring the car seat. We got a great car seat carriers from Right Start that ours slipped into and we were able to carry them (back in the days when we travelled with THREE car seats and TWO umbrella strollers -- single and double) on our backs or like duffle bags. They aren't that hard to carry and are so valuable on the plane....really, do it. Our kids are the types that get hyper and cranky on benadryl so drugging them has never been an option for us. If you want to choose that route, do a couple test runs first to make sure you child reacts the way you want.

In terms of kicking the seats, what has always worked for us was to remove the child's shoes once we board. That makes the kicking less awful if it happens. In addition, we always introduce ourselves to the people directly in front of our kids, tell them that we have warned the guys about inadvertantly kicking the seats and that if it does happen, to please let us know asap so we can try to find a solution to it. I have found that such a preemptive strike really goes a long way towards fostering harmony with our fellow passengers.

Leapsters, sticker books, playdough, pipe cleaners, coloring books, portable dvd players, snacks, new toys (or dvds, games), books, matchbox cars, bring along thomas (not takealong) have all helped us keep the kids occupied.

Finally, we are firmly in the "be the last to board" camp. There is nothing gained by being on first with little kids. My DH usually goes on ahead and installs car seats and whatever else needs to be done and then I let the guys run around and burn off energy until they are about to close the doors and then we hop on. Minimizing the time on the plane is our goal.

Have a fun trip. If you plan for it, it really won't be awful. Just bring that car seat!

Taitai