Traveling Tales

I have been thinking that I should start a "how to travel with your baby" post. She is fourteen months and just completed her seventh flight (NY to FL, approximately two hours). She first traveled at three months and it was easy! I nursed her up, she slept and I nursed her while landing. No fuss. At seven months we traveled and not much had changed. She was awake for some of the flight, but no real issues. Around her first birthday, I flew with her alone. I brought a bag of things to do that occupied her the entire flight. She slept for twenty minutes or until they started the beverage service and passengers started to move about the cabin. The last trip was at fourteen months and she slept on the way, but the return flight was difficult and of course I did the trip alone.
I left at 3pm, traveled by car services 30 minutes to the airport, 45 minutes to check-in and clear security, BUT then the flight was delayed an hour and then we sat on the runway for 90 minutes. Oh what fun. Here are some survival tips I have learned:

• Always have food & drink and plan for more rather than less
• Nurse/bottle feed/feed on the way up and down
• Change diaper prior to boarding the plane
• Have a bag of toys. I always bought two or three small new items that she has never seen before
• If possible, have someone fly with you
• Try to book flights close to baby's nap time. Don't keep them up all day if they are used to having a nap this just creates a cranky, overtired child. Stick to your schedule.
• I used travel system at three & seven months, baby carrier when I flew with her alone at one and an umbrella stroller at fourteen months
• Don't carry anything unnecessary on the flight. You will be juggling enough especially if you are traveling alone. A bag pack worked best for me.
• Dress baby in layers you never know what the temperature will be in the airport & on the plane
• Remember to eat, drink and dress comfortably - you never know what could happen!