Mary
I'd like some helpful suggestions for flying with my 19 month old daughter.She has traveled with me a lot, about 10 times since she was 6 weeks, and has always been really good, but lately nothing seems to make her settle down. I bring juice, snacks, toys, coloring books, crayons, all her favorite stuff, but she screams and cries (this last time for an hour and a half of a two hour flight!)
I do everything to make she the altitude isn't hurting her ears too bad, like give her her sippy cup to drink on take off and landing.
Does anyone know of something SAFE to give her to make her sleepy? Do doctors prescribe anything for this kind of problem? HELP!
Answer
Hi,
Here's a little last resort idea for after the Dr. said all is well. Of course this age can not have gum in my opinion so try a starbust chew. These things I swear are as close to gum as you can get without it being gum. They need to chew and chew these things to get them soft enough to swallow. Maybe this would help if it is her ears.
Try a small piece of it at home so you know she can handle this type of candy first. You can cut them if you have to so it's just her size. Maybe a candy neckless that she doesn't know you have stashed away will grab her interest also. We bring playdo but, it sounds like you've tried the toy avenue already.
When we traveled with our little once we apologized to everyone as we went down the aisle before the plane even took off so they knew if he started screaming later we were covered. It can be very embarrassing and exhausting to have a little one who doesn't want to be on that plane!
Oh I have another idea. Go buy a cheap portable DVD player. Bring her some movies to watch. They love getting to wear the ear phones and Movies usually hold there interest. Just make sure you have a good battery or battery back up.
Good luck to you and all your fellow passengers
Hi,
Here's a little last resort idea for after the Dr. said all is well. Of course this age can not have gum in my opinion so try a starbust chew. These things I swear are as close to gum as you can get without it being gum. They need to chew and chew these things to get them soft enough to swallow. Maybe this would help if it is her ears.
Try a small piece of it at home so you know she can handle this type of candy first. You can cut them if you have to so it's just her size. Maybe a candy neckless that she doesn't know you have stashed away will grab her interest also. We bring playdo but, it sounds like you've tried the toy avenue already.
When we traveled with our little once we apologized to everyone as we went down the aisle before the plane even took off so they knew if he started screaming later we were covered. It can be very embarrassing and exhausting to have a little one who doesn't want to be on that plane!
Oh I have another idea. Go buy a cheap portable DVD player. Bring her some movies to watch. They love getting to wear the ear phones and Movies usually hold there interest. Just make sure you have a good battery or battery back up.
Good luck to you and all your fellow passengers
Travelling with an infant?
Spark
My wife and I are planning to travel abroad (from Canada) with our infant next year. What places do you recommend and are there websites that are good for this?
Answer
I've been to almost 60 countries on all continents (including Anarctica). I was an international Flight Attendant for 13 years and had most of my career and most of my travel before I had my own children starting at age 35. My husband was also a keen traveller before we met and we basically haven't stopped. I fly with mine about twice a year, between Europe and California since each was about 4 months old. We also have travelled within the U.S. and Europe with our little ones.
Where do I recommend? Depends on the season and the real question is not where but how. Actually, the only places I wouldn't recommend are locations with dodgy sanitation conditions and/or political unrest. Extreme hot or cold aren't ideal either. You have a lot of choice.
I personally, wouldn't want to go somewhere that you can't take advantage of what's on offer because of the little one. For example, you might not want to go skiing (unless there's a baby club and your child is old enough for it) or to amusement parks with tons of rides you enjoy. You'll be stuck with having to watch each other doing these types of things. Don't plan activities which wont accomodate a baby. You can dive and parasail again in a couple of years' time...
Please don't plan anything that needs constant relocating. If you want to see a specific region, park yourselves somewhere central, rent a car and make daytrips from that point. Repacking, checking in, checking out, etc. are a real pain with a baby.
If you go to a beach, stay ON the beach. Little ones are senstive to the sun and it can get messy with the sand. Don't intend on driving to a beach and hanging out there all day. It wont work.
Choose locations which are calm and family oriented. Don't have loud partiers and the thump-thump of a disco keeping your baby from sleeping. In Hawaii, for example, Kauai might be a better choice than Maui or Wakiki (which I don't recommend to anyone!)
Distance is not a problem for your baby (more a strain on your budget though) because small babies actually do very well on long haul flights.
I used to be a snob about All-Inclusive resorts (with that much traveling, I was a Youth Hostel addict!) but was I singing a different tune once I procreated. We moms need a break too. Food is taken care of and you can lounge around as you like or do whatever is offered right there. We were big Club Med fans but they jacked up their prices to the point I don't think it's value for money. We tried a couple of similar companies which were cheaper but we ended up with poor organization and bad food, among other complaints. Go onto Travel Advisor and get the real skinny on which ones are good. Take advantage of off-season deals.
We recently took our first cruise. This was a great way to travel with children because you don't really have to worry about the food and accomodation. You only have to unpack once (well, we stayed a few days in Rome prior). Only NCL, from what I understand, will have a baby club for really small ones but honestly, with an infant, you don't need it. Take him/her with you on shore excursions.
The drawback is that diapered babies and toddlers aren't allowed in the ships' pools. Also be careful of the age as different lines have different rules about the baby's age.
I honestly recommend to new parents to plan a trip before 8-9 months of age. I found that once the baby moves, travel, and everything else, become more complicated. By contrast, I would not advise going before 8 weeks of age. They are able earlier but honestly, the first two months can be tough so go for it and use that as your time frame. You have a nice 6 month window there. It is also much easier to travel if the child is purely breastfed (experience with both here!) and consider delaying solids until after your return, if the timing is right. If the child is bottlefed, get the kind of bottles which use disposable liners and use powdered formula. Traditional bottles are a pain to cart around, especially in the car or airplane.
Just as a general tip to make travel as well as the rest of your life easier with a baby, get a good carrier. By definition, that should be something that goes at least to age 2. Forget Bjorns and Snugglies and get something really comfortable like a sling, wrap, pouch, mei tai or ergo. These work much, much better.
Here are my flying tips if you need them eventually;
http://flyinwithchildren.blogspot.com
Some of my favorite sites;
traveladvisor.com
http://www.cruisecritic.com/cruisestyles/area.cfm?area=23
http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=49
http://www.clubmed.com/cgi-bin/clubmed55/clubmed/welcome.jsp
Have a good trip, wherever you decide!
I've been to almost 60 countries on all continents (including Anarctica). I was an international Flight Attendant for 13 years and had most of my career and most of my travel before I had my own children starting at age 35. My husband was also a keen traveller before we met and we basically haven't stopped. I fly with mine about twice a year, between Europe and California since each was about 4 months old. We also have travelled within the U.S. and Europe with our little ones.
Where do I recommend? Depends on the season and the real question is not where but how. Actually, the only places I wouldn't recommend are locations with dodgy sanitation conditions and/or political unrest. Extreme hot or cold aren't ideal either. You have a lot of choice.
I personally, wouldn't want to go somewhere that you can't take advantage of what's on offer because of the little one. For example, you might not want to go skiing (unless there's a baby club and your child is old enough for it) or to amusement parks with tons of rides you enjoy. You'll be stuck with having to watch each other doing these types of things. Don't plan activities which wont accomodate a baby. You can dive and parasail again in a couple of years' time...
Please don't plan anything that needs constant relocating. If you want to see a specific region, park yourselves somewhere central, rent a car and make daytrips from that point. Repacking, checking in, checking out, etc. are a real pain with a baby.
If you go to a beach, stay ON the beach. Little ones are senstive to the sun and it can get messy with the sand. Don't intend on driving to a beach and hanging out there all day. It wont work.
Choose locations which are calm and family oriented. Don't have loud partiers and the thump-thump of a disco keeping your baby from sleeping. In Hawaii, for example, Kauai might be a better choice than Maui or Wakiki (which I don't recommend to anyone!)
Distance is not a problem for your baby (more a strain on your budget though) because small babies actually do very well on long haul flights.
I used to be a snob about All-Inclusive resorts (with that much traveling, I was a Youth Hostel addict!) but was I singing a different tune once I procreated. We moms need a break too. Food is taken care of and you can lounge around as you like or do whatever is offered right there. We were big Club Med fans but they jacked up their prices to the point I don't think it's value for money. We tried a couple of similar companies which were cheaper but we ended up with poor organization and bad food, among other complaints. Go onto Travel Advisor and get the real skinny on which ones are good. Take advantage of off-season deals.
We recently took our first cruise. This was a great way to travel with children because you don't really have to worry about the food and accomodation. You only have to unpack once (well, we stayed a few days in Rome prior). Only NCL, from what I understand, will have a baby club for really small ones but honestly, with an infant, you don't need it. Take him/her with you on shore excursions.
The drawback is that diapered babies and toddlers aren't allowed in the ships' pools. Also be careful of the age as different lines have different rules about the baby's age.
I honestly recommend to new parents to plan a trip before 8-9 months of age. I found that once the baby moves, travel, and everything else, become more complicated. By contrast, I would not advise going before 8 weeks of age. They are able earlier but honestly, the first two months can be tough so go for it and use that as your time frame. You have a nice 6 month window there. It is also much easier to travel if the child is purely breastfed (experience with both here!) and consider delaying solids until after your return, if the timing is right. If the child is bottlefed, get the kind of bottles which use disposable liners and use powdered formula. Traditional bottles are a pain to cart around, especially in the car or airplane.
Just as a general tip to make travel as well as the rest of your life easier with a baby, get a good carrier. By definition, that should be something that goes at least to age 2. Forget Bjorns and Snugglies and get something really comfortable like a sling, wrap, pouch, mei tai or ergo. These work much, much better.
Here are my flying tips if you need them eventually;
http://flyinwithchildren.blogspot.com
Some of my favorite sites;
traveladvisor.com
http://www.cruisecritic.com/cruisestyles/area.cfm?area=23
http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=49
http://www.clubmed.com/cgi-bin/clubmed55/clubmed/welcome.jsp
Have a good trip, wherever you decide!
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