Air Travel with 11 Months Old

the best advise I can give u is make sure they r tired so they will sleep most of the time. If u have a portable dvd player so she can watch a movie. little toys to keep her busy..... good luck

I took my first flight with my son when he was about this age. It was interesting to say the least, but we got through it. Try to make the flight around nap time or if you can do a night flight, try to do that. I know that Southwest gives you a bag for your car seat, but I am not sure about any other airlines. Remember the no liquid rule. They made me throw out my apple juice, but I was allowed to keep milk. For a 2 hour flight we took diapers, wipes, change of clothes, milk, books, toys, cheerios, and I think that is it. Do you have a carrier? I got one for this purpose and it really helped out because it gives you two free hands to deal with IDs, boarding passes, money, etc... Just make sure that you have plenty for her to do on the flight and hopefully you have a window seat. Also, I hope that you have a really understanding person in front of you because she will definitely kick the seat during the flight. Oh, I forgot buy some dum dums or those small charms suckers. My son doesn't eat candy on a regular basis, but these kept him quiet when he really starting getting anxious. Hope this helps

You can get a travel bag with wheels for your carseat. I usually put extra diapers in there too.

You can check your stroller at the door of the plane and then it will be right outside the door when you land, just like wheel chairs. Makes it easier to navigate the airport.

Nurse, bottle or binkie during takeoff and landing.

Bring snacks and anything to keep her entertained.

Space saver bags are great since you have to take so many more clothes. They have travel ones that you roll to get the air out.

If possible bring enough food and formula for the day of travel then buy everything else once your there.

Check everything you can. Juggling a baby, stroller and diaper bag in an airport is enough. Don't try to bring a carryon too.

Good Luck!

E.,

I don't know about keeping your baby up all night before the flight! Yikes! I travel all the time with my daughter, since she was 4 months old. Big helpful hints I received are:

Have something for her to suck on during take offs and landings. TSA lets you bring on up to 4 oz of baby formula/milk,can also get milk on board sometimes, or use pre mixed formula in glass jars)

Buy a seat for her if you can, it is much safer for them. But if no, use your baby bijorn to keep your baby safe in your lap if no extra seat is available. Gate check your car seat and stroller, it is easier to get your baby through the airport and to the luggage pick up. If she is in her next car seat, look for the gogobabyz.com pull thing, that you can attach to your carseat. I have been using this like crazy and moms stop me in the airport all the time. Security hand checks it over, for it does not allow your carseat to fit in xray machine, I pull my baby through the airport (I even rocked her to sleep in it when our flight was delayed last week!) and then the whole thing pull sonto the airplane, and you lift it into the seat wheels and all! You need to purchase a seat for your baby though.

Pack an extra outfit, some toys/books they have bever seen, special ones for travling but that are small. Many easy snacks, twice as many meals/snack as you need just incase of delays, and that goes for diapers as well.

I tend to book the travel when she naps. My peditrician suggested trying some Benedryle on her...makes most kids sleepy/but some kids hyper, so try it first at home.
I also give my baby the pacifier/special sleepy stuffed animal when it is her regular time for naps, this helps keep the routine going while you travel.

And a blanket to cover them or to use to shut out light when they are sleeping. My husband suggested, and I have been doing ever since, is having my daughter wear a hat, so as she gets sleepy it helps cut down on the lights and visual distractions.

Put your name on stoller, car seat, everything that is checked.

It will be fine, it is only a two hour flight! Good Luck!
C.

i just took my first trip with my 13 month old son to Florida. Best advice, check to see if the flight is full, if not full, they will usually let you take an extra seat to put the car seat on...they rest easier in the car seat so if you can do it. I bought an eddie bauer sholder strap car seat bag and it worked like a charm. Also, you can check your stroller and car seat at the gate so it's there right when you land...no waiting, BIG PLUS. I brough quiet type toys for my son, ie soft chew book, stuffed animal, etc. The airlines will allow formula and jar food so take advantage. Best of Luck and have a safe journey.

I flew with my son in August, he was 8 months at the time. I did not have a seat for him but since the flight was not full going to Florida, we were able to put his car seat on the extra seat. Coming back the flight was full so we checked the car seat, the airline put the car seat in a back and we got it back when we got our luggage. My son did fine both on in his car seat and on my lap, (I how ever had my husband with to hold him while I went to the bathroom). The flight attendances were very nice and helpful when I need to warm his bottle.

I had posted on Mamasource before I traveled (posted 8/02/06 re Flying with 8 month old) I got lots of great advice, you may want to check it out.

I carried on one bag with stuff for my son. I had bought him a few new toys to keep him busy. When we flew, there were many restrictions on what you could and could not bring on board (no liquids/food). I’d bring some little snacks, you can get juice from the attendances. If your daughter takes, a pacifier be sure to have it. My son does and that was a huge help with take off and landing.

I always travel with our car seat as it is safer for the baby during take-off and landing (and any turbulence) if the baby is in the seat. You can buy bags for car seats at Babies R Us. We traveled with our then two-year-old and three-year-old last March and used car seat bags for their seats. The bags had shoulder straps. This made it much easier to get them through the airport. Also rent one of those carts if you can. Have a fun trip!

Well I just traveled in July with an 11 month old and a 4 yr old. I flew 4 hours so you are actually lucky yours is only 2. My 4 yr old kept himself busy but my daughter who can't sit still for 1 minute was a bit harder to entertain. Some of her favorite books worked for a while, bring lots of snacks, sit by the window if possible so at least looking out the window may be another activity to keep busy. As for the car seat, you can check it in at the gate with your stroller and it doesn't get tossed around as much. It's a bit more to carry but I felt more at ease doing that. And don't board when they tell you people with kids go first. If you can wait till the last possible moment and let your child run or crawl at=round to burn that last minute energy. You'll be suprised at how good they will be on a plane. Take off and landing give a bottle for ear pressure. Good luck and happy and safe traveling.

Hi,

I travel with my baby and the best advice I have for you is get a car seat at your destination, if possible. The conveyer belts and underground system at most airports is probably equivalent to your car seat being in an accident.

I tend to let my baby nap early and then keep her up all night the night before a flight. She is tired and ready to settle down by the time we get to the gate. She usually sleeps all the way through the flight.

Take some formula or plan to nurse on take-off and descent. It will help with the air pressure in your daughter's ears. I gently massage the area behind my baby's ears while nursing and she does not seem too bothered with ear pressure.

I don't dress my baby. I let her stay in a sleeper because shoes fall off so easily and she can walk around as much as possible before boarding.

Take a favorite toy or book or something for fun. I carry small ziplocs of Veggie Chips and Cheerios too. It helps if they have something familiar to them.

I pack all of our items in shipping boxes and Fed Ex them to our destination. That way, I am only carrying essentials for my baby and my ID. It is much easier and I usually don't have to worry about getting pulled over at security because all I have is a baby, carrier and a few toys. (It's not that expensive to Fed Ex two day for what fits in an average size suitcase). Or, if it's a long trip, you can send Parcel Post ahead.

Check the TSA website. There are a bunch of new rules about what is allowable and what isn't. I am flying out tomorrow and plan to just print a copy to take with me since the various agents seem to have different views on what the current "allowables" are. http://www.tsa.gov/

Good luck on your trip!
J.

P.S. Don't forget to get a photo with your baby and the flight attendant(s) and/or Captain for your photo album! ;-)

www.onestepahead.com

I traveled extensively with both my children when they were infants - we lived overseas and came back and forth a couple times a year. In terms of what to pack - since your flight is only 2 hours, it shouldn't be too bad, but there is airport time on the front end. Pack a large diaper bag with at least 4 clean diapers and wipes and plastic bags for the dirty diapers. Take at least one complete change of clothes for baby, and perhaps a clean shirt for you, just in case. I always carried a portable changing pad because the bathrooms in airports are not very clean. If at all possible, you should avoid trying to change the baby in teh airplane bathrooms. It's very tight, but if she poops, it can be done!

Make sure you have an extra lightweight blanket with because planes can be cold.

Also make sure you have enough milk/formula or couple of jars of food if she's eating that. Some airlines can warm stuff up, but don't count on it. Bring enough water for you!

Car seat: We always checked our car seat in a large duffle bag. You don't have to - they'll take them not in a bag, but they might get banged up in the baggage handling. Graco actually sells a large bag esp. made for car seats. We may even still ahve ours if you wanted to buy it second hand. But if not, a large duffle bag might work.

If you have a small travel stroller, it will help in the airport. They'll let you check it at the gate, so you can go all the way to the gate with it. Keep in mind though that they are sometimes a bit rough with them also, but since they get handcarried down to the baggage hold, it's not so bad. If you do check the stroller at the gate, make sure they know you want the stroller at the aircraft when you land - sometimes they send them to baggage claim, which doesn't help very much!

Good luck. B.