Keeping your baby comfortable and entertained or your toddler busy during you travel hours, is probably the best thing you can do! Here’s little ideas & tips that I’ve gathered along our trips hoping they will be helpful to you. Oliver has been on a lot of flights, while every flight with him is a brand new experience, some things are a win!
If you’re stressed about your travel coming up, here’s a couple things that can help:
- Your baby feels all of your emotions
- Every parents are stressed out at some level traveling with kids, you’re not the only one. There’s always someone who can relate to you.
- Focus on your child staying busy, offer activities and be ready to stay busy with them. If you’re planning on wanting to watch a movie or read a book, you may get frustrated if you can’t.
- Stay calm, redirect tantrums or if they get really fussy, refuse to sleep, just know that it’s temporary and you’ll get through it! It’s better to follow their lead than to force them and spend an hour fighting over a nap. read up on my post about tantrums, click here.
- Don’t use up all your “resources” aka activities at once to keep your Little one busy! one activity at a time, keep the ones that you know he’ll be really into for when you’ll need it the most! Mary Poppins style!
- Pack 2 to 1 day before, so the day you’re traveling is truly a game changer. I’ve only recently started doing that and looking back I didn’t realize how much it took away from my patience, energy and time to just focus on the travel itself and Oliver.
- Flights during nap time for babies are easier and flights at Night tend to be a little harder because of the “witching hour.” It creates too much stimulation. Toddlers closer to two years old seem to be more adaptable but nap time flights are still the best bet!
- If your flight is in the afternoon, get a little walk outside with your LO to get some fresh air, so they’re not too antsy in the plane!
- BABY ACTIVITIES
Babies are curious about EVERYTHING. Keeping them busy and content involves milk and anything with shapes, colors and noise. Bring their favorite toy, stuffed animal or blanket. Rattles, books, fun toys that will catch their attention.
I would dress Oliver in a onesie so he’s comfortable and his little feet aren’t touching everything. At least, you don’t worry about losing socks…
Following your baby’s cues and keeping them on the same schedule can make your life easier. If your baby doesn’t want to sleep at all…focus on them being comfortable. Sometimes putting them in your carrier and rocking them is all they need. Walking up and down holding them, singing a song or bottle-feed /breastfeed, can calm them. If they’re upset, don’t worry about what people think…They have the right to express themselves and if you’re doing what you can, that’s all that matters,
FUN TIP:
- Take a string, put toys through the string and attach it around the tray table so they don’t drop anything and it’s super fun for them!
- Ask your flight attendant for a cup or a little bag of chips, they’ll love playing with it, the bag chips on its own is like a world of fun.
- If they’re eating puree of finger food, prepare it beforehand. If they eat finger foods but won’t eat as well when you give it to them, (some babies are at a stage where they don’t want your help!) you can get these sticky one-use placemats and have them get busy eating on the tray table.
2. TODDLER ACTIVITIES
Toddlers have so much energy and they need activities to stay focused. They also need your attention to stay happy. I bring little pouches of activities, things to draw (magic crayons are pretty convenient), snacks on snacks, prepared food, books, blanket, favorite toys and iPad.
I have my diaper bag, Oliver’s suitcase and his activity bag and my suitcase of course but that’s just details at this point in my life! ha!
Oliver is not really crazy about his iPad so we only hand it to him when we run out of activities that satisfies him and we are need a break ourselves! nothing wrong with that. He usually keeps his same schedule in the plane but definitely will fight his nap so it’s a matter of paying attention to his cues and riding out the few minutes of screams…or more…I take deep breaths, take in people starring at me wishing them the best and moving on to the next phase that Oliver will take me.
If he wants to get up and walk when it’s not bumpy, let’s do it but I try to keep him as busy as possible sitting down.
In my activity pouches I bring: magnets, cars, smoochy toys, stickers, crayons and drawing booklet. I also put on a little muppet show with his favorite stuffed animal (he will crack up so hard) and I offer him snacks, food or his water as often as I can especially during a transition of an activity.
FUN TIP: –
- Metal lunch box and magnets are fun. You can put your toys inside and they can use the magnets all over it. Get letters as magnet or shapes for an educational 10 minutes.
- Attach your crayons to strings and pass it through a notebook wire so they don’t drop!
- fishing toy games can be real fun and keep them busy for a while.
Here’s posts that might help you with more details on traveling, click Here for all my travel posts. Check out my Storefront for my must-haves, Click here.
