We made it a point to travel some (no where near as much as we expected, or traveled before becoming parents) with Lorelai last year as an infant....and now we are preparing for our Spring travel plans with a true "toddler". This has brought on a new set of challenges. We have our first trip next week with our 14 (almost 15) month old toddler. Here are a few ways we are preparing for our upcoming flight/trip.
The Convertible Carseat. First, we swore by the carseat caddy during the first year. Amazing, loved it....best thing we had for traveling with an infant. Here is why, the caddy is designed for a lightweight stroller for the infant carseat. It doesn't function as a stroller without the carseat though. So now that Lorelai is out of the infant carseat, we needed to bring her big, hefty, impractical car seat with us. That meant checking the carseat with our luggage and lugging it around with us. We read reviews, blog posts and googled a lot. Here is what we decided. We purchased an inexpensive "travel" car seat for Lorelai. This is lighter weight, no where near as convertible as the ones we use now (which we will convert to a booster one day). However, this will get us through the next couple years. We found a minnie mouse themed one which was cheaper than other designs (due to popularity) for $45. We believe it will be worth it not to have to remove/reinstall our good (and expensive) car seats, and the likelihood of damage by airlines to car seats is possible, and the airline requires you to waive liability when you check it (like actually sign a special waiver for this purpose). It will be worth it to us not to deal with that. It is still a car seat we feel very safe putting our daughter in. We also invested in a car seat bag (used online) to keep all the straps inside when it is checked, and gives us an easy way to carry it around the airport.
Find Your Stroller. We have a used umbrella stroller that we love and use on a regular basis. It folds up nicely, has pockets for us, and we have used in airports in the past. We don't need a hefty stroller for traveling, but this is a good combination between a cheap umbrella stroller and our hefty chicco one. Buy these things USED....I would never have spent the $150 this would have been new, but for $20...that is worth it to me.
Find Your Seat. We almost always fly Southwest. Families board between group A and B, so we have yet to have an instance where we couldn't all sit together. On flights we sit near the back, as families tend to do that. We are planning ahead to aim for an aisle seat so we can walk the aisles to keep her busy.
Try to get an Empty Seat. Southwest allows you to ask at the gate if there is an empty seat, and will give the seat to lap children if they have extra. You won't have to pay for it this way, but it also isn't always going to happen. Just remember to ask at the check-in desk, and then again at the gate if the check-in desk said no. This has only worked once for us thus far.
Things to do: We don't let Lorelai watch TV usually (except maybe have it on in the background of play time every now and again), but you better believe we are going to be loading up the ipad, phones etc. with every movie ever. We have been blessed with a daughter who LOVES books. We will be packing a few of those, but also know that the emergency safety pamphlet will look like a child's book to her...so that can double as something fun to do. Stickers are lightweight and entertaining for Lorelai during church, so we plan to bring those as well as some crayons.
Food. We flew with our niece last summer and found that a bag of spaghetti with fruit makes for both a toy and a meal. Make food entertaining on a flight! Play games of hide/seek with food to make it more entertaining. Try to stay away from messy food that stains. Granola bars are snacks that tend to hold up well for us when we are on the go. We've found that TSA is often more laid back with babies, so try to get a few of those liquids in that normally wouldn't be allowed (just be okay throwing them out if needed). Or stop by a stand to grab a few basics before the flight, like milk and a banana or juice.
Book around nap/bed time. If possible, it can make everyone (like the entire airplane worth of people) happier if you can book around nap times. We fly a lot more during the day, and a lot less at night now that we have a toddler...when we can help it at least. Unlike when we were traveling when Lorelai was an infant and slept constantly or fell asleep nursing....Lorelai never falls asleep on us, so we know she won't be napping on a flight, no matter how hard we try.
Bust out the baby carrier. Lorelai weighs a good 20+ pounds, so I don't particularly like to carry her anymore. However, we do in an airport! You can go through security with a child attached to you in a carrier, which is awesome. Now that Lorelai can run, having her attached to me is ideal. If both Kevin and I are flying, we still bring the stroller. If we are 1:1 parent to child, we opt for just the carrier and check the stroller at the check-in desk before we even go through security.
Don't forget the passport/ID. If your child is a lap child, you still need proof of their age. Immunization records or a passport works for this. We always keep a photo on our phones too in case we forget the paper.
Here is to hoping for another easy flight! We are excited to get back to traveling with her!
The Convertible Carseat. First, we swore by the carseat caddy during the first year. Amazing, loved it....best thing we had for traveling with an infant. Here is why, the caddy is designed for a lightweight stroller for the infant carseat. It doesn't function as a stroller without the carseat though. So now that Lorelai is out of the infant carseat, we needed to bring her big, hefty, impractical car seat with us. That meant checking the carseat with our luggage and lugging it around with us. We read reviews, blog posts and googled a lot. Here is what we decided. We purchased an inexpensive "travel" car seat for Lorelai. This is lighter weight, no where near as convertible as the ones we use now (which we will convert to a booster one day). However, this will get us through the next couple years. We found a minnie mouse themed one which was cheaper than other designs (due to popularity) for $45. We believe it will be worth it not to have to remove/reinstall our good (and expensive) car seats, and the likelihood of damage by airlines to car seats is possible, and the airline requires you to waive liability when you check it (like actually sign a special waiver for this purpose). It will be worth it to us not to deal with that. It is still a car seat we feel very safe putting our daughter in. We also invested in a car seat bag (used online) to keep all the straps inside when it is checked, and gives us an easy way to carry it around the airport.
Find Your Stroller. We have a used umbrella stroller that we love and use on a regular basis. It folds up nicely, has pockets for us, and we have used in airports in the past. We don't need a hefty stroller for traveling, but this is a good combination between a cheap umbrella stroller and our hefty chicco one. Buy these things USED....I would never have spent the $150 this would have been new, but for $20...that is worth it to me.
Find Your Seat. We almost always fly Southwest. Families board between group A and B, so we have yet to have an instance where we couldn't all sit together. On flights we sit near the back, as families tend to do that. We are planning ahead to aim for an aisle seat so we can walk the aisles to keep her busy.
Try to get an Empty Seat. Southwest allows you to ask at the gate if there is an empty seat, and will give the seat to lap children if they have extra. You won't have to pay for it this way, but it also isn't always going to happen. Just remember to ask at the check-in desk, and then again at the gate if the check-in desk said no. This has only worked once for us thus far.
Things to do: We don't let Lorelai watch TV usually (except maybe have it on in the background of play time every now and again), but you better believe we are going to be loading up the ipad, phones etc. with every movie ever. We have been blessed with a daughter who LOVES books. We will be packing a few of those, but also know that the emergency safety pamphlet will look like a child's book to her...so that can double as something fun to do. Stickers are lightweight and entertaining for Lorelai during church, so we plan to bring those as well as some crayons.
Food. We flew with our niece last summer and found that a bag of spaghetti with fruit makes for both a toy and a meal. Make food entertaining on a flight! Play games of hide/seek with food to make it more entertaining. Try to stay away from messy food that stains. Granola bars are snacks that tend to hold up well for us when we are on the go. We've found that TSA is often more laid back with babies, so try to get a few of those liquids in that normally wouldn't be allowed (just be okay throwing them out if needed). Or stop by a stand to grab a few basics before the flight, like milk and a banana or juice.
Book around nap/bed time. If possible, it can make everyone (like the entire airplane worth of people) happier if you can book around nap times. We fly a lot more during the day, and a lot less at night now that we have a toddler...when we can help it at least. Unlike when we were traveling when Lorelai was an infant and slept constantly or fell asleep nursing....Lorelai never falls asleep on us, so we know she won't be napping on a flight, no matter how hard we try.
Bust out the baby carrier. Lorelai weighs a good 20+ pounds, so I don't particularly like to carry her anymore. However, we do in an airport! You can go through security with a child attached to you in a carrier, which is awesome. Now that Lorelai can run, having her attached to me is ideal. If both Kevin and I are flying, we still bring the stroller. If we are 1:1 parent to child, we opt for just the carrier and check the stroller at the check-in desk before we even go through security.
Don't forget the passport/ID. If your child is a lap child, you still need proof of their age. Immunization records or a passport works for this. We always keep a photo on our phones too in case we forget the paper.
Here is to hoping for another easy flight! We are excited to get back to traveling with her!
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