Traveling with Toddlers

I have gotten a few requests to write a blog on travelling with kids, and since Joe and I have only gone on one vacation with the kids (to Myrtle Beach last year), I'm not much of an expert on the subject--however, my sister-in-law Marea is. She is married to Joe's brother Tom, and together they have 3 boys--7 years old, 4 years old, and 2 years old. They have lived and traveled all over the world--ranging from Kuwait, Egypt, Germany, Rome, Japan, Tokyo, and Bangkok. Marea has done a ton of travelling with the boys by herself, and I have to say that she is a trooper: I was freaking out about taking Maverick and Madison to South Carolina last year, with Joe there to help me, on a 5-ish hour flight. The flights that Marea takes alone with the boys range anywhere from a few hours when they go on vacation, to about 17 hours when they come back to the states. I couldn't even imagine. Kudos to you, Marea!

I asked her for some travelling tips and advise, and she sent me back a crazy long email packed with tons of great ideas to help your travelling-with-toddler experience.

1. If you have a baby, now is the time to fly. If you're worried about travelling with a baby, it'll only get worse as they get older. When they're that young, they sleep most of the time anyways. Besides a few diaper changes and feedings, the flight should be pretty uneventful. Be sure to feed during takeoffs and landings to help with the elevation changes.

2. Must-have carry-ons: 

• A sense of humor and patience. Nothing ever goes exactly as planned, so just go with the flow of things.
• A smile. You never know what kind of help you may need from the flight attendants (ie., washing out baby bottles with hot water and soap). A smile helps with the check-in staff because you never know what kind of seat they can assign you and your kids (god forbid, 5 rows apart!). 
• A "fully loaded" iPad or iPhone with kid-friendly games and movies on it (with headphones, of course!)
• LOTS of snacks. Gummy fruit snacks in cute character themes are always a hit. 
• NEW small toys. Some great toy ideas are: hot wheel cars, small figurines (age appropriate, of course), puzzles (put it in a ziploc bag with a cut out of the box for a picture reference so that it doesn't take up much room), a coloring book with fresh crayons, a fresh can of play-doh with cookie cutters, and kids books (the color wonder markers, books, and paints are amazing--no mess!). 
• Extra clothes. Even if your child is potty trained, accidents happen. Drinks could spill, they could have an accident--its better to just prepare for the unknown. 
• If you're travelling with a formula-fed baby, those Enfamil 4oz packets are amazing for airplanes--just be sure to bring at least two extra baby bottles and burp cloths. 
• Extra diapers, wipes, underwear, and/or night time pull-ups. 
• A baby sling (however, nothing with buckles: the flight attendants will make you take it off during takeoff and landing). 

Use these tips to avoid starting or ending your vacation on this note! 

3. What can you check? As much as possible. From Marea: "After taking Devin (her oldest) across the country so many times as a baby, I learned that most of the stuff I carried on I never even touched. If your child is old enough for a backpack or their own luggage--then let them carry it! Pulling their own suitcase is half the fun!" 

4. Easiest way to get through security check points: Security checkpoints are never easy--they're always invasive.. But here's a few tips to make it go smoother:

• Wear easy slip-off shoes
• Have all of the pockets emptied in the stroller so that its easy to fold down
• When it comes to liquids, have everything emptied out and ready for inspection.

5. How to entertain a toddler on a long flight: Along with all of the new toys listed above, here are a few tips for keeping your squirmy toddler quiet and happy: 

• For every 30 minutes on the flight, your child gets a new toy to play with (kids attention spans are so short, it helps to give them something new every 'x-amount of time' to keep them from being bored and therefore raising a fuss on the flight).
• Limit the amount of walking around they can do on the flight until absolutely necessary (once they know they are allowed to walk around, they will want to keep doing it). This should be a final desperate act to keep your toddler from throwing a fit. 
• If you paid for their own seat on the airplane, bring their car seat on board and buckle it onto their seat. It will save a lot of headaches and keep your child from wiggling and squirming around. 

We'll call this 'Part 1' because Marea said she has a ton more advise to give on the subject. Check back later for 'Part 2!'