[KMH]

We have taken plenty of trips in the car with Claire, and she has been a great traveler. In January, Claire and I will be flying to visit family and for our embryo transfer, and I'm already overwhelmed thinking of how I'm going to wrangle a toddler, car seat, stroller, carry-on, etc. thru the airport by myself. Any tips from those of you who have done this before?

[Juliebird18]

I have had to do this alone and it stinks. Do you plan to check the carseat? If so, it will help if someone walks you to the ticket booth. They can help you carry things you will check. Then you just have to hang your carry-on on the stroller.

If you will not check the carseat then I recommend something like this. Check the stroller and you can easily travel through the airport. Make sure to bring a sippy cup, lots of toys, a portable dvd player if you don't have the little tvs on the plane. I think the older they are the harder it is to travel with them. You have to constantly keep them entertained. Of course you will bring your own snacks (so you don't pay outrageous airport prices.

Good luck!

[laisydaisymama]

Julie gave great advice If you are going to NEED the stroller while you are on your trip, then take it. if not, just do the car seat caddy (check craigslist, alot of people use them ONCE!) and then you can just do a backpack as a carry on. If you don't have a separate seat for her carseat to go in, you can still use that as your stroller and take it all the way to the gate, you don't have to check your "stroller". Check your bags and then when you go to board, they will take the stroller and put it underneath for you, and have it waiting for you when you get off the plane.


Traveling with kids is always WAY less of a big deal than I think it will be

[amhk]

First of all, don't stress! It is going to be just fine! Julie gave a lot of great advice. You will check the car seat and you can check the stroller (all for free) when you check-in, so you don't have to worry about lugging those through the airport. I would though consider bringing the stroller in the airport in case you get tired of carrying her or she falls asleep and you want to set her down somewhere. But, if your carry-on is heavy with all of the toys and snacks, you can set it in the stroller and carry Claire. I know I prefer having a stroller with me in the airport because I get tired of holding everything, but you may be different.

I admit that they get a little bit more challenging at this age, but if you have lots of snacks, toys, and even a DVD player (if she is interested in movies/shows) then you should have plenty of tools to keep her entertained. I have had many easy flights with my kids and only a few challenging ones. I live on the complete opposite end of the country than my parents, so I have flown a lot and with layovers. I just try to plan well and do whatever I need to do to keep myself and my kids happy and relaxed while traveling.

[KMH]

Thanks, ladies! It helps just to hear that others do this frequently and survive

I bought a ticket for Claire and will take her carseat on the plane. I think since I'm doing it all by myself, it will be easier to have her strapped in...I cannot imagine trying to keep her in my lap the whole time!

LOVE the idea of the TravelMate, Julie. Thank you for the suggestion! I won't need a stroller once I arrive...my sister has an umbrella stroller that I can use, so it will work perfectly!

[laisydaisymama]

my Claire saw me reading this and said "that's Claire! she's a Claire!"

[Trish36]

Just a word on strollers, we went to Florida when Isabelle was almost 2 and unless you are planning on chasing a toddler around the airport or will have her in a carrier strapped onto you, you may want to consider bringing some sort of umbrella stroller at least. There were times when I was thanking heaven that I cut strap her in and push the stroller. Not only did it make things go faster but also saved my sanity. You can have them stash the stroller in a compartment when you are boarding and they'll pull it out for you when you have landed. Yes it may make things a bit harder to push a stroller and carry a carseat with you, but I know that I wouldn't go anywhere without it.
Also check with the airline as to what type of car seat they allow on the plane. My SIL had the flight attendants give her a hard time with the one she had, even though it was airline approved. Every airline is different.
Hope you have a good trip and don't stress out too much.

[mshah]

I only skimmed most of the replies, but having been through a number of airports and long flights with Omair I recommend a stroller - if yours is quite large go with an umbrella one. You can take it to the gate and they take it from you right b4 u board then give it right back after you deplane. I personally wouldnt bring a carseat with me on the plane. Did you purchase a seat for her separately? if not they wont let you. Omair has done just fine in my lap, and managing a carseat on a plane in those narrow aisles while holding her and carryon is just way too much, imo. I'd check it in. Or, see if where you're flying into has a company that rents out baby gear...then you could just rent a carseat and have your family have it for you when you get there, or if they know someone to borrow one from. That's what I've done. Less hassle. She'll be fine on the plane, just have snacks for her and walk her up and down the aisle if she gets bored. I've found other passengers tend to be great and help out and often entertain the LO for you during the flight!

[Celine]

How long is your flight? We have done a 9 hr flight and a 2 hr flight. The 9 hr was a challenge - the 2 hr was pretty good. Both times DH flew w/ us though and Sophia was on my lap.

I think it's a good idea to have a separate seat for the baby so you have your hands free to entertain Claire. I saw a mother bring her carseat- it was a toddler car seat- not infant- slung around her shoulder in something like this http://www.amazon.com/Brica-Seat-Tra...d_sim_sbs_ba_5 She had her hands free- to hold her childs hand and could carry the diaper bag and the car seat all at once. Looked like a big load but she did it. I like Juliebirds' suggestion w/ the rollie thing for the car seat. I have never seen that before. Great idea. You definitely need something to have your hands free or at least one hand.

I recommend bringing some of Claire's favorite foods along. Sophia LOVES the crunchies from Gerber and when there was nothing we could do to calm our baby we gave the crunchies. That made her instantly happy and quiet. Bribery at its finest!

Also remember that it may be overwhelming to fly but it is only temporary and you will get out of the plane in a few hours and everything is behind you. Try to keep that in mind if things don't go according to plan. With baby you always have to expect the unexpected as we all know.

Hope that helped. I hope you have an uneventful flight w/ a calm baby.

When are you flying?

[noworries]

You've gotten great advice from all the other ladies. I always wear Isaac in a carrier in the airport so I have both hands free to carry stuff.
Also, if you don't want to worry about carrying everything through the airport, you may be able to do curbside check-in and check any bags that you are checking right at the curb.

[KMH]

Thank you all for the advice!

I think I will purchase one of those groovy GoGo Kids Travelmate things that turns a carseat into a stroller (thanks, Julie). That way I can put Claire in that, throw a backpack on with our essentials, and then we'll just pray for good weather I will definitely participate in lots of bribery with toys/snacks to keep her quiet, too!

Celine, I appreciate the reminder to keep things in perspective...travel might be a little frustrating, but it is only temporary. If I am pregnant at the end of the trip, it will be TOTALLY worth it

[laisydaisymama]

I really hate the lack of a LIKE button at that comment lol!