Traveling with Preschoolers

This is spring break week for us in Texas and summer is around the corner. It is a time when we are all dreaming about taking a little trip. My family loves to travel and we have tried to fit it into the budget as often as possible. I do not feel that having children has stopped us from traveling, it just makes travel a little different and in many ways more rewarding.

It is not all roses though when the kids start to cry and you feel like a public spectacle. Or (true story), you feel overprotective when you are traveling alone to see family, so you feel the need to haul all three little kids to the tiny airplane bathroom with you when you need to go. With the many trips that my family has taken over the years with kids, here are a few of the things I learned about flying with little ones:

1. You can do anything for______ hours (fill in the blank for the amount time you are traveling). Repeat this over and over to yourself when you run into difficulties. This one was a good one for me to keep telling myself as my 18 month old was crying and my preschooler needed extra attention on the long flight for our move to Italy. I was exhausted, but I knew it wouldn’t last forever.
2. Don’t worry about what other people are thinking about you or your children. Take all that pressure off of yourself. You should still do your best to help your child or children be happy and well behaved, but you just cannot control what people think. Even if your children behave perfectly, there are just grumpy people who are looking to be upset no matter what. Also, every person on board the flight was a kid once too. Their life will not be ruined if a child has a difficult flight. It really is no big deal.
3. Do your best to make sure your kid’s ears are clear. It is pretty painful as an adult to have your ears not adjust to the pressure, so for a child who doesn’t understand what is happening, it is simply unbearable. On my last flight, I had just slight stuffiness. This made my ears not clear well. One of my ears became so painful that I cried a little. I couldn’t help myself! So if your child is stuffy, check with your doctor to see if a decongestant is appropriate. This will save a lot of tears.
4. Pack novel things in a carry-on bag, that you put under the sit in front of you, that you can have easy access to throughout the flight. I always packed a new sticker coloring book that they had never seen before. The kind where all the stickers are in the middle and you have to find where the sticker goes on the pages in a type of seek and find. Other small things could be toys you put away a few weeks before the trip so that they feel novel again.
5. Plan to give your child undivided attention on the flight. Keep asking yourself, how can I make this fun? They may not need your undivided attention, but it will save you from feeling frustrated if they do. Plan to do any activity you brought for them with them. They will love the time and undivided attention you are giving them.
6. Pack snacks: this one is an obvious one, but still needs to be said. A hungry child is a grumpy child. Pack some for yourself too because for me, a hungry mom is also a grumpy mom. One thing I love for a snack: a large lollipop. I am not a candy advocate, but when I traveled with my little ones, I made an exception for lollipops like these:     
                                                                                                        
   
   I bought one for the way there and one for the way home. They are big so they don’t get bitten and they take a long time to eat, so it kept them busy for awhile.  If you do decide to do this make sure you pack wet wipes and follow number 7 below. Try to let them have it around take off or landing. It will keep them swallowing and help their ears pop.
7. Pack a couple of changes of clothes. Pack each full change of clothes in a gallon ziplock baggie so that they stay clean until you need them and then you can put the dirty clothes right into the baggie when you are done.
8. Always bring a jacket for them on the plane even in the dead of summer. The plane is kept too cold for most children to be comfortable.

If you happen to have flight plans coming up before the summer ends, I wish you a fun and safe trip! If you have a road trip instead, look for our upcoming blog for additional ideas.

Good luck and happy travels!

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