We are embarking on another family NASPA trip this upcoming weekend! Technically Heath's first family NASPA trip was when he was 6 months in the womb to Chicago. Then last year, at 9 months old he flew with me to Philadelphia where we met up with dad and Opa for a week of hotel fun. This Saturday Heath will come with us to Phoenix, AZ where we will meet up with Opa AND Oma AND Uncle Adam! Seriously, this kid is not going to know what to do with the love about to pour out on him.
So at 21 months now, Heath is much more mobile and no longer nursing or taking a pacifier. It's time to talk strategy! We have a short 1 hour flight to Charlotte at 9am then 2.5 hour break in the airport followed by a 4.5 hour flight into Phoenix which will span lunch and nap time. This will be our longest leg of a flight with Heath yet (thank you east coast living). He did great on the flights this summer we took to Portland in June. But I want to have a few tricks up my sleeve.
What are your go-to travel tips when transporting your tot?
Any new toys you recommend to keep his attention as a surprise gift on the plane?
Would you tempt your child with a pacifier even though he ditched it months ago on his own?
Round 1 of preparing began this weekend when I pulled out all of Heath's clothes for packing. Convenient since he won't need shorts in Blacksburg this week with the snow outside today! I want to take the rest of the week to build strategy for airplane time. Please share your thoughts!
Heath's "first" NASPA in Chicago, camouflaged.
Heath and Opa at NASPA- Philly 2011
When we flew to Illinois over Christmas we bought little toys and books from the dollar bins in Target and doled them out little by little throughout the flight. The other thing that kept her mostly sane was giving her frequent snacks. The kid loves to eat and our normal life rules basically go out the window when we travel (because we don't want anyone to fashion a shiv and go for our jugulars on the plane…it makes for a sad day). We've got a much longer plane ride coming up in May…good luck to us all!
ReplyDeleteA few other thoughts now that I've read your blog post :) I wouldn't mess with the pacifier, but if you are feeling a little frisky I would stash a few Dum Dum lollipops in your bag! Sucking AND sugar, but just enough to keep 'em quiet in a desperate moment. They are my secret weapon for lots of situations, but he has them rarely enough that he never asks for them! Also, during that long layover try to find an empty gate where he can just run around, climb on the chairs, and get his energy out before the next flight! Oh, and you probably already know this, but most airlines will let you check your carseat for free. We bought a cheap carseat bag and just checked it with our luggage, and then I bought a cheapo umbrella stroller at Babies R Us that we checked at the gate (I didn't want my nice BOB stroller getting beat up!)
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