I took my son on his first flight this past weekend. It was just a short one (~2 hours) and we stayed in a hotel for two nights. He was an absolute angel. There's a ton of advice on this sub for traveling with babies, and it was all super helpful while I was planning, so wanted to share our experience as well.Even though I researched and planned like crazy, I knew something would go catastrophically wrong. Sure enough, after my husband dropped us off at the airport and I got through the check-in process, I realized my phone had fallen out of my backpack in the car. After my initial panic, I found another family with a stroller and borrowed their phone to call him. He came back and brought me the phone. Crisis averted. Lesson learned: If you need help, find other families with little ones; they are likely to be empathetic. Also, I was so glad we got to the airport two hours before the flight, even though it was just domestic and we had TSA pre-check. We didn't have to worry about missing our flight even with an unexpected 30-minute delay.On the departing flight, I took the stroller through the airport and checked it at the gate. This proved to be more trouble than it was worth IMO. Since we needed a car seat for the weekend, I brought the travel system stroller frame that his car seat clips into rather than a lightweight umbrella stroller. I had to take the baby out of the stroller and juggle him while taking the carrier out and collapsing the stroller frame so they could go through the luggage scanner at security, and then I carried him through the metal detector with me. Also, since it was just me and the kiddo, I had to take the stroller into the restroom with me and wait for an available handicapped stall. On the returning flight, I checked the stroller and car seat at the check-in counter and just used our Ergobaby carrier to carry him through the airport instead. Way easier and I didn't even have to take him out to go through security.I used a regular backpack as our carry-on and brought a few diapers, wipes, a changing mat, a bottle and a couple of pre-measured formula packets just in case he wouldn't nurse, a book, a rattle, a teething toy, a pacifier, a burp cloth, a muslin blanket, a change of clothes for each of us, a big wipeable mat, my kindle, phone, wallet, and headphones. The wipeable mat (Gathre makes the one we have) was awesome. I spread it out on the floor in an out-of-the-way spot at the gate and let the baby crawl around and play a little before the flight. It folds flat and it's super easy to clean up any drool / spit up / whatever. I felt like I had the right amount of stuff, and I had my hands free for much-needed coffee.The other passengers were all very nice and helpful with the baby. He was entertained by the people around us making silly faces at him, and that provided enough of a distraction to keep him occupied during the boarding/ deboarding processes. I did not appreciate the other passengers touching the baby (why does everyone need to grab his hands and feet??), but what can you do.Since we flew Southwest, we didn't have an assigned seat. I opted to carry him in my lap rather than purchasing another ticket for him, and it was fine. I paid the extra $15 for automatic check-in so we could get a good boarding position, but they also offer "family boarding" between groups A and B, so not sure it was totally necessary. On the way there, I chose an aisle seat in the front row because it had extra leg room. While the extra space was nice, it actually turned out to be kind of a pain because I had to store my backpack in the overhead compartment and keep our stuff in my lap. On the return flight I chose an aisle seat towards the front of the plane, and that was perfect. I stashed our backpack under the seat in front of me, and I had access to the aisle in case the baby fussed and needed to walk around, or in case I needed to get to the restroom for a diaper change in a hurry.On the sage advice of other parents, I waited until take-off and then nursed him. He didn't fuss at all and the pressure change didn't seem to bother him. When he was done, I put him back in the carrier (you're not allowed to wear it during take-off and landing), and he went to sleep for most of the rest of the flight.We used a pack-n-play provided by the hotel as a crib. I stuck to our normal bedtime routine at the normal time (accounting for the time zone difference) and he slept more or less as well as he does at home. I brought a travel sound machine (Rohm) since we use one at home.I packed baby food, a spoon, a wipeable bib and a small jar of dish soap. We didn't have a high chair, but I set up some pillows and draped a towel over them as a little place for him to sit while he ate.One of the nights he had a fever and got really upset at bedtime. I had brought a thermometer, Tylenol, and the Nose Frida just in case. Thank goodness, because we ended up needing them.Overall, it was an awesome trip, and I hope to do it again while he is still small enough to cuddle his way through the journey in peace :) Godspeed to all of the other traveling families out there. via /r/Parenting https://ift.tt/2nQsvTb
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