Air travel with a 2 yr. old - any tips? hints? how-to's?

[soup]

My son will be flying from FL to PA to visit friends later this month and his 2 year old daughter will be traveling with him. It's the munchkin's first time flying and we're not sure how she's going to handle it.

If anyone has any advice, it'd be greatly appreciated.

[MorningGlow]

1. Snacks, toys, snacks, surprise gifts, snacks

That's my advice!
:rofl:

Traveled with MG Jr. to California when he was 3, and the things that saved the day were food, favorite toys (he only likes cars, so we loaded up on the Matchbox faves), a few new Matchbox cars as surprises, and a DVD player with some of his favorite vids. Basically just keep 'em dazzled with stuff to do and eat the entire time.

Kids vary as to whether they freak out at the sensations of flying, but talking about it as an exciting adventure well ahead of time, and bringing it up often, helps get them ready. Jr. never had a problem with ears plugging up or anything, so I don't know about that aspect of it.

[soup]

4. Thanks, MorningGlow

Have a feeling it's either going to go very well...
or
they'll be the next "child having meltdown removed from plane" story.

A couple of her favorite movies is a good idea. Toy Story 1 & 2 and Curious George ought to help get her through.

Bonus! - gramma gets to go 10 days without watching them.

[CoffeeCat]

2. We just flew with our girls...

They're six and seven, but I think I can help.

First off, if the parents have any fears or trepidation about flying, throw
them right out the window. When you talk about the flight, you must act
like it is going to be the most amazing, fun adventure that anyone in the
universe has experienced, EVER. Talk up how fun it will be, and how you
get your own seat and a tray table that comes out of the chair in front of
you! Oh, and a flight attendant comes around and gives you apple juice
or Sprite!

I'm afraid of flying, so I talked up how exciting it was and how we
were going so fast just before take off (I was nearly heaving from
fear). Encourage them to look out the window (even if you feel like
hurling). If you hear a loud noise, like the landing gear or the engine--
say, "Wasn't that exciting! You can hear the engine roaring!" or "Isn't
that neat how you can hear the wheels coming down!". Kids get scared
by unfamiliar, loud noises, but if you can define those noises as
amazing mechanical feats, it will make it fun.

Also, I took plenty of snacks for them. I also brought coloring books,
colors, books. I also had "surprises". I told them they would be
getting a surprise after we had taken off. It gave them something
to look forward to, and gave them something else to think about.
I gave them Polly Pockets for one surprise and a package of M & Ms for
the other.

You also might want to try giving them a special "flying buddy". Give
him a Beanie Baby or other stuffed animal, that is his designated
flying pal. Explain to him that his new friend has never been on a plane
and needs someone to show him around the plane and be with him during
his first flying experience.

One thing to prepare for...the air pressure makes our ears feel stuffed
up and it may not bother us. It may bother children. I"d have plenty
of sugarless gum on hand and encourage him to chew it, to lessen that
sensation. Also, my oldest had a cold the day before we flew. Her
ears were more sensitive and she said that they hurt as we landed.
I'd have some liquid Tylenol on hand if that happens--for sure. The flight
attendant told us that many children experience ear pain on flights,
especially if they've had recent colds.

Best of luck to you. My girls are pretty spirited and one of them
scares very easily. However, they both did very well and were not
scared at all.

Hope that helps.

[soup]

5. Wow. Thank you, TwoSparkles!

Her daddy loves to fly :crazy: - no problem there. She'll be getting good vibes from him, no doubt.

The noise factor is probably the most worry-making. She spent the 4th of July in my arms just sobbing and shaking - totally inconsolable. A loud truck or motorcycle passing by will send her running for comfort.

Your "Wasn't that exciting! You can hear the engine roaring!" or "Isn't that neat how you can hear the wheels coming down!" was too funny... and I'm just glad I'm not the one trying to pretend everything is o.k. (I'm not comfortable flying at all.)

She has a window seat both ways, same placement on the planes on top of that. Hoping it will give her an "Oh, I know how to do this!" feeling. (just hoping it's a good feeling, not an "Oh, shitake mushrooms... I remember this!" panic.

The travel buddy is a great idea. Was planning on packing 'a baby' and her naptime blanket to comfort her. Your take on it gives it a brilliant twist - She becomes the protector.

Thanks again for your voice of experience.

[Sabriel]

3. The rule is "One new toy/activity per five minutes of travel."

Seriously. We bombarded our 2 y.o. with things to do that were small and easy to pack, along with non-salty snacks. She was great, even though we had to sit at the gate at O'Hare for almost an hour.

Try to find new toys she hasn't seen before, ever. We're not big toy/treat buyers in general, but this was one time where we chose consumerism over stress. We also read a LOT of books about flying before we left.

She really enjoyed it, although the people near her probably didn't appreciate her enthusiastic comments:

"We are tipping over!" (banking)

"The plane is going down!" (dropping altitude)

(edit to add the bibliotherapy thing)

[soup]

6. Thank you, Sabriel,

for another "voice of experience".

Books on flying! We can do that. I'll take any excuse to go to the book store - and this is a good one :)

Glad you had a good experience (and shared it).

"We are tipping over!" (banking)

"The plane is going down!" (dropping altitude)

:rofl: I can just imagine it...

--

Her handling the weather in Pennsylvania vs. here in Florida ought to be interesting...

Here she is when it was in the fifties for a couple days about a month ago. (bundled up in t-shirt, sweater, jacket, jeans, socks and shoes, scarf and hat) she lasted all of about 5 minutes outside. :

"I'm too cold, gramma. Let's go in."

[Sabriel]

7. Here are some books I found on air travel

Love those bright, alert eyes! You can tell they're just taking in every detail around and processing them.

Lisa's Airplane Trip (Anne Gutman)

Going on a plane (Anne Civardi)

Airport (Byron Barton)

Miss Mouse Takes Off (Jan Ormerod)


I also highly recommend Little Red Plane to buy, because it's a popup/interactive book that was great for using on the trip. OTOH, we had to listen to her say, "Chocks away!!!" every 10 seconds because of it, too....

http://www.amazon.com/Little-Red-Plane-Ken-Wilson-Max/dp/0590430084/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1197646356&sr=1-2

[soup]

8. Amazon One Click Shopping...

Very dangerous.

Richard Scarry's A Day at the Airport
Going on a Plane
The Noisy Airplane Ride
and
Little Red Plane

are on their way.
2nd day shipping was an ouch!, but I want to make sure we have time to add them to the mix before the trip.

She loves interactive books. "The Little Red Plane" is sure to be a big hit.

Thanks again.

"Chocks Away!" :)

[BklynChick]

9. yes.... snacks, little new fun toys, possibly a DVD to watch, also travel during naptime

[mahina]

10. Take him to the pool or park and get him really pooped first,

happy tired, and hope he sleeps. Make sure he has no cold or ear infection, because flying with that is incredibly painful. If he does, talk to you Doc about some kind of decongestant so his sinuses don't cause him pain (and others their hearing.)

Good luck!

[mahina]

11. Oh! Notice airplanes flying over, and look at books with airplanes

and make a big deal out of it. My brother is a pilot and he had maps and a globe up and showed his little boy where he was going- I know it seems they couldn't understand but they catch more than we think.
OK!