tips for traveling with kids...by laura

My good friend Laura used to travel a lot...and she developed a great system for doing so with her little people. She sent me her thoughts before our first trip. I have edited the list and am presenting it here for the betterment of travelers everywhere.

The Plane
* Check the logistics of your plane ahead of time, before you buy the ticket. You'll need to know your airline and the plane type, which you should be able to find in the flight details. The baby, if flying in a seat, will always have to sit in the window seat. Some planes are way better for flying with kids. For example a 767 has 2 outside seats and 5 middles, so if you & baby are on the side, with the other parent across the aisle from you, getting out for changes, grabbing things from the overhead, etc. is much easier. Furthermore, it gives you extra elbowroom.
* If you can't get a 2+1 seating, then get three seats all in one row. If you don't automatically get seats together, talk to the gate agent, and see if she can switch you.
* Seatguru.com can tell you whether there's a changing table on your plane. For example, the Airbus 319/320 planes have them, but Boeing 757s don't.
* The carseat is the safest spot for the baby because there is no chance of turbulence flinging the baby about. The stroller must be gate-checked, so make sure that it easily folds. In the future, if the baby does not have their own seat then check your carseat, and carry the baby in the baby bjorn, or whatever baby carrier you prefer. This is a great way to travel, especially if you have one older child and one younger because it means you have hands free, they sleep all cozy in there, and it's easy.
* Be the first one on the plane. Get the kids buckled into their spots (or their carseats buckled in). Prepare my seatback pocket with all essentials: ready to go bottle, mini-changing kit, pacifier, a fun toy, hooter hider, and magazine. I put everything else in the overhead, ready for my partner to grab it for me if I need it. With baby crying, you have everything right there, ready to go.

Travel Musts
* Baby tylenol or motrin - solves a poor sleep situation or a midnight ear ache. It's magic. This has been the downfall of a few trips, because we didn't have it, and all stores were closed at night, and we had a screaming baby with an ear infection for 10 hours in a hotel room. NOT FUN.
*A light-weight fleece sweatshirt - it works as a jacket, pillow, baby blanket, changing pad; it's easy to rinse out & dries pretty quickly.
* A breast pump so I can hand off bottles to someone else for a feeding, and I get a break!
* Desitin - a tiny tube for travel is always in my diaper bag
* Pack your carry on as light as possible. You will have to find spots for it on the plane, and the less hassle you have the better.

Carry-on Musts
* 4 mini-changing kits: With a few qt-size ziplocks, put in 1 diaper, a small wipe pack, an extra onesie. Make sure you have a few extra clothes for the baby. Once, I went through 4 outfits for my little guy on a 3-hour flight. If you're headed to an airplane lavatory to do a change, there is no room for your whole diaper bag and you don't want to be messing around with things that fell to the bottom of your bag. You can just grab a mini-kit and go change.
* Extra Milk. A bottle or breast is the best pacifier. As much as I was comfortable nursing in public, there are some times that baby HAS to be in the carseat. At Security, they will do a test on your bottles, but you can carry them through without issue. Same goes for any formula that you have, if you're supplementing. If you take extra bottles, I keep them all together in my diaper bag, so they're all in one place for going through Security. I recommend freezing one or 2 of your bottles the night before to use as a little ice pack to keep it all fresh during travel. My kids never had ear problems when flying, but try to nurse or feed during take off & landing when kids have a hard time popping their ears.
* An extra shirt for yourself. Inevitably, you're bound to have a blow out on a plane. It's awesome. I blame it on the change in air pressure.
* A small soft toy, a small shakey toy (like a rattle), a small sucky toy (pacifier, teether), and a small book.
* A water bottle
* A magazine for you
* A granola bar or small snack for you (I buy a snack box or sandwich on board for me).
* A few extra diapers & wipes in case you get stranded unexpectedly.

You may want more stuff, but don't bring it. You can be bored for 5 hours, or catch up on sleep. You just don't need anything else.

* Pack in duffels or roller bags for the kids, but when you get to the destination, immediately unpack it at the hotel. Set up a changing area, their little bed, and their feeding stuff. A roller bag actually works better, since you can organize everything & see stuff.
* DO NOT take anything special for bath time. Babies just don't care until they are bigger. When they are bigger, then I always take a small ziplock of plastic toys that are fun in or out of the bath. Kitchen utensils (measuring cups, spoons) and Duplo legos are our favorites.

Security
You'll have to take the baby out of the car seat to carry him through the security checkpoint. Wait until all of your stuff is organized on the belt, or in bins, before you take him out. It is amazing how many people take their kids out of their carrying thing, and then have only 1 hand to deal with their own carry-on stuff. Disaster. I stage all my stuff in the bins, but send the carseat through the scanner first, so I have somewhere to put the kids once we're through, while I repack, get my shoes on, etc. Note: the lighter & more organized you pack, the easier security will be. I always wear tennis shoes to fly, and keep them loose, so they are easy to slip on/off. Also, they don't usually make me take off my fleece sweatshirt if it's the pullover kind - one less thing to keep track of.

Finally
Request a crib or pack & play at your hotel, unless you're co-sleeping.