We just got back from a family vacation with our toddler and I’ll be writing some posts on our road trip across the American southwest, but I thought I’d rewind to last year and share with you how our baby’s first flight went, and how we made sure it was a success!
Before we moved to Hamilton we lived in Edmonton for four years. We moved back to Ontario to be closer to family, but we left behind some really great friends when we left Edmonton. I won’t lie, being new to Hamilton as a new mom has been lonely at times. Sure, I’m definitely ok with spending time alone, but my mind often wanders to thinking about what it would have been like to raise my little one in Edmonton amongst my close girlfriends who were in similar phases of their lives. We still keep in touch regularly, but there are those occasional days where I think to myself how nice it would be to pick up crabby toddler and head over to a friend’s for tea while we let the little ones amuse themselves.
Needless to say, I knew that as soon as husband had a business trip back to Edmonton that we would use the opportunity to bring our little guy out to meet our friends and coworkers. That chance came up when baby was seven months old, and it couldn’t have worked out better– we were able to fly out of YHM which made things so easy and quick. We live about a 15 minute drive from the airport, parking is super simple (park, and walk a minute or two), check-in is a breeze, and the security line is very minimal. There’s basically no stress when you fly out of YHM compared to flying out of Pearson. You know that from the time you park, you could be less than 15 mins from being seated at the gate and ready to board! And with more and more destinations offered, it’s easy to reduce your travel stress by flying out of Hamilton.
Of course I did a ton of research and preparation to make sure baby’s first flight was a success. I combed through a lot of blogs, I asked friends how they managed their babies’ first flights, and I thought about what made my little guy tick. What could I keep in my bag of tricks to make the four hour flight to Edmonton a success, keeping in mind that he wasn’t at all motivated by screen time at that point, so I’d be relying on food, toys, and sleep to keep him busy?
So with all of my research and prep work, here’s what I decided to carry-on in hopes that we’d be able to entertain baby for four hours on the way to Edmonton:
Solly Baby Wrap– although we brought our treasured UppaBaby G-Luxe and gate checked it, I wanted a way to easily carry baby and our carry-on, so I used my Solly Baby Wrap to carry baby on my chest onto the plane. You can’t wear baby during take-off or landing, but the wrap came in handy during the flight because I used it as a little pillow for baby’s head when he was having his naps.
Lift-the-flap books– I bought a few new books at Costco, including Baby Loves Fall and Where is Baby’s Pumpkin and saved them for the flight. They were novel and baby loved the surprise of seeing what was under the flaps. They definitely provided a decent amount of entertainment. I also packed some of his favourites from home like Dr. Seuss’ ABC, and others. The books did double duty, because we read to him every night before bed, so it was great to have some on hand at the hotel.
A few new toys– before our trip I went on Amazon and ordered a few toys that I thought baby would be interested in, that would be small enough for my carry-on, and that he could also play with on the go in Edmonton. I chose the VTech Ferris Wheel which worked out really well because it could suction onto the tray table on the plane, and then kept him busy when went out for dinner in Edmonton. This toy has had serious longevity in terms of holding baby’s interest when we’re out and about. I also got the Melissa and Doug Picnic Basket with soft toys. At the time baby was just getting into the idea that you could take things out of containers, so he spent a considerable amount of time taking the foods out of the basket and exploring them. Bonus points for the sandwich that has pieces that velcro together and can be torn apart! I also stuffed a few extra toys from home into the picnic basket.
Toy tethers– I used these Baby Buddy Secure-a-Toy straps to secure the toys to the tray table so that if baby sent them flying we wouldn’t have to be searching under the seats for them. These tethers have come in super handy for use in the stroller and car seat as well. I one year later I still use them almost daily, so purchasing them for the flight was win-win.
Pacifier blanket– I brought one of baby’s little soft blankets that has a velcro strap for a pacifier with us, and it was really useful. Not only was it easy to grab the blanket as baby spat out his pacifier, but I was able to kind of prop up the blanket around baby’s face to give him a bit of darkness when he napped.
In terms of making sure baby was well-fed (and therefore a happy boy!) on the plane. At just over 7 months old, we had started baby-led weaning so baby was getting comfortable with solids. He was also great about taking bottles of pumped milk so I made sure I had two small bottles of pumped milk so we’d have them available for take-off and landing when baby has to be in the upright position. I had my Skip Hop Grab and Go bottle bag in my diaper bag with an ice pack, and had the milk as well as some Baby Mum Mums, cheese, and a puree pouch that he could easily suck on during the flight. Of course, I also relied on baby nursing to get him to sleep during the flight, which combined with the ambient airplane noise worked like a charm!
In order to make sure we didn’t take more than we could handle, I decided to use my usual diaper bag (which is actually just a Lug tote bag) as my carry-on. I managed to squeeze in all of the above items, in addition to baby’s changing supplies. I always carry my Skip Hop Portable Change Station with me, and it worked out perfectly in the airplane washroom, ensuring baby was on a nice clean surface when being changed. I had about 6 diapers in there, and then had an additional stash in husband’s carry-on suitcase in case we ran into a major emergency. I also had a spare change of clothes in my bag, which we didn’t end up using, and I had my Skip Hop Wet/Dry bag with me in case we had to carry soiled clothes. So yes, my diaper bag was really, really full, but I think I kept its contents as minimal as possible so that I could easily manage baby and my carry-on especially when boarding and deplaning.
Overall, I think I had what I needed with me because ultimately the flight went off without a hitch. Both husband and I were a bit nervous that baby would be loud and bother passengers around us, or that he might not settle, but it really couldn’t have gone any better! I did however have a couple of key takeaways from our first flight with baby that I implemented during baby’s next flights to Montreal and Costa Rica:
You don’t need brand new toys, just novel toys! For the next flights we took with baby I just went to Value Village beforehand and picked out a few battery-operated toys that had flashing lights and noises for less than $10 and baby was equally as amused as he was with the brand new toys I’d ordered from Amazon. Ah well, you live and you learn!
Although it’s bulky, I brought my breastfeeding pillow on the longer flight to Costa Rica. It really was worth the space it took up (we put it in husband’s carry-on suitcase and took it out on the plane). Not only was it much more comfortable for baby to nap on (I could adjust my legs easily without disturbing him), but I used it for all of his nursing sessions at our destination rather than trying to make one out of hotel pillows. If I could go back in time, I would have taken it to Edmonton as well!
Finally, before you head to the airport, I highly recommend checking out the Government of Canada’s guidelines for taking your baby through security screening at the airport. This was especially helpful to me in determining what liquids I could take for baby on the plane. I also found it reassuring to have the information on hand in case we came across a security agent who questioned the milk I had pumped for baby to drink on the flight.
Hopefully all of my prep work before my baby’s first flight gives you some food for thought as you prepare for your own trip! We have had three very successful round-trip flights with baby on our laps so far, and we just completed our fourth round trip this month with a 20 month old. It was a totally different ball-game now that he’s on the move, but we had lots of tricks up our sleeve and I can’t wait to share how we made it work!
How was your first trip with your baby or toddler? Do you have any magic tricks that you can share?
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