First lets talk about packing. My first flight with R I was only going for a few days and my baby didn't require a lot of "extras" that I couldn't borrow at my destination (carseat, boppy, pack-n-play, swaddles, and I was even lucky enough to borrow my sisters breast pump). I really only packed clothes which all fit in a carry on. For my "personal item" I used my diaper bag. Here is my first piece of advice...
Only bring things you will need DURING THE FLIGHT or at the airport in your personal item. Nothing like trying to find a binky and having to dig through a million diapers and other things you really don't need on the flight. So what do you need on the flight?
- Diapers long enough to last the flight and maybe a couple extra
- A small pack of wipes
- A swaddle or blanket
- A binky (this helps their ears to pop)
- A bottle with breast milk or formula or yourself to breastfeed
- An extra outfit (I learned this the hard way)
- Snacks and toys if the child is older
- boppy (this one really depends on the size of your baby, the length of the flight, and if your baby is going to be sleeping or not. I found the hoppy useful from 5-9 months).
- If you are checking a bag... anything you have to have at your destination (read about our horrible experience below)
Another must is a baby carrier or wrap. This is helpful for maneuvering through the airport, through security, and at the gate. Its nice to be hands free when handling your bags and tickets. You can wear the baby through the metal detector but most airlines will have you take your baby out for take off and landing. I found this pretty inconvenient but I found with my carrier and wrap that I could keep my sleeping baby on my chest and just unbuckle or pull down the should straps and after take off buckle/wrap my baby back up for the duration of the flight.
Our next time flying dad came along so we decided to check a bag instead of having a couple of carry ons. It was a disaster. Because of the weather and season (Christmas) we got stranded during our layover in Denver. They lost our bags and no flights were leaving for at least 24 hours. We decided to rent a car and drive the remainder of the way but I only had the bare minimum in my diaper bag. I was exclusively pumping at the time and supplementing with formula. Luckily I had an entire can of formula and my hand pump otherwise things would have gotten ugly. I didn't have my meds and I barely had enough diapers. I didn't have a change of clothes for R and she ended up with a blow out which meant we had a nakey-baby. We did end up getting our bags back after a week but thats another story for another day.
My next time flying by myself with R was to visit my parents for a month while my mom recovered from surgery. This was a considerably longer trip than we had ever taken and R was now 9 months. This meant she was a little more high maintenance when it came to travel. I decided to bring my stroller and I checked a bag. It seemed like a good thing at the time but if I could do it over again I would not bring the stroller. It was hard to lug a bag and the stroller to the counter and apparently the stroller has to go on the belt through security. So I was holding a squirmy 9 month old, trying to juggle my belongings, and folding a stroller to hoist on the belt. Looking back I would have just worn her and borrowed/bought a stroller at my destination. If your baby is too big to wear then my sister used one of those foldable wagons. She plopped her kid in it and her bags and it seemed to work pretty well for her. I'm interested in any other ideas you guys might have!
Next we will talk about the actual flight! https://livingthebishopfamilydream.blogspot.com/2017/08/flying-with-infant-part-2.html
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