Tips for Flying with Kids

This was probably the most anxious part of our trip - I was petrified Abby and/or Sam would be those kids on the plane.  We were extremely lucky that we have very minor meltdowns that seemed to last minutes, but really were just a few seconds.  Here are our tips for a successful trip.

1. Pack light - pack what you need and put away 1/2 of it - especially if you have laundry facilities.  We checked one piece of luggage($25.00) and the car seat base (free) and had one carry on with essentials (breast pump)and a change of clothes for each of us.  Going through security was still a process, but I could wear Sam leaving my hands free. Everything had to go through the scan - stroller, car seat...getting him situated on me as soon as we got to the air port was smart. 
2. Bring car seats - if you're renting a car, bringing your own car seat is critical. I didn't trust renting one as I didn't know if it had been in an accident.   We could have checked this, but it came in super handy on the plane as Abby was comfortable to sleep in it.
3. Bring your stroller - We brought the snap-n-go and Sam's bucket seat.  These were gate checked prior to boarding since we couldn't bring them on the plane, obviously.  However, being able to stroll stuff through the airports/resort/safari instead of carrying stuff was a Godsend.  I wore Sam on the plane, had Abby's back pack and Sam's diaper bag. while Tim had the carry on w/Abby's seat strapped to the luggage.  Either one of us could hold Abby's hand.  Abby carried her Dora pillow with blanket stuffed in.  She looked like such a big girl!
4. Pack a backpack for just the toddler.  We surprised Abby with her own small backpack with a dozen games, plenty of snacks/bribes, and a sippy cup.  Games included some busy bags I put together (counting, letter recognition, etc), coloring book, crayons, dry erase board/markers, etcha sketch, pen and paper, stickers, books.  You could also include playing cards, electronic items like our kindle or other small games.  We went through ALL the games several times.  If you bring anything that makes sound, be sure to get headphones or ear mics, as Abby calls them.  Besides the safari in Florida, these might have been her next favorite treat.
5. Plenty of snacks - M&M's were used as bribes, fruit snacks, lollipops, crackers, etc.  Sippy cup was filled with water after security.  These were also shared with our neighbors.
6. Have a bottle or boob ready for the littlest one.  I chose bottle so I could keep Sam in the Moby wrap.  I just needed to adjust a bit to get the right angle.  I ended up pumping in one airport, but otherwise feedings were timed well.   

 The only "uh-oh" moment we had was when we arrived in Pam Beach and had to trek all of us and the checked baggage.  We ran out of hands and contemplated getting one of the smart carts.  But, we rigged the car seat base to the stroller and off to the shuttle we went. Pheww

The meltdowns that occurred were the result of a pinch from the car seat, a bump on the head, and taking away the kindle before take off.   Of course the latter was at 11:30pm, so that might have been the problem, too.

Lastly, if I had to choose a flight time, I wouldn't chose 6am.  Holy early batman.  We had a 6pm flight back to Maine and while we got it at 1:30am after a delay, that was almost better.

We love to travel and hope these tips help those who are traveling in the future.  I'm sure I'll come back to this post (and add to) next February.  :-)