I feel like now I can actually write this post since we’ve had two trips with Carolynn totaling in five flights. Overall she’s done really really well but I do have a few tips that I think have made things go smoothly.
This is what has worked well for us.
NAP SCHEDULE
Sticking to a “strict” schedule for naps a few days prior to leaving. Even if it means staying at home and doing less leading up to leaving keeping the nap schedule as much as possible has been huge to ensure a happy baby for the whole flight.
WAKE WINDOWS
Keeping a close eye on wake windows in general but especially before a trip. We’ve tried our best to time her wake windows to line up with when our flight time is. This way you can hopefully guarantee a nap during the flight time!
NAP TIMING
Adjust naps to line up with boarding/flight time. Before our first flight, I woke her up in the morning to make sure her first nap would set us up for her being awake while driving to the airport and going down for a nap while we were boarding (ideally of course).
NIGHTTIME DIAPERS
We love HelloBello diapers in general but especially the nighttime diapers for a flight. We’ve so far been able to avoid any blowouts this way. I wait until boarding starts and quickly change into a fresh diaper before the plane.
FEEDING
Right now we’re still exclusively breastfeeding and gf does not like bottles (only to chew on…) so I’ll feed her as soon as we get on the plane, thank you early boarding, this gets her extra sleepy for her nap. 50% of the time so far she’s eaten during takeoff but the times she has fallen asleep before we leave we’ve had no ear pressure issues so don’t stress if your little one falls asleep.
DIAPER BAG EXTRAS
On this last flight, we got a nice full diaper right as the captain cleared us for takeoff. This meant a quick change in my lap and stashing that lovely smelling diaper in a diaper trash bag in my diaper bag. I also always keep an extra zip-up outfit for Carolynn and if I remember a new shirt for me, just in case.
IN-FLIGHT ENTERTAINMENT
I put together a little travel bag of toys just in case the nap didn’t work out or last the full flight. I included: teethers, suction cups toys for the tray table, a favorite stuffed animal, and a lovie. Depending on age some snacks would be good to have too!
Now, all the above things we’ve done and have overall worked well. We’ve only had one flight with a little fussiness before she fell asleep which I’ll take as a win. Small victories. However, on our first trip, she refused to sleep in the pack ‘n play for more than 5 minutes which meant that we had to cosleep which in reality meant me holding her and barely sleeping. So, we don’t have it down 100% but we’re getting there!
Here is my post about how I approached packing!
Happy Traveling
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