FLYING WITH A BABY & CHILD DURING A PANDEMIC
Does any have anxiety when you fly with a baby and older child? No, cool. Just me then.
When we took our first trip down to Florida I was SO nervous about what to expect going on a plane with a baby and my older kiddo. What should I expect??? Well, I total assumed the worse, so my expectations were set low and the trip ended up being fine, but there were some tricks and tips I learned along the way.
Tips and Tricks
Going through TSA with formula
Let me tell you. I was SO nervous to bring formula with me through TSA. I honestly don’t know why I was freaking out so much about this, but the agents were super kind and helpful during the process. I had the formula in some single containers (which was fantastic for making bottles on the go) and had it in a zip lock bag. TSA just wanted me to put it in a separate bin and that was it! You are also allowed to bring any liquids for an infant in a reasonable amount through security, which again was a breeze. If you are freaking out over this- don’t.
Buy items at your destination. It’s a LIFESAVER and luggage space saver!
The only reason to bring a boat load of diapers and wipes is if you have the room for it in your suitcases. We did not have the room for it unfortunately, but I would do this again when I travel with a baby. I brought enough wipes, diapers, and formula to last us on the plane plus a few more for extra hours in case of an emergency. Once we got to our destination, that is when I bought the wipes, diapers, and formula. This was SO helpful. I didn’t have to worry about suitcase space being taken up by something I could’ve gotten at a store. If you will be somewhere that won’t have these items, then for sure bring your own.
SNACKS. LOTS of SNACKS.
Good Lord, my child eats and eats and eats. When they are one though, that means they are some what limited as to what they can eat.
I was somewhat hesitant to bring a bunch of snacks through TSA, but it was no problem at all. They were super accommodating and helpful. This was such a huge help because it kept my little guy busy when we were in the terminal and on the plane. Some snacks I brought included cheerios, goldfish, puffs, apple sauce pouches (A LOT of them), crackers, etc. Really, anything I could get my hands on came with.
I put all of the snacks into a gallon sized zip lock bag so it could easily be taken out while we went through TSA. It was also super helpful to have all the snacks in one bag because I could bring them out when needed and had everything readily available.
The bag lived in the diaper bag! Once we got to our destination, I bought some more food for our stay and replenished the goodies for our flight back home. I did the same thing for my older son! He got to pick some snacks to enjoy on the plane, we put them in a gallon sized bag and voila! He carried the bag in his own backpack and was able to bring it out whenever he needed some energy.
Toys! or Electronics
Don’t forget about entertainment, people. My little guy is usually pretty easy to entertain so I wasn't super worried about which toys that I brought with. I didn't go nuts either… I brought about 5-6 small toys that I knew he would enjoy because they were some favorites from home. They were small enough to keep in a gallon size zip lock bag, which was great to pull out when needed! You guessed it… this lived in the diaper bag as well. I ended up buying a brand new toy to put in the bag, which ended up being amazing! Since he had never seen it, he was super excited to play with it. I highly recommend doing this for kids of all ages! Keeps them busy and excited that they got something new :)
My older son brought with his electronics, which included an iPad and a Nintendo Switch. He kept them in his backpack so he could bring them out as needed. This was fantastic to have since the flights can get long and boring… he honestly played on his electronics the vast majority of the flight #coolmom. I figured, if it kept him busy and happy, it helped me relax as much as I could! He also wanted to bring with a coloring book. I’ll be totally honest. He used it once… while it was nice to have just in case, for him it wasn't a necessity!
Travel During the Pandemic
I was most freaked out about this part to be completely honest. I wasn’t sure how busy it was going to be, how to plane ride would go, and how we would navigate everything. The biggest change throughout all airports was wearing a mask. Since I wear one 8 hours a day, this was nothing for me. My older son also had no issues whatsoever since he wears a mask for school. If you have a toddler or child that is not comfortable wearing a mask, I highly recommend practicing wearing one before the plane. The gate officials at your terminal will not let any passengers on the flight without a mask (unless they are under 2).
During the flight the flight attendants will regularly come around to check if you are wearing a mask as well, so be sure your kiddos are comfortable with this!
Other than wearing a mask, there wasn't anything too different with traveling during a pandemic. The airline we flew with, Southwest, did a great job with cleaning and their protocols. BUT being the germaphobe that I am, I still used Clorox Wipes since my children lick most things.
If you’re hesitant traveling during the pandemic, don’t be. It really isn’t terrible and the airlines have this down to a science by now.
The Packing List
I’d say a good month before… nah, two months before we traveled down to Florida this past March I was attempting to make a list of what the bring with me for my soon to be one year old son and 6 year old. What are the essentials? What do I ACTUALLY need on the plane? I found myself searching for what would be best, but in all reality you won’t know what is best until you get to the airport and on the plane. Here is what I brought on the plane:
Stroller
Do you know how many people will tell you not to bring a stroller while traveling? A LOT. Well, I didn’t listen and frankly I was way happier bringing it than not. Sure, it’s an extra thing to have, but then you have what you need with you at all times. I HIGHLY recommend the Uppababy Vista Stroller that I wrote about in this post. The Uppababy Vista, they have a lifetime warranty on their products for travelling in the event that your stroller is damaged, #win. Another lovely feature of the Uppababy company is the bag that already comes with the stroller. They do have additional options of purchasing travel friendly bags to safely store the stroller while you travel. Really, you cannot go wrong!
So… why did I go against the grain and bring a stroller?
Well, it was a safe place that my little man could hang out in and eat snacks. It gave us our arms free when we needed it and I was so thankful for that. Sure, we had to go through security, but honestly TSA was so wonderful and accommodating.
Another reason I loved bringing the stroller was because that way we could store our bags, water bottles, or other supplies in there if needed. We maybe made it 3 steps into the airport and my 6 year old was already complaining about how heavy his backpack was. Thank god we had the stroller so we could easily put it in there without us carrying it around, along with a gigantic baby!
As we settled into the terminal, we got a ticket so we could gate check the stroller, again super easy to do. Once we got on the plane, we left it at the gate and as we came off it was ready to go for us! Again, another life saver as you are exiting and hardly have enough hands for yourself. If you are on the fence, I suggest bringing one. It was much easier than I anticipated and gave us some options for our little one to hang out in!
Diaper bag with all the essentials, plus a little surprise
The diaper bag will be crucial during your time at the airport and when getting to your destination. I love my diaper backpack linked here because it is easy to use and super convenient begin a backpack. It has a BUNCH of space that allowed me to stash away everything I needed for the plane ride. Here is my quick list of items I had in my diaper bag:
Diapers… I suggest brining more than enough diapers, JUST IN CASE! You never know if you’ll have a delay or if something goes wrong. It’s better to be safe than sorry. I brought ~15 diapers. My all time fav diapers are from Costco, check them out here!
Baby Wipes… I made sure I packed a brand new pack before we left for the airport.
Clorox Wipes… Bring these if you have kids. My children literally lick.every.thing. They are disgusting little creatures. This was great to have because I easily pulled them out to clean the seats, trays, and arm rests before the kids got to them.
Snacks… A lot of snacks… I was so worried about bringing a huge bag of snacks on the plane and through TSA, but had no issues at all. Henry was still at that age where he couldn’t eat everything quite yet. Some things I brought were puffs, cheerios, crackers, and any easy to eat snacks. This saved us on the plane and waiting in the terminal!
Toys… I packed some easy to carry toys that fit in a gallon sized bag. That way the toys stayed clean when we had to put them away! I ended up bringing some teether toys, stack able cups, baby phone, and a favorite book.
A NEW toy… I packed one new toy that Henry had never seen before and he played with that sucker for SO long!
Extra clothes for emergencies… I packed some extra clothes for Henry in the diaper bag directly just in case he had some sort of accident, #blowouts. I packed an extra onesie, shirt, pants, and socks. You never know what a kid will do to ruin their clothes… luckily I did not need to tap into the extra clothes at all while on the plane or traveling in general, but it was a good back up to have on hand if something were to go wrong! I put all the clothes in a zip lock bag so they were not loose in my diaper bag and I could quickly pull them out if needed.
Stuffed Animal and Blanket
If you have a child like mine, bring a stuffy and a blankie! My little guy loves snuggling up with anything fluffy and cozy. I was so glad we brought a blanket and a stuffed animal with, this was the only way he fell asleep for a bit on the plane! If your little one loves to cozy up, totally bring this with you, you won’t regret it! My older kiddo, who is 6, also brought a stuffed animal in his backpack that he liked having for his first flight.
Carry On
I used our carry on for a variety of reasons. Some included, extra clothing for myself, my older son, and extra supplies. Having the carry on helped because we were able to pack our suitcases a little lighter and in case of buying anything when we were in Florida, we had the extra room! In future trips I plan on using these amazing packing cubes linked here to keep everything super organized! I’ve used them for personal trips and they are a gem!!
A lot of the packing list has been about the one year old… babies are oh so little, but they require oh so much! Over the years I’ve learned that you do not need to bring EVERYTHING you own for your baby. Yes, they still require a lot of stuff, but try not to go over board. Below you will find a list of items that my 6 year old brought on the plane and what he truly used while traveling.
Backpack (This is my sons fav!)
Switch or iPad
Headphones
Books
Stuffed Animal
Snacks
So tell me… what would your packing list be when you travel on a plane with your kids??