Flying with 3 Babies (under 2)

August 14, 2018 /
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So we just returned from our first long distance solo trip since kids and phew… It was the first time we left them for a whole weekend ever so I’ve never been away this far or for this long! Not that they weren’t in good hands – we had about half my extended family watching them – so lots of love and fun, but man did I miss them! And the whole time we were flying I couldn’t get over how little stuff we had on us (like what did I forget?)  its just so weird!

Does it ever get any easier??

Anyways, all of this casually arriving at the terminal with nothing but my purse in hand led me to thinking about the trips we have taken with our babes so I thought I’d share our experience and some tips for surviving the chaos of flying with three under two!

 

Flying with kids…

 

Everyone thought I was insane when I announced that we were going to be flying with our three babies and I have to say I was very nervous they would loose it and be the most hated passengers on the plane. But all in all we did very well! Here’s the best advice I can offer on flying, airport rules, what to bring and how to get there without any major meltdowns!

 

Car Seats:

Firstly there is the great car seat debate which could be a whole topic in itself. There are so many factors to consider here and let’s face it your kid will need a seat anyway when you get there and have to rent a car or take a cab. As with all things in being a parent you’ve got to do what is right for you, but I’ll give you the run down and let you know what we did. And let’s agree to disagree here okay? Sometimes Mom just has to make it through the day.

Factor #1 the safest place for your baby in any vehicle – plane or car is their appropriately buckled and sized car seat.  So yes, you can bring them on and set them up in their car seat in the plane. Not only is this a safer option but its also a familiar option if you are a family with a car. It lets your child know it’s time to sit and for the most part once they are in their car seat they know they need to stay in their car seat without much fuss. Plus it frees you up to sleep or just relax a little bit. Going this route you will avoid any possible damage to your car seat in the checking process.

That brings in the second part of the great car seat debate which is if you are going to check it do you gate check it or check it with your regular baggage? Yes, it is a lot to carry around the airport while trying to corral your kids but they make excellent backpack options (we managed to fit these two car seats without the cupholder and an infant seat into this one). They also make several options to attach the carseat to your suitcase or pull your child around the airport in – instead of bringing a stroller.  Or if your kiddo is still in an infant seat you can also use the ones that clip into your stroller and kill two birds with one stone.


 

For me on our first in flight trip I had three lap infants and buying the three extra seats to put them in their own car seats was just not in the cards for us at that point. So we did what any crazy parent would do and checked some $30 travel car seats in their original packaging (this option is also free for a lap infant). We did the original packaging figuring that would avoid any concerns regarding damage that would render the seats unusable (i.e. needing to be replaced much like in a crash) because we’ve all seen how a suitcase comes out the other side.

 
Getting Around:

We then loaded the kids into our awesome double umbrella stroller (with this great gate check bag/blanket we saved on having to bring a blanket for them to play on at our destination) and one in a carrier and made our way fairly easily around the airport. Gate checking the stroller at the last second before boarding the plane with the babies (the one in the carrier happily passed out).

One note about lap infants – you must have one adult per child (in case of emergency you need someone responsible for each one) and you cannot sit together as each row only has one extra oxygen mask for the extra passenger. That being said if you sit directly behind or across the aisle from each other it makes sharing and caring for all your babies pretty easy. We were lucky enough to bring Grandma on this last trip with our babes, but the more comfortable your child is with whomever and the more relaxed that person is the better!

 
What to Bring:

We each brought a backpack instead of a regular bag just for convenience and only brought what was needed on the plane (checking our regular bags) because we just couldn’t fathom having more stuff to worry about.

So what did we bring on the plane you ask?

First of all – snacks!! Our kids are always happy when they are eating and swallowing helps tons with the take off crankyness!

We had pre-made powder bottles for our little one – measure out the formula into a bottle but don’t add the water yet. Although they DO let you screen bottles through security this was just one less step we had to worry about. Then all we do is buy a bottle of water at the airport and make bottles as needed. We actually use this technique all the time locally as well so we don’t need to worry about refrigeration! #LifeHack

We also brought the ‘older’ two an empty sippy cup that we filled with a water bottle at our gate.

We did screen through some puree pouches for our older kids (you can bring the amount of baby food reasonably needed for your flight time). These were great for take off and landing as they require lots of sucking and therefore ear popping. Plus we knew they were getting something nutritionally valuable during our travels. If your kiddo is really too old for pureed squash and peas, they make great applesauce ones that most kids seem to enjoy. That in addition to a few little snacks like cheerios and blueberries kept them well engaged.

Really the best thing we did was to pack each child an extra outfit IN its own ziploc bag (that’s the most important part). We were oh so grateful for this when one of our daughters had a major diaper blow out. Remove the mess and throw it into the empty ziploc rather than in with all of our belongings – phew!! It also came in handy when our son spilled his sticky fruit cup all over himself… although that was less of a stress induced what the hell am I going to do with this mess! My husband and I each had one of these outfits as well as our own set of diapers/wipes in our backpacks so that whoever was with the child at the time was all set rather than having to run back and rummage through each others bags with a messy or naked baby! Keep in mind most airports only have a men’s or women’s room so you do get separated.

Oh and while we are on the topic of diapers and wipes – surprisingly I didn’t need quite as many of those as I expected! But that’s one area where its better to be cautious and bring some extras because I’ve never seen them sell them in the airport kiosks and if your flight ever got delayed… yikes.

 

As for toys keep it simple! A few favorites mixed with a few simple new toys go a long way. (Think dollar store or targets dollar/party favor section). Also, think about your space or lack there of – nothing too big or that engages running around like a basket ball. I’d personally refrain from ones that make a lot of noise too, things like shakers or light up/music toys. I’m not going to lie to you, we also brought an iPad and some baby headphones preloaded with some tv shows/singalong for kids – but happily never ended up taking it out of the bag!

Here’s my five toy basics:

  1. Obviously blankey, or teddy or shakey baby – whatever your child’s lovey is.
  2. A couple of small books to read together. We did a mix of new/library and old favorites (you know the ones they ask you to read over and over and over) and/or a coloring book. As my son is still a mouther and can’t do markers/crayons we went with a little paint brush book that you fill with water (in the airport of course!) that kept him very entertained ‘painting’ away mess free. You can find a similar one here. This was one of our “new” toys. If your kiddo enjoys it a small pack of stickers might also provide lots of entertainment here.
  3. This was another toy my son had never seen before. Everyone who has a young toddler knows the joys of organizing things in and out and opening and closing so this simple one kept him entertained for a solid hour of our flight down. We took a couple of small finger puppets and put them inside four easter eggs. Then watched him enjoy the surprises inside, wonder what animal would be next, try matching different color tops and bottoms, on and on.
  4. We brought a couple of his small fisher price cars that he could drive around on the tray table.
  5. A suction toy – this was a fan favorite for us – one of our little toys that suctions to the high chair. Currently we’ve got a monkey and a zebra that have little push beads and spinning parts and teether parts. But this was another great “table top” option. And it could easily be held by even our youngest when the trays went up for landing.

 

That was it – all we needed for a successful flight! On the way home we didn’t even take out half of this as all three curled up in the extra seat next to us or in our arms and slept the whole way! Flying really wasn’t so bad – solo or with the babies so we’re ready – just have to figure out where to next!?!

 

 

 

EDIT:  If you’re curious about how we manage to pack all the stuff needed for three check out the new article:

Ready To Travel

 

 

 

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