We’re going to be headed back to the States for Christmas. That’s the good news, for us, but I can imagine a number of fellow passengers will not be so happy to see a three-year-old girl and a 14-month old boy on board. The flight to the States is 14 hours, then we have a transfer and several more hours
Any suggestions for keeping them occupied? We plan to take the iPad loaded with some videos and games for our daughter. We’ll take toys for our younger son. Anyone have experience keeping kids occupied for this length of time?
No kids here…but I understand that their poor lil ears hurt and they don’t know how to pop them. I wonder if you can get some medicine for that? The last time I flew to Japan, there was a poor baby who just wailed her lungs almost the entire time. The flight attendents and other poeple (including me) took turns walking her, but it was easy for me to see that her ears hurt. The poor baby kept pulling them and then screaming again.
She spent a lot of time in the restrooms. That muffled the noise somewhat.
New toys are key. When we took a cross country drive as kids, my mom packed us a bag for each day with new toys. Mostly stuff like snacks and a cheap new toy or something but it kept us occupied. I’ve heard suggestions on parenting sites of packing one new toy an ‘hour’ but depending on the child that may or may not be enough. I took my 3 year old daughter on a plane for the first time in February and it was only a 90 minute flight but it was definitely trying. I’d also suggest, in order to cut down on meltdowns if this is your eldest’s first plane trip, to buy a book about it. The one I ordered for my daughter, Going on a Plane was awesome. I realize you’re in Japan so you may not be able to get that exact book but I would recommend getting something similar. She loved it and it touched on every step of a trip. Lots of snacks, lots of drinks, lots of diapers and tons of patience
We flew to Brazil when my son was 18 months. It was an overnight flight so he slept most of the flight going down. We brought a portable DVD player so we could distract him if need be. That would work for your daughter, but your son might be too young. I would bring snacks because they will definitely want something to munch on.
We had a long layover in Rio which kind of sucked. My son wanted to run around like a lunatic and it was tough keeping him in line. He also took a very short nap in his stroller.
I just flew from Istanbul to JFK (10 hours) and there was a 1.5 year old (and a 2 month old) in front of me. And a 1 year old behind me. :eek:
I left the plane commending the parents as they were all able to keep their kids entertained and relatively quiet the entire flight.
The couple behind us pretty much walked the baby around in shifts for most of the flight. The couple ahead of us read to their kids, watched the movie (and made it somewhat “interactive” for them by pointing out everything that was going on). And they all let the kids sleep whenever they closed their eyes.
I know some people will disapprove, but talk to your doctor about giving them some Benadryl. I don’t think you should do it on a regular basis, but for an overseas flight it shouldn’t hurt them. Try it out beforehand though. Some kids, instead of getting drowsy, have an opposite effect. Good Luck.
I always get my daughter’s ears checked before the flight, just to make sure there’s not fluid/infection. I try to book the appointment about a week before the flight so that if she needs an antibiotic, there is time for it to start working.
My pediatrician told me a little Benedryl is be fine before flying. He gave it to his kids when they were small and doesn’t have a problem with it. His theory was that is it traumatizing for a child to be scared and screaming for hours on end. You may or may not agree.
I am blessed with a crazy-good little traveler, but I still take a DVD player with new movies, new books, crayons and paper, and a few favorite snacks. I also let her pick out one snack to buy while we’re in the airport. (That might be her favorite part of the journey.)
One thing to keep in mind is that everyone on that plane is on your side. They all want your kids to be happy, and most people will gladly assist you in any way they can to keep your kids happy (and quiet).
Not all little kids react the same to benadryl. If you’re thinking of going that route, test it out at home first. Benadryl can make some kids more hyper, rather than drowsy. My son is one of those.
That’s pretty common, especially during takeoff and landing.
The second best cure of all is a pacifier. The best cure requires that the child is still nursing: A tit. We always used this when we were flying with an infant. As soon as we’d fastened the seatbelts before takeoff (and again around the time the captain announced that we’d be starting on the approach, so please fasten seatbelts and fold tables), my wife would start nursing, and 9 times out of 10 the child was so busy sucking and swallowing that his ears popped all by themselves.
I still find myself muttering under my breath “stuff a tit in the poor critter’s mouth, ferchrissakes!” every time I hear an infant screaming bloody murder on a plane…
If the child is still breast or bottlefeeding, you should feed them at take off and landing. If not, you should have snack food they can chew on (the chewing should pop their ears) at the same.
If they are old enough for gum, it is the best solution for the ear thing.
As for keeping them occupied for fourteen hours, you probably won’t be able to. They will likely get cranky. Best advice I hearc regarding this was bringing a ton of cheap earplugs and giving them to your fellow travellers.
I am firmly against drugging children so I usually place little Derek Jr in a sound proof carry-on bag and after boarding quickly stuff the bag into an overhead storage compartment.
Thanks everyone. We’ve done the flight down to Taiwan (3 hours) many times so the older one is pretty good. She’s old enough for videos, games (which she normally doesn’t get at home) snacks etc.
The younger one is too young for videos, but he generally is pretty good when I carry him around, so that may be what we do for the 20 hours, although the sound-proof carry-on may be the best solution.
Last time we flew with a young child (about 18 months) he spent the whole time throwing his dummies at a German man three rows in front of us. By the end of the flight he was managing to hit him three times out of four - we were pretty impressed.
New toys (as mentioned above). But get some cheap tissue paper and “wrap” them. Every 30 minutes or so (as necessary), whip one out and let your kids unwrap it. This worked well for me.
Benadryl is a really excellent idea if you want an exceptionally fussy and pissed off child.
Benadryl makes you tired. Children get fussy largely because they’re tired. So unless the kid’s actually asleep, which you simply cannot be assured of, the Benadryl idea will make them fussier than they otherwise would be.
