Long overseas flight with a two year old!!!!!!

[wonderingson]

Dear fellow edc compadres.
I am about to embark on an 15 hour flight with a 4 hour layover with my two year old daughter by myself. I am already losing sleep thinking about how terrible and wild she will be on the flight. I guess Im just used to preparing for the worst... I am looking for advice on what i should bring on the flight to keep her occupied/ drugged (no jokes here) other than the stuff I have already planned on bringing in our carry on.

Stuff Ive already considered: DVD player, books, magnadoodle, chewable dramamine, coloring book, flip up book...


IF anyone has any first hand experience with this do tell!

[sparkymcgee]

Oh.

My.

God.

:O

I'm sorry, but have no advice. Good luck. I have a two year old boy and can't imagine doing that.

[kdunnett]

I have 17 month old twins and have been on a couple 8+ hour flights with them... and the wife ;-)

My only recommendations are for the kids to have their own seats (rather then sit in your lap - don't trust the airline that you'll get the row with the cots), bring their car seat if its airline approved for said seats and don't forget the drugs.

Good luck!

[Gilgamesh]

I flew with my 18 month old daughter. Going through security was the worst part of the trip. We had a dvd player with all her favorite movies,(tinker bell, little mermaid ect..). Then we got her new toys she hasn't seen before. Whenever she started to act up we would give her a new toy. Used crayons with a coloring book as well. The dvd player worked the best though. She would watch until she fell asleep. She slept most of the time we were up.
If she uses a binkie let her have it while in the air. The pressure changes hurt their ears, so her chewing on something will help.
Best of luck to you! It'll be better when its over!

[bobbyc]

Two year old kids like things to do. Coloring books, finger puppets, even a scarf they can use to play make-believe with are all great things to have. Keep your child well-hydrated, bring non-sugary, slow-carb snacks that keep them full and not jittery. If you can, bring a special "lovey" (teddy bear, whatever) that they can share their adventure with and care for during the trip. Set times for things appearing - like "the finger puppets will be back in five hours" or "we're going to do coloring in a while".

[Dr Jekell]

My suggestion would be to wear her out before getting on the plane so that for the first bit of the she will (hopefully) be asleep.

[Boy SureFire]

My suggestion would be to wear her out before getting on the plane so that for the first bit of the she will (hopefully) be asleep.

"Okay honey lets race. You'll start on the moving walk way (going the wrong direction), & I'll walk along side... 3, 2, 1, GO!!!" Seriously you should bring lots of stuff for her to do, & DO NOT LET HER GET BORED!!! I love kids, but a bored child can be an annoying child. Also you should check to be sure the on flight movie isn't to mature. Some planes have automatic flip down screens w/sound, so be careful.

[cap6888]

Good luck! When my boy was 2 we took him on his first airplane ride to Disney. Luckily it was only a two hour flight. Agree with the "binky", bottle, or something else to chew on to help alleviate the ear popping at take off. I know my son could be occupied for hours on end with dvds, so that was perfect for us. With that long of a flight, I would imagine that will only last as an option for so long before you child gets bored with that. Also, remember lots of extra power sources for the dvd player in case the batteries go dead. Again, good luck.

[LivingUpNorth]

+1 on the DVD player and snacks.

We've taken our two young children on many flights and the DVD player is priceless. However, since you have such a long journey, I would also include some activity books, crayons, etc.

If it's not too late, see if you can get (or switch) to a seat that is at the front of a section, where there is a bulkhead (wall) in front of you. These tend to have the most legroom outside of first class, but more importantly, there is room on the floor for the child to move around and play with a toy car/doll/etc. Such a long flight would leave any person restless, especially a child. Getting to move around outside of their seat is a big plus, flight conditions permitting (obviously can't play on the floor during takeoff/landing/turbulence). We did this on 2 occasions and it was great!

Also, don't be afraid to ask for help on the flight, either from other passengers or the flight attendants. I'm sure there will be others on board who have been in your shoes before.

Good luck!

[JP]

Everyone is giving you good advice. These are all tips I have applied to myself to keep me entertained and reasonably agreeable on long flights. Be sure to play it cool and keep yourself calm, your child will pick up on any anxiety you may have. More importantly....Good Luck!