first time flying with 3 kids

[bralli]

Yeah, watch out for the Benadryl. One of my kids breaks out in hives now and then and when we give her the Benadryl, she is bouncing off the walls.

 

We did a flight from Sacramento to Hawaii last summer with a family of four ages 10, 7, 3, and 10 months. I was scared to death of the potential drama but it went just fine. You know your kids, I wouldn't necessarily dope them up as you'll eventually land at some point and you need them functional. Movies are always wonderful, and will assuredly buy you your two hours. Snack are your friend too. I have friends that fly all the way to places like India, Turkey, or China from the West Coast with kids of various ages so a flight within the US is really nothing.

[Mom2B&Z]

If you go this route, and your child hasn't taken Benadryl before, please do a trial run before your flight. It can have the opposite effect on some children, and winds them up like tops.

Excellent advice, and something I wish I would have known before DS1 was given Benadryl for the first time ;)

The official name is a paradoxical reaction, and Benadryl is not the only one to have it, but it seems to be the one people talk about most frequently in reference to travel.

[Kerry's Girls]

Perhaps the single best bit of advice for flying with children came to us from our paediatrician.

 

He advised me to dose our daughter with childrens/baby benadryl and baby/childrens motrin 20 minutes before the flight.

 

 

I have no problem with giving benadryl for flights, I wouldn't on a short flight like this. The last thing I'd want to deal with is kids who are dragging when it's time to deplane and get through the airport, especially when you have more than one kid to handle.

 

One piece of advice I would offer is to bring your own food, water and snacks and enough to cover long delays. You can end up waiting a long time on the tarmac to take off or to pull up to a gate and there is usually no service during those times. I've been glad to have brought my own meals and re-fillable water bottles during those long delays.

 

Best,

Mia

[reallyexcited]

I will remember to bring a small pad and pencil for DD to write if needed! we use that at school and in other situations so I wrote it down on my packing list :)

 

I will not be giving the kids benydryl. They have never had it and I don't like giving meds unnecessarily. BUT i do have friends that do that for car rides!

[Onessa]

If you go this route, and your child hasn't taken Benadryl before, please do a trial run before your flight. It can have the opposite effect on some children, and winds them up like tops.

My father had heart surgery -- they wanted him to be somewhat awake but very relaxed so the standard drug "cocktail" at that time included Benedryl. He had the reaction and went psycotic (they had to cancel the surgery and place him into restraints) until it wore off. It can be a VERY severe reaction! Scary at the time, now thinking back at how completely "out of it" he was, it is actually pretty funny (this was at least 10-15 years ago, he had no problem with the surgery at a later date with a different set of drugs and no other side effects, so I can smile a bit in retrospect remembering some of the really silly things he said at the time)

[janabm81]

One thing to remember is to go over the "ear" feeling with your kids. I know on our first flight with our now 15 year old (10 years ago), he freaked out a little because his ears "disappeared".:rolleyes: What he meant was that the pressure had built up during take off and he couldn't hear. He was an absolute darling about it and didn't throw a tantrum...just sobbed a little and wanted mommy to hold him...but I know other kids who haven't reacted as well to the pressure change.

[nothriver]

I agree with most of whats been said. We fly a couple times a year and my youngest is now almost 7. I've always had my kids handle their own carry on, usually a child size backpack. We used to overfill this thing like you can't believe, but now my daughter takes a paperback book, an ipad, and a stuffed animal. She'll read during the "no electronics" time, and cuddle up with her stuffed animal to sleep if she feels like it. She usually does her ipad games with no sound rather than use the headphones.

 

My daughter LOVES the bathrooms on the planes, ICK! We wait til boarding starts, then use the airport bathroom at the last possible minute before boarding. She'll usually have to use the bathroom on the plane once but I make sure to tell her she only gets to use it ONCE and warn her not to even bother asking again. I bring antibacterial wipes to scrub down our hands after the airplane bathroom adventure. :o

 

We are about to embark on her first "no carseat" flight, and I hope she'll be able to sleep. We've loved traveling with the carseat, she is comfortable and used to being restrained for long road trips. She is somewhat elevated for a better view out the window too. If you need a carseat at your destination, don't hesitate to take one on the plane, it might seem difficult but I think the benefits outweight the hassle.

 

When my daughter was a toddler, we used to play "airport security" before we'd travel, and practice putting our stuff in bus tubs. Fortunately, kids no longer have to take off their shoes, which makes the process go much more smoothly. Be aware that it is so easy to loose your belongings, or worse, your kids, when doing the airport security. We lost my daughters backpack more than once, but it was bright blue with a big penguin on it, so it was easily located!

 

Good luck, have a great flight! Just keep reminding yourself it is no different than a 3 hr car ride - relax and enjoy!

[bus man]

She'll usually have to use the bathroom on the plane once but I make sure to tell her she only gets to use it ONCE and warn her not to even bother asking again.

 

What do you do if she really, really, REALLY needs to use it a second time? Because as "icky" as the airplane bathrooms might be, they sure beat the alternative! :eek:

[ducklite]

thank for all the great advice. i am slightly worried if security asks my 10 year old DD a question. She has selective mutism and very rarely speaks in public ..especially in a stressful high anxiety situation like that.

 

I plan on talking to all the kids ahead of time but I will prepare DD separately.

 

I have to remember to tell them that mommy does all the talking unless they are spoken to. My 7 year old can be very animated!!

 

On the official Philadelphia Airport web site there is a link to a social story that was developed for autistic children. I know that selective mutism and autism are two different things, but it walks through a lot of the different "pieces" of flying including the lines, security, and the noises the planes make. It has a lot of photos and might be helpful towards reducing anxiety as she can actually visualize the various steps as opposed to just hearing about them.

 

http://www.phl.org/passengerinfo/Accessibility/Documents/SocialStories.pdf

[reallyexcited]

Thanks for that link!

[njmomof2]

Are you flying out of Newark? We just flew out in April with my boys (14 and 9.5) and I think all they said as they looked at their passports was "You're K?" and "You're J?" and that was it. They didn't ask who they were travelling with, where they were going, etc. Security is busy and while I've heard at times of them asking pointed questions, we've never experienced it.

 

You also didn't say which airline you're flying. JetBlue has seatback TVs so that is great. On Continental/United, it depends on whether you get what was a Continental plane or a United plane. Going down to MCO last month, we got a Continenal plane. Coming home, United and there were seat back screens + free movies which was great.

 

My kids have been flying since my older son was not quite 3 and they are great. Older one brings his iPod touch and headphones, younger one brings either an iPod, or some sort of small toy and of course, his stuffed "puppy" is with us as well. He'll still curl up and take a nap at times. It's really a short flight and so much better than being stuck in the car for upwards of 21 hours.

[reallyexcited]

Unfortunately we are flying from laguardia. Only flights that were good times and reasonable. and we are flying Delta. I don't think I have ever flown delta!