Travelling with Two
We took our first plane trip as a family of four last weekend. I took 3-month-old Guppy in the sling, while my husband G. Grod took nearly three-year-old Drake in his car seat on wheels. It had been several months since Drake flew. A few things had changed. One, he didn’t want to remain in the wheeled car seat, and he wanted to steer it himself through the airport. Unsurprisingly, we didn’t make swift progress that way. Two, he was very excited to be on the plane, though he looked somewhat frightened as we left the ground the first time. Once we were airborne, though, he was very excited, laughing and saying “whee!” with great delight, even for our descent through lightning clouds and turbulence that had me giving him a rictus grin and clutching my arm rest. The flight home was less felicitous. Not only did we have the delays as Drake navigated his own seat to our gate, but he melted down in the middle of the flight, screaming so loud and continuously that people halfway up the plane kept turning around with WTF looks on their faces. I couldn’t help, because Guppy and I were not even in the same row, but G. Grod (and some of the Tylenol I produced from my well-stocked new diaper bag) got Drake somewhat calmed until the descent, when the screaming re-commenced until landing. Everyone was the worse for wear after that flight. Guppy was his usual, Buddha-like self. I nursed him discreetly in the sling, for takeoff and descent, to help his ears. He cried a little on the flight out, and not at all on the flight home.
I’m taking both boys on a flight by myself in a few weeks. I’ll avail myself of some of the tips from this helpful article. Even though G. Grod and I ran a man-to-man defense this trip, we still had difficulty. By myself, I’m going to have to go to zone. I only hope Drake has a good day. I will also not hesitate to rely on, ask for, or perhaps even demand, some kindness of strangers.
Also, as un-PC as it is, I think it might be helpful to get this.
June 3rd, 2006 at 10:36 pm
When children decide the stroller/rolling car seat is not for them, the harness helps A LOT. I used one, and it helped me feel like I wasn’t going to lose my kid in the airport. Good luck with the next flight, and depending on how your kid reacts, Bennedryl is a mom’s best traveling friend.
June 15th, 2006 at 2:51 pm
I’ve heard mixed things about Benadryl, though I’ve had good results when Drake was younger with baby Tylenol. Purple magic medicine, I think I’ve called it.