Yikes flying with a 1 yr old BOY

[Alice Sr.]

My DGS is the 1st boy in 4 generations and he was worth the wait . He is however at this point in is life unbridled, nonstop motion. He is part octopus, part Speedy Gonzales guaranteed to be a baller. He throws everything in site and has a great arm. He has never been a good napper (an still does not sleep through the night). Hates riding in the car, and is not shy about letting you know he's not happy about it no matter how long the drive. I know he is not unique but oh my I am so happy I am flying down before him. I don't think there is any chance that he is not going to be that baby that makes everyone on the plane want to throw him off. Do you have any horror stories you can share so we know you survived

 

[AngieInOH]

I will put this out there. My pediatrician recommended I give a decongestant before flying to help with the pressure in the ears. I myself have done this religiously after a very painful experience with my ears and have never had a problem since.

 

[Alice Sr.]

Interesting, I will relay that information. Thanks!

 

[ElenaRN]

I have flown with all 3 of my kids at all different ages. We flew down for DCL when my ODD was only 9 months. She cried the entire flight.
I found that being you are on your way to WDW there are a ton of families on the flight. Most people were sympathetic and reminiscing when thier kids were babies. So don't get to stressed if the baby isn't behaving. If he's walking let him walk up and down the aisle and say hi to everyone. Buy a few new toys for him to play with.
Have a great trip.

 

[SandyinMonterey]

When my daughter was almost 3 years old we flew from California to Florida, that was in 2008. My daughter just couldn't sit still for a minute. Not sitting in her own seat or on my lap. Made worse by a not so king airplane attendant who kept reminding me she had to be buckled in all the time. It was impossible. I remember another person on the flight telling me it's going to be okay, that we've all gone thru this. We didn't fly for several years after this.

 

[Alice Sr.]

When my daughter was almost 3 years old we flew from California to Florida, that was in 2008. My daughter just couldn't sit still for a minute. Not sitting in her own seat or on my lap. Made worse by a not so king airplane attendant who kept reminding me she had to be buckled in all the time. It was impossible. I remember another person on the flight telling me it's going to be okay, that we've all gone thru this. We didn't fly for several years after this.

Lol, you can laugh at it after the fact but ugh not a fun experience. We flew with my then 2 yr old DGD a couple of years ago and she was the same, could not hold still and super grumpy. It was terrible. There were some high school girls a couple rows behind us, and when we were in the aisle to deplane they were smiling and waving at her and saying how cute she was and and she hissed at them. She was bad, with her we never saw it coming we were all shell shocked by her behavior. Maybe since we are expecting the worse with the boy we will be pleasantly surprised. Thanks for sharing

 

[♥ Mandi ♥]

Never underestimate the power of an iPad/YouTube! We flew with my toddler when he was 13mos and again when he'd just turned 2. First time was definitely easier as he was still a baby and napped, had a bottle, etc. but the iPad was a life saver when he was a bit older. Kids at that age are mesmerized by videos of other kids playing with toys, haha! I know some people are super against screen time for little ones but in a situation like this it's for the greater good

 

[Luv Bunnies]

We flew with our son right after his 1st birthday. It was only about a 90 minute flight. He was awesome! He was already using a sippy cup with a straw, and I gave him a little diluted juice during take-off and landing. The swallowing motion kept his ears from getting clogged up. During the flight, he sat in my lap with his pacifier and dozed off. On the way home, the flight attendant asked if she could hold him since she was missing her own baby. He could be a pretty active and vocal guy most of the time. We lucked out during the flights!

 

[BugByte]

In February this year we flew with our 4 month old daughter. We are from the UK so it is a 9 hour flight.

Our older daughter (now 8) was actually born in Canada and she had multiple long haul flights before she was aged one. She always slept soundly and was generally no trouble. I think we were expecting something similar this time around with our youngest.....oh how wrong we were....

It was torture! She cried pretty much from 20 minutes in to the flight for the full 9 hours. Nothing helped....she was in meltdown. I was carrying her round rocking her, endlessly, doing whatever I could to settle her. If nothing else to try and give nearby passengers some respite from the noise. I ended up so exhausted myself that i was almost sick whilst standing holding her

We had a few sympathetic looks from some older ladies sat nearby.....honestly that meant a lot. I apologized to a young couple sat behind us when we arrived and the young woman was clearly angry as she could barely look me in the eye.

We were all absolutely broken by the time we arrived...I had a killer migraine from the exhaustion.

Sorry, this isn't painting a pretty picture!

Needless to say for the flight home I was dreading it! And......she slept soundly in my arms the entire way home. Such a relief!

Apparently there is such a thing as a "4 month sleep regression". Typical that this would happen while we are all trapped in a narrow capsule for 10 hours thousands of feet above the Atlantic!

 

[Alice Sr.]

In February this year we flew with our 4 month old daughter. We are from the UK so it is a 9 hour flight.

Our older daughter (now 8) was actually born in Canada and she had multiple long haul flights before she was aged one. She always slept soundly and was generally no trouble. I think we were expecting something similar this time around with our youngest.....oh how wrong we were....

It was torture! She cried pretty much from 20 minutes in to the flight for the full 9 hours. Nothing helped....she was in meltdown. I was carrying her round rocking her, endlessly, doing whatever I could to settle her. If nothing else to try and give nearby passengers some respite from the noise. I ended up so exhausted myself that i was almost sick whilst standing holding her

We had a few sympathetic looks from some older ladies sat nearby.....honestly that meant a lot. I apologized to a young couple sat behind us when we arrived and the young woman was clearly angry as she could barely look me in the eye.

We were all absolutely broken by the time we arrived...I had a killer migraine from the exhaustion.

Sorry, this isn't painting a pretty picture!

Needless to say for the flight home I was dreading it! And......she slept soundly in my arms the entire way home. Such a relief!

Apparently there is such a thing as a "4 month sleep regression". Typical that this would happen while we are all trapped in a narrow capsule for 10 hours thousands of feet above the Atlantic!

Ooh, I feel so bad for you. That would be incredibly exhausting and stressful for you. Glad you got a good return or it would have probably stymied your future travels. Thanks, it does help as the flight will only be 2.5 hours. I'll remind my DD of your experience so if the boy is disruptive she can remember it will only by 2.5 vs 9 hours. If all else fails that will have to be some comfort

 

[Rory607]

I have flown with all 3 of my kids at all different ages. We flew down for DCL when my ODD was only 9 months. She cried the entire flight.
I found that being you are on your way to WDW there are a ton of families on the flight. Most people were sympathetic and reminiscing when thier kids were babies. So don't get to stressed if the baby isn't behaving. If he's walking let him walk up and down the aisle and say hi to everyone. Buy a few new toys for him to play with.
Have a great trip.

Last fall when we were flying to WDW, a older man was boarding and as he walked past our seats I heard him grumble, “ I didn’t expect so many kids on this flight!” I had a laugh at that one! A flight to Orlando probably isn’t the best place if you don’t like kids

OP, your grandson sounds like my DS. He was just constant motion at that age (and still is!) We flew for the first time when he was exactly one year old. I prepared myself for the worst, but it ended up being okay. We packed lots of snacks, like the baby puffs. I would dole out one puff at a time to make them last longer. I bought new cheap toys that we could pull out throughout the flight. We also took a very early plane so he was tired and ready for a nap partway into the flight. I’m sure he was fussy at times, but we survived!

 

[Rory607]

In February this year we flew with our 4 month old daughter. We are from the UK so it is a 9 hour flight.

Our older daughter (now 8) was actually born in Canada and she had multiple long haul flights before she was aged one. She always slept soundly and was generally no trouble. I think we were expecting something similar this time around with our youngest.....oh how wrong we were....

It was torture! She cried pretty much from 20 minutes in to the flight for the full 9 hours. Nothing helped....she was in meltdown. I was carrying her round rocking her, endlessly, doing whatever I could to settle her. If nothing else to try and give nearby passengers some respite from the noise. I ended up so exhausted myself that i was almost sick whilst standing holding her

We had a few sympathetic looks from some older ladies sat nearby.....honestly that meant a lot. I apologized to a young couple sat behind us when we arrived and the young woman was clearly angry as she could barely look me in the eye.

We were all absolutely broken by the time we arrived...I had a killer migraine from the exhaustion.

Sorry, this isn't painting a pretty picture!

Needless to say for the flight home I was dreading it! And......she slept soundly in my arms the entire way home. Such a relief!

Apparently there is such a thing as a "4 month sleep regression". Typical that this would happen while we are all trapped in a narrow capsule for 10 hours thousands of feet above the Atlantic!

I feel anxious just reading this, so I can’t imagine actually experiencing it! You poor thing. I know it wouldn’t work during Covid, but I would have offered to hold her for a while, just to at least give your family a break. How stressful.

 

[Lilsia]

We have been flying with our 2 kids since they were 1 and 2 years old(they are now adults). We started early taking them out and about to learn how to "sit nice" when we were places. So no getting up from your chair at restaurants or running around when not at home, no screaming in public, don't run off, etc. It is never too early to teach these, not only life saving behaviors, but also good social norms. Still toddlers are toddlers. So for our trips, I went to the dollar store and got little toys that they had not seen and a bunch of new snacks that they did not get at home. When on the plane, when I could see that they started getting antsy, I would pull out one of these new items to distract them. I don't like the excuse that a boy is incapable of sitting still and the whole "boys will be boys". That is just excusing bad behavior. If he truly is incapable of behaving, then maybe putting off the trip is a good idea. A year or two makes a huge difference in kids that age.

 

[easyas123]

We have been flying with our 2 kids since they were 1 and 2 years old(they are now adults). We started early taking them out and about to learn how to "sit nice" when we were places. So no getting up from your chair at restaurants or running around when not at home, no screaming in public, don't run off, etc. It is never too early to teach these, not only life saving behaviors, but also good social norms. Still toddlers are toddlers. So for our trips, I went to the dollar store and got little toys that they had not seen and a bunch of new snacks that they did not get at home. When on the plane, when I could see that they started getting antsy, I would pull out one of these new items to distract them. I don't like the excuse that a boy is incapable of sitting still and the whole "boys will be boys". That is just excusing bad behavior. If he truly is incapable of behaving, then maybe putting off the trip is a good idea. A year or two makes a huge difference in kids that age.

Excellent points.

 

[Alice Sr.]

Last fall when we were flying to WDW, a older man was boarding and as he walked past our seats I heard him grumble, “ I didn’t expect so many kids on this flight!” I had a laugh at that one! A flight to Orlando probably isn’t the best place if you don’t like kids

OP, your grandson sounds like my DS. He was just constant motion at that age (and still is!) We flew for the first time when he was exactly one year old. I prepared myself for the worst, but it ended up being okay. We packed lots of snacks, like the baby puffs. I would dole out one puff at a time to make them last longer. I bought new cheap toys that we could pull out throughout the flight. We also took a very early plane so he was tired and ready for a nap partway into the flight. I’m sure he was fussy at times, but we survived!

That's what they are planning. He loves food so that may help, and he is just getting into baby games on the tablet so between that, food/snacks and hopefully a little cat nap they will survive. Thanks

 

[Alice Sr.]

We have been flying with our 2 kids since they were 1 and 2 years old(they are now adults). We started early taking them out and about to learn how to "sit nice" when we were places. So no getting up from your chair at restaurants or running around when not at home, no screaming in public, don't run off, etc. It is never too early to teach these, not only life saving behaviors, but also good social norms. Still toddlers are toddlers. So for our trips, I went to the dollar store and got little toys that they had not seen and a bunch of new snacks that they did not get at home. When on the plane, when I could see that they started getting antsy, I would pull out one of these new items to distract them. I don't like the excuse that a boy is incapable of sitting still and the whole "boys will be boys". That is just excusing bad behavior. If he truly is incapable of behaving, then maybe putting off the trip is a good idea. A year or two makes a huge difference in kids that age.

Totally agree, one of my biggest pet peeves is when people allow their children to act in public like they would in their playroom. But we will give the boy a chance, if his temperament is not conducive to flying we will try again when he's two. Unless it's really bad and then it might be when he's three

 

[Betty Rohrer]

My DGS is the 1st boy in 4 generations and he was worth the wait . He is however at this point in is life unbridled, nonstop motion. He is part octopus, part Speedy Gonzales guaranteed to be a baller. He throws everything in site and has a great arm. He has never been a good napper (an still does not sleep through the night). Hates riding in the car, and is not shy about letting you know he's not happy about it no matter how long the drive. I know he is not unique but oh my I am so happy I am flying down before him. I don't think there is any chance that he is not going to be that baby that makes everyone on the plane want to throw him off. Do you have any horror stories you can share so we know you survived

I have a daughter now an adult but at 8 months loved car rides not matter how long but her first airplane flight was just about her last. we did a night flight thinking she would sleep like she did in car. wrong but at that time using a carseat on plane was unheard for under 2 years olds. she screamed whole way cross country like a 5 hour flight. add to it out carseat was cracked and unusable when we got there. after stores closed in that area so we had to hold her in car not how we planned to start family visit. and she is now my one who loves to fly

 

[Alice Sr.]

I have a daughter now an adult but at 8 months loved car rides not matter how long but her first airplane flight was just about her last. we did a night flight thinking she would sleep like she did in car. wrong but at that time using a carseat on plane was unheard for under 2 years olds. she screamed whole way cross country like a 5 hour flight. add to it out carseat was cracked and unusable when we got there. after stores closed in that area so we had to hold her in car not how we planned to start family visit. and she is now my one who loves to fly

Lol, if she has a child I would pass on the opportunity to fly with them on their 1st flight, just in case

 

[Betty Rohrer]

Lol, if she has a child I would pass on the opportunity to fly with them on their 1st flight, just in case

she now has 4 boys, none of them has flown but all travel 10 hours at a time car trips and love to travel. we brought them all home last summer including a 2 night stop on way home. stopped at a drive thru zoo had a great time without mom and dad. best way to get great behavior out of any of the 4 is tell them we are heading somewhere. youngest was 16 months when we did a 22 hour/ 2day drive to Disney and he was ready to do it again as soon as we got back. only difference in him and his mom is he doesnt slept in car but travels great. like his mom they did an overnight 10hour drive. didnt sleep the whole night when he was just past 2 years old. wasnt Disney but another park. fell asleep in stroller walking to park a nd slept most of the day. yes I have many stories about traveling with young kids

 

[Disneyfan754321]

Buy him his own seat... worth the money.
They can sit in the car seat so they can not run around and if all goes right they are fast asleep on no time especially if you pick a late flight.
If you have a old cell phone lying around download netflix or amazon prime movies/shows to watch offline. The cell phone is nice because it's small vs tablets. My son also had a few little games like sesame street it had little clips of abc games my son thought it was cool even though he couldnt play it.
I am a mom of 5 boys no girls..
We use liquid melatonin every night before bed, it really helps them sleep.
We flew a lot so we hada carseat stroller... kinda like a suitcase with a handle that pulls out.