flying with a child – Greek Mom Moments

So as I mentioned earlier in the week we survived the flight to our destination and certainly had learned a lot for our return flight back. On the road again…this time we decided to pay the extra money and check in all of the suitcases. We just each kept a backpack with us and the diaper bag. The diaper bag had less toys for the airport. Since this airport was larger than the one we flew out of in Canada I knew I could find things to keep her entertained. But pretty much the same amount of food, clothes, diapers, wipes, etc.

We got to the airport early and were the first in line to check in when we were allowed to. This gave us ample time to go through security, even though dad somehow go stuck behind us which caused a screaming frenzy from the child who thought we were leaving daddy behind. We spent a chunk of time closer to the food area as our gate was towards the end of the airport and we figured more for her to see and be entertained by.

We boarded the plane first and were able to secure our car seat in. This time I sat with the child and all was well with the world when the amazing steward told me that I could give her the iPad and didn’t need to take it away for take-off. I think everyone on the plane loved him at that moment. In all honesty, the rest is pretty boring. She drank a bit of water and fell asleep as we were taking off, iPad in hand. I took it away and she woke up as we were descending in Toronto.

I know you’re saying that’s it? Well it was for the moment. Hubby and I decided that we’d let the others out first and then we’d get off the plane since we had our bags, the car seat, the kid, etc. There were only a few people left way in the back and we started to get our stuff together. I remember putting the child down for a second to grab the bag and next thing I knew there was vomit all over the floor. I look up and then there is more vomit all over me, the kid and the bags. At this point the kid is crying and if you know me, I’m not good with vomit. I tend to gag if it is happening around me. In all honesty I don’t know how I held it together but thank God for the crew of our flight. They were so quick with the towels, packets of wipes, bags for the clothes, shoes, etc., this is where all of the extra clothes I packed in the diaper bag came in handy. In the future note to self pack a pair of slippers or indoor shoes. I didn’t have any and so it became a bit tricky when later on the kid wasn’t allowed to walk at all. Of course you’re mortified as a parent and can’t believe this happened. The steward told me that he’s done it and the pilot came out and said this happens more often than you think. Because of the delay we got caught in between two domestic flights which meant we had to wait for about 10 minutes as international people can’t mix in hallways with domestic people but we chatted it up with the staff and honestly everyone was amazing!

One lesson learned that I never thought of was to throw in an extra piece of clothing for mom and dad. I ended up having to drive home in the vomit stained clothing but honestly my kid was fine and in amazing spirits so I couldn’t have asked for anything more.

A big thank you to the crew of Porter Airlines, if you ever have a chance to fly them do not hesitate. They are amazing and continue to be my carrier of choice!

Roula

A little ditty about Jack and Diane...no really in all seriousness I'm a daughter, sister, wife and mother. I'm a Greek-American, who has transplanted in Canada. As a first time mom I'm sharing some things as I go along.

Well it is official. We’ve taken off on our first airplane ride. Now let me tell you flying with a toddler is 100% different than flying solo in case you didn’t know. It is the little things I think that I took most for granted, like going to the bathroom before the plane took off.

So the biggest difference is the stuff. Now as a fairly frequent flyer before having my child I had perfected the carry-on bag. One carry-on approved size rolling suitcase and off I went. With a child one rolling suitcase is just the beginning. You have to start with the diaper bag. My diaper bag was a mishmash of things. From extra clothes in case of who knows what, to toys to keep her entertained in the airport, to of course diapers, wipes, creme and trash bags, we also had snacks. Now the strawberries and breakfast bar were eaten in the 40 minutes we we’re waiting to check in. The downside to having a crazy long name is usually a letter is misplaced or doesn’t fit which throws everything off. Now there was the issue of the child having to be attached to a parent, based on FAA regulations which was fine until boarding when we realized my husband and child were assigned the same seat. The good thing is we were flying a Canadian Regional carrier and everyone was amazing. A big thank you to the man whose seat we took, thanks for switching one window seat for another! I hope your 16 month old son, who I got to hear all about during the flight, realizes one day what an awesome dad he has and thanks for going with the flow.

Now once we got on the plane we had to install the car seat (we got the kid her own seat even though she was under 2). There were three other little ones who were lap babies and quite honestly I’m not sure how they did it. Two women were flying alone alone with their little ones and one toddler was with both parents. I think being a toddler changes the game. They were chatty, yelling and wanting up. There was a couple directly behind my husband and the child, she wanted daddy and not mommy to sit next to her, who you know we’re judging our every move. The rolling of the eyes, the dirty looks when the kid yelled out, etc. I’m not sorry that my kid was being a kid. I’m sorry you were stuck behind us but it is the luck of the draw. You probably would have been giving me nasty looks even if you were no where near us. For the most part I think the kid did well. The iPad was our saviour, as was the short flight.

Now must haves for flying:
1) The Go-Go Babyz Travelmate car seat carrier. The kid just sat in this and we rolled her around the airport. It was perfect for my curious child who wants to be part of the action and see everything going on around her. If you want to see what it looks like you can check out their website here.

2) The iPad, iPod, something electronic. Now I admit my child knows her way around a phone as most curious creatures her age. Being able to hand this to her as we were waiting to get through security or for the suitcases was huge.

3) Food. Even though the carrier we were on served snacks and drinks, we still brought our own. Our favourite freeze dried yogurt bites and cheerios saved us a couple of times. Also something to drink during take off and landing. We had a fairly easy take off as it was all new and quite honestly she was too busy yelling trying to talk louder than the sounds coming out of the plane. On the descent though she didn’t want to drink anything and I know it hurt her a bit. It was the one and only time I was begging my child to take a pacifier (which she threw away on her own around four months). Just something to help relieve the pressure. But even though she didn’t, we survived.

4) Stickers, books and a blanket. Things to keep her entertained and keep her comfortable. She ended up wanting her shoes and socks off so having the blanket helped.

5) Going with the flow. Seriously it was a pretty easy flight looking back. Obviously as a first time mom and this being the first time flying with the kid you come up with all of these scenarios in your head but at the end of the day being able to just go with it and enjoy it!

Now the flight back was a whole different can of worms. More to come on that later in the week. Up, up and away!!