Anyone know the safety guidelines for flying with a toddler? I have been purchasing M his own seat (for the sanity of unlucky sucker who gets stuck in a row with us) and, while I have tried to buckle him in at times, it's pretty much a lost cause. I have read about people taking their car seat on the plane...and the thought of that makes me shudder, cringe, and weep for more than one reason. So is it OK that he alternates from my lap to his seat to my lap to his seat..and on and on?
I saw this contraption: http://www.kidsflysafe.com/, and it looks like a great alternative to the car seat but, has anyone been successful at buckling in a 17 month old baby boy for an entire flight???????????
Sunday, July 20, 2008
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10 comments:
I so get being worried about flying with your kiddo!
I just saw on the Salsa in China blog that the mom used an attachable 5 point harness to the airplane seat. I don't know them at all, but just saw the post and thought it might be a good idea????
http://salsainchina.blogspot.com/
We always used to bring our carseat when the kids were little-it's so much easier for you to fly as they sit nicely and safely in their seat.
I have to say though, i've been flying w/ kaiya on my lap although it's mainly b/c we have 2 children to buy seats for and it can add up fast.
If you do bring your carseat with you-buy one of those bags with rollers at Babys R us-they are SO worth it and make it REALLY easy to transport the car seat through the airport.
nicole
We have flown several times with the kids and have only purchased a seat for Ainsley for our upcoming trip to Hawaii since she passed the 2 yr mark. Before that, we held both of them and lucked out by having them give us a row of 3 seats for the four of us and so we could always put one of them in the extra seat. FYI - there are only 4 overhead masks above each row of 3 seats - and so with our family of four including 2 lap kids, they either had to separate us OR give us a row of three seats even though we only paid for 2.
You can most definitely rotate between having M in the seat, holding him, walking him (when allowed), etc. I also saw the Salsa mom just used those Care harnesses and thought they looked good, but we haven't had any trouble with the kids hanging out in the seat too much with the seat belt, so we probably won't go that route.
Are you headed somewhere fun?!?
Shannon
I've flown a lot with the kids and we usually have not sprung for the extra seat in order to save cash. It'll be nice to have a little more room, for sure! I personally would not bring a car seat. You can hold him in your lap since he's still under 2 during take off and landing and other times when he would otherwise be required to wear a seat belt. during the rest of the flight, the two of you should be able to play and enjoy your extra space! and remember, if it gets a little hairy just smile and say, "This too shall pass!" :)
Hey Girl! We had GREAT luck with the first 2 kids. We flew A LOT and we always took their carseats..so they new the drill. You get buckeled in you stay there until Mom gets you out..Then came Ben and Rachel. They ARE NOT professional flyers and do not want to stay in there seats..The have to go to the bathroom a thousand times in 10 minutes. The carseat is a pain to get in and out, but it may be worth a try.
'One Step Ahead' has one that comes with this stroller thingy. My best friend has used it with all of her children when flying and she SWEARS by it. They know it is the "plane seat" and she can push them around the airport in it too. Then you put it straight into the rental car or what-ever. Might want to check it out. ALSO---It may be time for a *LEAPSTER. My toddlers love these things on planes- and they learn a little bit,too..you know..Which is cool! :)
xoxo,
A
Thanks for asking this question Tish...been trying to figure this out b/c we may be heading to Chicago in the next few months. But frankly flying from Hawaii to Chicago with Yu-Lin on our lap does not seem to appealing. Kristie
Flying with little ones has never been super fun for us either. We've always gotten an additional seat, too, and that helps. We also bring on the carseats for the babies even though they are aweful to carry around.
On the way home from Ethiopia, the delightful airline wouldn't let us use carseats and WOW, it was SO MUCH HARDER! At least for us, we're sold on taking along the carseat.
HTH
I have never seen such a contraption before... and I am a bad one to ask about flying with a baby, I've NEVER flown with a toddler. I flew with Loren when she was 3 months old and swore I would never fly with a young child again. Haha, joke's on me, I am going to fly 24 hours with a 2 year old boy pretty soon!!!!
Interesting airplane-seat... I would probably just do the lap-to-seat-to-lap thing, if it were me. :)
Rebecca
Funny... I love how many "always" and "never"s there are in these comments. : ) Well, here's mine: We have flown with our kids from CA to Kansas several times (including when they were babies and toddlers) and even to Thailand when our son was just barely 2 and daughter was 4 1/2. We've never taken a carseat on the planes. (We would check them with the luggage if needed). Sometimes had the extra seats, sometimes not. I figure if your child sleeps really well in the carseat, it might be worth lugging around - but neither of ours would have. AND I think when you're on a plane it doesn't feel like you're moving - so I always figured it would feel like being stuck in their carseat in the kitchen. Whatever you decide you want to do will be fine - pros and cons either way. Just don't show him the fun little lights and buttons up above you in the plane. : ) Trust me!!!
Tish,
We just flew with Andy, which was pretty much a disaster because all he wanted to do was walk... but we did buy this and it was great!
http://www.gogobabyz.com/products/gogo_kids.html
I don't rem where we bought it (somewhere online) but we found it for a lot cheaper than it was listed at above link. I think it fits most carseats. We actually also have the thing you mentioned, but we are sure Andy would not sleep in that - he did sleep a bit in his car seat. You don't *have* to buy them their own seat until 2yo, but it is a big boy to have on your lap!
Email me if you want more tips/ details on our travel with Andy.
love ya,
jen
PS - If we can help it, we are never flying again until all kids are at least 10 yo - JK! Seriously though, DO NOT plan a long plane ride with a kid who has JUST learned how to walk - NOT fun!
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