two's company, four's a panic attack

Well, I did it, it is done and can I finally stop having nightmares about it already?!?! Really, I’ve had legitimate nightmares about flying on an airplane with a baby (9 mons), toddler (close to 2.5) and a child (5). This is how my adventure turned out…

My husband received and security pass that allowed him to walk us to the terminal where we sat. My, Aaron, the three kids, a diaper bag, a back pack, two kid backpacks and two pillow pets and two strollers. When it came time to board my husband bit us farewell (to a tearful Katie – HOW CUTE IS THAT!?) and I walked with the kids down the tunnel of terror. My instructions? To fold the stroller at the end. I get to the end and panic strikes: I need TWO hands to fold the stroller but I have only ONE if I hold the baby. I can’t keep the poor thing in the stroller while I fold it, I can’t lay her on the floor, “Joel, get back over here!”, maybe I can have Katie sit off to the side and hold her.

“Excuse me. Do you need some help?” Oh! Yes! A gentleman held my baby while I folded the stroller and we all boarded the airplane.

Now, let me just say to my fellow passengers. I am not happy to see your unhappy faces anymore than you’re happy to see me walk in with my entourage of mini-mes. But I considered driving, trains, buses, and other creative means only to realize that flying was it. Promise, I’m not looking forward to this either, can you please make this a tad less pleasant for me? I’m sure trying to make it bearable for you. Thanks. Moving on…

The first 3-seater available was located in the middle of the plane. We took it and I panicked once more. See, I read far too much than might be good for me and in one a flight attendant suggested to worry more about the seats/tray tables than the air when it comes to germs. Yes, the air gets recycled, but it gets filtered. Those seats, buckles, tray tables, arm rests, light buttons, air vents, window shades, head rests, walls… they don’t get cleaned in between each flight. So after some finagling I managed to clean the area by placing a less-than-happy Baby Clare on one of the seats. And we’re off!

A 5.5 hour flight with one stop where we did not exit the plane. The kids switched aisle/window seat during the stop. For the first hour they were fine. Then the stop where I was passively reprimanded by a thoroughly grumpy flight attendant for “moving about the cabin” before they completed their count. Sorry, mister man, the fact that I was distracted while you made the announcement and that other passengers were doing it also led me to move my people forward before you wanted. I apologized anyway. But not to be nice, just to point out that I was preoccupied while he spoke. No Heaven points for that one!

Basically, things went well until the last 1.5 hours. Joel. My son missed his nap to get the airport and basically doesn’t sleep anywhere but his bed. Now, it’s noisy enough on the airplane that I’m pretty sure only the people directly behind and in front of us could even hear his I-have-too-much-over-tired-energy outbursts of loudness, but I was super self-conscious anyway. I’m sure his jumping up and down in his seat annoyed someone other than myself, but it could have been worse.

One lady offered to hold the baby so I could catch a break and change Joel’s diaper. ( I had already gone through the spare outfit I brought, didn’t need a naked boy getting off the plane). After that, the babe feel asleep, I wrapped her up and laid her on the floor. YUP. And it worked out great too.

Our behind neighbor was sweet enough to help as we exited the plane and had to hike to get to the luggage area. It was hard enough WITH her help. I’m so grateful she offered.

The way back when a tad smoother even though it was (scheduled) an hour longer.

I awoke that morning and hit the snooze. Not because I didn’t want to get up at 5:45am, but because I didn’t want my reality to be myself on a plane with 3 little people. Still, I was consistently accompanied by a feeling of peace.

The routine getting on  was basically the same only this time there was a woman in the exact place at the right time to offer her assistance holding Clare while I boarded. And while the flow of people-traffic boarding after us sat as far away as open seats allowed, everyone was kind and tossed us fewer “oh no” looks.

The first 1.5 was taken up with legos. After that it was a mix between the iPad a friend let me borrow, snacks and random (new) surprise toys. The hour before our first landing some elderly gentlemen allowed themselves to be entertained by Joel and then Katie. They were a life-saver. They kept Joel’s attention and spoke to him softly. They were a God-send. I thank them for their patience, kindness and the little Bible they asked to leave us with.

During the flight’s down time I basically forced my kids to move around. Burn off that energy.

The next hour + flight time was nothing short of a miracle. Feeling tired and holding a drowsy baby, I decided to doze off, figuring the kids would wake me long before an emergency. I headed to dreamland with Joel wide awake lying on his pillow pet and Katie looking around. I awoke to everyone else asleep. I could not believe it. But I smiled, said a little prayer of gratitude and dozed back off again. When Katherine awoke she played with some of her legos. When Joel awoke, we were on the ground. Amazing.

And so, in conclusion, it really wasn’t as bad as it could have been. But I think the only thing worse than flying alone with 3 young children might be flying with sever OCD. Seriously! All those germs, the confined space, the touching of items hundreds of others have touched! And that’s just the BATHROOM on the plane!

Tips:

1)      If you’re gonna try to drug your kids, test them out before hand and know your kids. Melatonin and kid benadryl make my kids sleepy, but my children don’t sleep well unless in their beds. Don’t need two tired-but-unable-to-sleep AND bored children on a plane!

2)      My oldest loves crafts, but not so much on the plane. Go figure.

3)      Legos!!! My toddler boy needed something to manipulate with this hands. On the trip there, I didn’t really have anything like that for him and I paid for it. It didn’t matter that we lost pieces. What mattered was that he was able to build his own car and it kept his attention.

4)      Forget workbooks. They just don’t seem as exciting when you’re a kid on a plane! Well, bring one just in case.

5)      Toddlers aren’t into coloring.

6)      Movies on portable DVD players are great. But if your kid only watches 10 minutes of tv at home before jumping up to play with trains, he’s only going to watch 10 on the plane.

7)      Fun snacks. New snacks. When they are behaving, offer them a snack and praise their behavior – behavior management doesn’t all have to be about punishment.

8)      PROTIEN. Ever get done after a trip and feel like you’re not hungry yet you need a meal? Yeah, protein. We froze lunch meat on the way there and Lunchables on the way back. By the time we were ready to eat, they were thawed. Empty carbs, fruit, nuts, cookies, PB+J… even in large quantities don’t hold up for all-day fuel.

9)      iPad. I think Katherine (5) could have played that for hours straight and been fine. Not that she was my main concern anyway.

10)  Something for the ears to pop. “Everything is loud!” Katie exclaimed after I directed her to yawn.

11)  A pillow pet, jacket, blanket, anything to encourage sleep and comfort if you can spare the space.

Bon Voyage!