I have discovered the best way to travel with my three year old – leave him home with grandma – haha. Seriously, the last time we had to take him on a plane (October 2013 – for a family wedding…so he HAD to come along and attend). That flight was the least amount of fun I have ever had in my life. I might be able to somehow relate travel with kids to some form of torture.
I needed more ideas on how to occupy his brain while he also needed to stay seated and buckled for several hours at a time. For the plane ride, I brought: puzzles, coloring books, crayons, the iPad, stickers, post it notes, snacks, toys (hot wheels cars, action figures, shiny and new UN-OPENED toys…the list goes on). And still with all of this, the 4 hour flight (yes I said it ONLY 4 hours) was a nightmare that I never ever want to repeat in life.
So when I surprised my 16 year old daughter with our first ever trip to London this past November 2013 – we left the 3 year old behind with grandma. This was the best trip ever, there was no crying child that I had to care for or drag everywhere. I slept a solid 8 hours every night we were there (which in and of itself was super amazing I must say) and we saw Bruno Mars in concert at the O2 – I couldn’t have asked for anything more 🙂
Being back from London (aka: Paradise), I am praying that the next family wedding we have to attend (October 2014) will be a peaceful flight for us and those traveling on our plane – besides he will be 4 years old by then and that is super grown up and mature for a kid…right?!?!
Angela, you HAVE to read the post I wrote back in 2007 about traveling to the West Coast from Ohio with my then 16-month old: https://www.workingmomsagainstguilt.com/2007/09/traveling-with-toddlers-a-cautionary-tale/
Truly one for the ages 🙂
Hahahahahah. Ok that post was HILARIOS!!!! And guess where we traveled to for that family wedding – OHIO. Maybe i consider myself lucky that it was not the noxious poop just the shrill tantrum cries, hahahaha.
DEFINITELY consider yourself lucky 🙂 Traveling with toddlers is always an adventure, that’s for sure.