Flying with kids

This entry, rather then focusing on a specific destination, will be focused on making the actual air travel experience pleasant. Living in Hawaii, we spend a disproportionate amount of our travel time on planes. So I have come up with a few routines to make our time in the air (and waiting in line) fun for the whole family.

The first is - an element of surprise. Everyone loves opening a present ! So before we leave, I buy a few new toys for the kids and pack them in my carryon (a zip-top canvas totebag that I can access easily and store under the seat in front of me) and I bring them out one at a time (pace yourself!!!) when we need a distraction. A few favorites ?

Cheerios and dental floss for my 3 year old to use to make necklaces and earrings (loop the floss over the tops of those little ears and VOILA - EARRINGS !) Cheerios aren't sticky, and the floss comes in a compact dispenser.

Sticker books, with reusable stickers, so you can move them around on the pages.

Puzzle/coloring/activity books that are age appropriate (my little one likes the dry-erase books so she can practice her letters).

Small packages of Playdo. Playdo has small containers that also include a stamper or shape-maker on the lid - compact and easy to clean up !

Paper dolls and paper airplanes. They decorate the airplanes in flight, then find a quiet corner of the airport during a layover and throw them around for a few minutes. Yes, it may annoy some people, but the kids will probably annoy MORE people sitting at the gate whining, so I try to find an area away from the crowds and let them get their yayas out.

Knex or other magnet-based game, from dress up dolls to checkers. At least one of these per kid, everyone will keep busy.

And last but not least - a brand new box of crayons and cool notebook for each kid to create a journal of the trip ! Whenever I hear that someone is bored, I whip out the notebook, crayons, and stickers, and tell them to make a picture about what they have done that day.

And for the grownups - I go out the night before, buy a stack of magazines and books and have them ready for both of us, on the odd chance that we will be allowed any peace and quiet to read. Isn't that optimistic of me?

But besides entertainment, what else is in my travel bag ?

Baby Wipes
Hand Sanitizer
Face Lotion
Empty water bottles (that I can fill once we get through security)
Teabags (I drink tea almost constantly during the flight)
Emergen-C packets
Granola Bars
Nuts and dried fruits or fruit chews
Lollipops
Pen and pad of paper
Hair elastics
Pashmina
Fleece jackets, which are great pillows, and come in handy on the red eye when you have to wake up and switch planes. They wash easily and dry quickly - miraculous !

And in our small carry-on suitcase, which is stored overhead, I have a complete change of clothes for everyone, our bath essentials (toothbrushes and deodorant go in first), bathing suits so that the kids can swim as soon as we check in (especially if we are waiting for the room to be ready) and pajamas. Each child carries their own small backpack - in the beginning, it is empty except for their fleece jacket and maybe a favorite toy or security blanket. It fills up during the course of the trip as I pull new items out of my bag of tricks :)