How to sort out baby on flight?
Carmel! Mummy of Kat and Tamara! asked:
My baby daughter is exactly one month old today..and in four months we are going on a long haul flight from London to Dubai. We will stop over at Bahrain for over an hour. Anyway, my daughter will be five months old by then, and I am planning on ****** feeding up to 12 months before switching to formula.
I was just wondering a few things;
-What would be a good choice of clothing for her to stay comfy?
-What are the essentials I need to take on the plane for her?
-Should I bottle my breastmilk or just take her to the toilets and breastfeed?
-How can I keep her entertained or hush her down if she starts screaming?
My baby daughter is exactly one month old today..and in four months we are going on a long haul flight from London to Dubai. We will stop over at Bahrain for over an hour. Anyway, my daughter will be five months old by then, and I am planning on ****** feeding up to 12 months before switching to formula.
I was just wondering a few things;
-What would be a good choice of clothing for her to stay comfy?
-What are the essentials I need to take on the plane for her?
-Should I bottle my breastmilk or just take her to the toilets and breastfeed?
-How can I keep her entertained or hush her down if she starts screaming?
thankyou! Sorry, I’m not the most organised mummy out there..I’ve never flown with a baby before.
Also, there is going to be a lot of swimming pools at our hotel in Dubai, so my husband and I are taking it in turns to go in the pool and to look after our baby. I was just wondering, would you take her in with you (obviously above water) and just carry her around in the water with her baby swimsuit?
And what is the best baby suncream as it will be so hot..luckily I am latin so she doesn’t have pale skin, but what routine should I do to keep her skin in good condition?
Thankyou so much!
Carmel
sorry this is only half your question, but they usually say that you should use sun block on babies that young
1. Do NOT feel obligated to go to the toilets to nurse your daughter while flying. First, it would most definitely inconvenience those passengers who will need to use the bathroom while you are nursing. Second, they are filthy and gross and so much smaller than a normal sized bathroom. It won’t be sanitary OR comfortable for either one of you. I would just sit in your seat and nurse her. If you are uncomfortable nursing in public use a nursing cover OR bottle your milk. But it is your right to nurse your daughter while flying and no one can force you to use the toilets if you don’t want to.
2. My son first went swimming when he was 2 months old. He LOVED it, so I’m sure your daughter will enjoy it at 5 months.
3. Even though you are latin I think it would still be wise to put baby sunblock on your daughter and make sure she has a hat on as well on really sunny days. The baby sunblock is formulated for sensitive skin so it shouldn’t bother her at all and it’s better to be safe than sorry. Babies burn a lot easier than adults.
Good luck and try to have fun. I’m flying overseas with my 14 month old in July. It will be his first time flying and I’m very nervous.
Ok, lots of questions!!
If you are still breastfeeding I wouldn’t bother with bottles at all, don’t forget airports are still funny about taking liquid on board. Just feed her on the plane if necessary, just make sure you’re discreet, get husband sitting on the right side to give you privacy. Feed her again at Bahrain.
Make sure she is warm as planes tend to be on the chilly side. Pyjama top and bottoms maybe (easiest for nappy changes), a cardigan and a blanket should do. She’ll have your warmth too and the airline will be able to gve you extra blankets if necessary. It’ll be warm when you get off so go for layers.
A dummy if you use one. If not you’ll just have to do whatever you normally do to soothe her. I can’t believe I’m saying this but the other passengers will have to lump it… gosh how being a parent changes your attitude!
Re swimming, get one of the baby rubber rings with foot holes in so she can sit in it unaided (with you close by obviously). This will help her confidence in the water. Waterproof suncream, highest factor you can find (40+) , and plenty of sunhats (tip, light coloured hats can be ruined with suncream so take some dark ones!).
I’m sure in Dubai you will be able to buy most of the things you get here, nappies etc… so don’t overpack or worry too much about forgetting stuff.
We’re taking our 16 month old abroad for the first time soon and, after making a huge scary list in my head of things to take, I suddenly thought they have kids abroad, sod taking all his stuff with us, he will have to get used to having less stuff on holiday like we all do!
As long as your daughter has milk, mummy and daddy she will be just fine! Have fun!
I took my daughter to italy when she was 4 months during the summer to visit my parents. It wasnt a long flights only 2 1/2 hour. She slept most of the time. I breastfed her right there. u can cover urself if u dnt feel comfortable. Change the baby into light clothing before u leave the airport.
Bring with u plenty of nappies, wipes, clean bottle with water/juice, bibs. muslin square, some toys for her age group, a blanket just in case it gets cold in the plane, muslin square.
put the strongest sunscreen u can find for children. Put it a while before u expose to the sun as per instructions on the bottle. Top it up to be sure every so often and everytime u put her in water.
buy some very light vests cos she wont be able to stand any other kind of clothing. Give her fresh water often and maybe some grated apple to keep her fresh.
I took my babygal to the seaside and she loved floating around .. she looked gawjus with her swimsuit and i got some really nice pics. So u can go together to da pool and enjoy family time together.
my baby is a mix and didnt get any sunburn i was still smudering her in sunscreen just in case.
Ooo that sounds a lovely place to go
1) Don’t take her into the toilet to nurse – she shouldn’t have to eat in a toilet, plus like the other poster said, it would cause an inconvienence. Either bottle your milk or cover yourself with a blanket.
2) Good choice of clothing would be clothes that are loose fitting but cover her skin – her skin is FAR too delicate to be exposed to extreme sun.
3) Essentials to take on the plane -
Does she take a dummy/paci? When landing and taking off, have her ******* her dummy or nurse her/bottle feed her – takes the pressure off her ears and makes them less likely to pop for lack of a better word. Some toys to keep her entertained, teethers in case she’s teething, a comforter if she has one.
4) Before she gets a chance to scream and cry, notice the warning signs (which will be unique to your daughter) and either try distract her, offer her a toy or get up and walk around with her. It’s not the end of the world if she does cry though!
5) I don’t know about suncreams – you’d be better off asking your health visitor or doctor
but babies that young should NOT be exposed to much sun, especially extreme sun. Even if she is of Latin origin, her skin is still very delicate. Keep her in the shade as much as possible, avoid the hottest parts of the day and keep a hat on her. If you manage to find a baby suncream, re apply it every couple of hours 
however if you don’t, I strongly advise you keep her out of the sun.
6) Well when I take my daughter swimming, i’m planning on just holding her above the water like you said, or lay her on her tummy (holding onto her head and shoulders keeping them out the water) so she can kick her legs. I’m sure it will come to you when you’re there.
Have fun
im not very organised either lol but lets start from scratch.1:CLOTHES,right its probably going to be cold here and warm there so i would say vest,sleepsuit and all in one coat and take a spare sleepsuit and vest,and shorts and t shirt,that way she will be comfy and warm and you can undress her as it gets warmer.always take spares just in case of accidents lol.2:ESSENTIALS,nappies(figure out how many nappys you will need and bring about 5 spares just in case.tins of baby food if shes on solids a blanket and a few toys.FEEDING: if shes still being breastfed then if you feel comfortable enough to do it where you are sat then do it there or you could do it in the loo.it would probably be better to do it where your sat though.i wouldnt bottle it as it may curdle(im not sure of how you would keep it cool on a plane).if she does bottlefeed formula by that time then i would suggest the cartons of maby milk.ENTERTAINMENT: just take a few toys that she enjoys,if she plays up then just do what you would usually do to hush her.dont worry if she makes noise,its a plane,not somebody elses private jet lol.take her in the pool with you,she will be fine.there are lots of baby suncreams out there and all brands are much the same just get the highest factor.id suggest applying it every hour to be on the safe side and keep her in the shade.good luck
oooh so much to say…my son is 6 months and has had 8 flights, caribean, miami, sanfrancisco. Monterey, Mallorca. I travel alone as meeting up with daddy at work. firstly pack 3/4 baby grows, vests for plane. you may not need all of them but if they loose your suitcase you can survive for 24 hours she just needs comfort. bring blanket so she can snuggle up in her smells. secondly, take at least 10 nappies, her stomache may get bad. every flight my sons done his tummys bad for a day with the pressurised gas so take it easy the 1st day or 2 let her aclimatise a bit, give her a new routine there so she can feel secure. Take away fav toys ones that can easy entertain her for good while a week before travel. get them out on plane!! be pushy you have a child ask to get at front of queus.
Request bulkhead seats when booking, ask for skycot. They may promise you this stuff and get someone earlier and give it to them so get to airport early and secure your good seat it is worth it. my boyfriends a pilot hense my attitude. leave early, if you are panicking and late baby will feel it. if you are early for everything you are calm can deal with any crisis. MAKE SURE you feed baby or get her to **** your fingers up and down on plane, remember you may still be climbing when seatbelt goes off so keep it up for 20 mins or pressure hurts their ears. told someone on plane, they didnt catch it in time, baby screamed all the way down…..are you bored yet?
Dont be stupid breastfeed at your seat noone will see. I expressed a bottle for going through airport just in case i got caught short.
insist your pram goes to plane door, mine didnt and they lost it in san fran i was travelling alone! nightmare. sometimes they make you goto caracell for buggies, ask nicely say you cant manage they should get it for you. get daughter aclimatised to new time straight away so try keeping her up till an early bedtime then when you come back, nightflight? get her ready for bed on flight. if she cries stay calm walk her ignore peoples stares you wont see them again so who cares, share it with your boyfriend.
docs, say pharmacies wont sell you creams for under 6 months coz its unethical to test so on docs advice get a 50+ cream (i use simple for sensitive skin) use a patch on leg before you go see if she has allergic reaction. get uv suit, mothercare do them and a hat with rim, babies **** the sun in their eyes, i got glasses too. suntogs.com? so cover them with cream then uv suit and hat and keep in shade yes get her in water. my son can now swim underwater look at waterbabies.co .uk there will be teacher in your area. you say a command and they learn it, hold their breath and go under water. my babies skin is very tanned naturally but babies skin is so sensitive its a nono at this stage. brand new skin. arrrrh sorry but i hope that answers all your questions
about feeding her when flying i agree dont bother expressing because of the liquid rule and it will be too much hassle trying to heat it etc on the plane i do recommend feeding her during in takeoff and landing if you can as the ******* and swallowing will stop her ears from hurting.
Our grandaughter is 8 months old and lives in US. We live in UK. She has flown frequently since she was a couple of months old. She is ****** fed and my daughter keeps a cover with her which she just throws over when she is feeding. She makes feeding her anywhere eg planes, trains, restaurants, parks, etc really easy. If baby becomes unsettled on a long journey she pops her on the ****** to settle her.
Something unfussy is best to travel in like an all-in-one. It depends how you usually dress her. Make sure you have nappies, wipes, baby spoon and food if she is on solids, small toys and teething rings, change of clothes, dummies are the best way to ensure she is quiet if you can get her to take one. .
Best thing is to keep a note of what you need for her in a normal day at home and take that for your journey. It is hard to give a definitive list as every home operates differently.
Babies can swim as soon as they have had their shots or vaccinations so certainly take her in the pool, she will love it. Get a rubber ring thing she will be tight in.
Ask the doctor / midwife / health visitor to recommend the best sun cream for her skin. Make sure she has a couple of sun hats in case you lose one.
Have a great time.