2008-01-30T13:52:02-08:00

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2008-02-03T12:40:21-08:00

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2008-01-31T19:41:13-08:00

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2008-02-03T12:40:21-08:00

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2008-01-31T19:33:35-08:00

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2008-02-03T12:40:21-08:00

2008-01-31T19:33:56-08:00

My family (wife and three kids) have flown internationally for many years.  Here are some tips for those traveling with little kids: 1. If traveling with infants, remember that they also get affected by cabin pressure changes. Get a bottle ready before take-off and before landing.  If they drink that bottle during take-off / landing, it'll help compensate so their ears don't hurt.  For older kids, bring gum or something to chew on. 2. Be sure to bring enough things for them to play with. Like crayons, coloring books, plastic scissors (adults have the plastic knives and their ballpoint pens to attack others with), DVD player with their favorite videos and earphones (why do some parents think everyone wants to listen), cards, etc.  If you have a couple of kids, bring a pair of normal ear pieces -- it can be plugged into a DVD player or iPod, and then each can listen on one of the ear pieces.  3. Bring some food & snacks that they like. Airplane food may not be it, though sometimes getting served soft drinks and your own tray can be pretty cool.  But airplane food doesn't always cater to children's tastes, and there are hours inbetween meals you need to cover.  Our favorites were dried apricots, dried mangos, crackers, peanut M&Ms, Japanese rice crackers, trail mix, nuts.  Sour dried Chinese plums, now that'll wake you up.  Instant drink powder that you add to water.  4. Keep in mind that everyone will not love your kids if you let them go wild and scream in flight. Unconditional love only applies to parent and the parent's children.  Bad parenting is pretty obvious to everyone.  Don't let them flip and drop the tray table over and over again.  Don't let them kick the seat in front of them.  If something is really bothering them and causing them to cry (or scream), take the time to help them through it.  5. The barf bag makes a great puppet. You can you draw a face on it.  You can cut things out of construction paper and tape it on.  Then you can use your Homer voice and have a little fun.  Just be sure the bag hasn't been used (that happened to me once, it only takes once). 6. Benadryl can be your friend. As an antihistamine, it knocks out the kids. 7. Take them for a walk around the plane now and then. Kids don't need to be cooped up in their seat.  Walk them down the aisles.  Show them the restroom, the little cups, the paper towels, and so on.  If it's not busy, show them the galley.  Most flight attendants seem to enjoy little kids.  Aside from their jobs, they and we are all just normal people.  I've seen some passengers look grumpy about it, I saw others that clearly enjoy talking or playing with the kids.  8. Stay engaged with them.Talk with them about different things.  Play imaginary games with them.  Divert them when they get bored, especially if they start fighting with one another.  For those of you without kids, this must sound like loads of work.  Make no mistake, it is.  But it's what I was willing to do to make air travel a good time for the kids.  I did want to travel again without them complaining about how boring it was.  My kids have all become great travelers, they know how to occupy themselves, they all think nothing of a six-hour (which is how long it takes to get to Hawaii) or 10-hour flight (Japan).  The oldest (22 years old) has now ventured twice with friends out to Europe.  When my sister-in-law was much younger, she used to say:  Whenever I get the urge to have kids, I spend an hour at Chuck E. Cheese to get it out of my system.  Haha, that'll do it.  But those of us who have kids, we know it changed our lives forever.   It's different when they are your own.   And it comes down to this for me.  I remember all the things I liked and didn't like about the way I was raised by my parents.  And I remember all the things I liked and didn't like about the way I was managed at work.  Then I try to do what I think is the right or better thing with my kids and my employees.  In the case of my kids. learning how to travel was one of them.  We all need to pay it forward. See also: <ul> <li><a href="/creations/5244-How-to-kill-time-in-flight-and-at-airports/steps/1" mce_href="/creations/5244-How-to-kill-time-in-flight-and-at-airports/steps/1">How to kill time in flight and at airports</a></li> <li><a href="/creations/5423-Eight-Tips-for-International-Travel/steps/1" mce_href="/creations/5423-Eight-Tips-for-International-Travel/steps/1">Eight Tips for International Travel</a></li> <li><a href="/creations/5416-Ten-Tips-for-Air-Travel/steps/1" mce_href="/creations/5416-Ten-Tips-for-Air-Travel/steps/1">Ten Tips for Air Travel</a></li> </ul> 19500

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