Quick~what would you take for a 3yo on a 9 hour flight!

[Strong Mama]

And a 4 hour drive. And i 1hour layover. And then the 9 hour flight. And then another 2 hour drive.???

What shall I pack!Thanks!

[Lil'M]

Music
books on cd
clay
spiral notebook (Many pages, little mess)
crayons
stickers
books
colorforms or magnet board
small figurines or dolls
FOOD
Change of clothes (for both of you, because its fun to have a drink spilled on you in the first hour of a nine hour flight)

[Plaid Leopard]

Good suggestions above - especially the music and stories on CD.

When we go on a long trip I usually pack a special lunchbox or bag for my children that they don't get until we are in the car or plane.
I include a juice box, crackers or chips, a sweet like cookies or chocolate, maybe a sandwich, plus a new toy or small game.

Then of course you will need more food. Yeah, lots of food is important!

Where are you going?

[Tinas3muskateers]

A seditive hahaha... just kidding

I would take crayons, paper, sticker books, reading books, maybe some small mcdonalds toys or little people.

[wifty]

A magnadoodle is always a fav of my dd when traveling and stickers and a place to stick them. :-)

Good luck!

[Strong Mama]

Taking notes, thanks guys!

[PumpkinSeeds]

We just did this and my 3yo was more difficult to entertain than my 5yo. We bought some pipe cleaners and pom poms, some lace up toys, and big beads and string that were really popular.

Also I took stickers and put them all up and down my arm which was easier for the 3yo to peel off my arm than from the backing.

Also a container like a lunchpail or a pen bag that they can open and close themselves and put stuff inside is a big hit with my kids for some reason.

[hergrace]

I have to confess that long plane rides is the one time we let DS watch lots of movies on a portable DVD player. He is too active for most quiet activities over a long time, but he will watch movies quite happily - and sometimes even sleep. He watches very little tv or movies at home, so it's a real treat for him and keeps the rest of us sane.

The car rides around the plane ride usually work better than the plane ride itself - he's more likely to sleep and there is more to look at. We just bring a lot of different music that we know he likes and plenty of food.

HTH

[Martha_2sons]

This will probably get me a lot of flack but ... when recently traveling alone with my four y/o and 1 y/o the portable DVD was a life saver. The library books that I brought along and didn't show him until we were on the plane were also a big hit.

[DariusMom]

Originally Posted by hergrace

I have to confess that long plane rides is the one time we let DS watch lots of movies on a portable DVD player. He is too active for most quiet activities over a long time, but he will watch movies quite happily - and sometimes even sleep. He watches very little tv or movies at home, so it's a real treat for him and keeps the rest of us sane.

The car rides around the plane ride usually work better than the plane ride itself - he's more likely to sleep and there is more to look at. We just bring a lot of different music that we know he likes and plenty of food.

HTH

Portable DVD player is the way to go. Seriously. I live in Europe and my family is in the States and we fly over at least yearly -- including one six hour flight, layover, a two hour flight (more or less) and up to a two hour drive.

Also, we often take toys out of circulation a few weeks before the flights so that they're "new" and interesting again.We also buy small little cheap gifts and have them wrapped up so there are new presents when DS gets bored.

My DS love to be read to, so we bring lots of books. He also likes to draw, so we always bring coloring books and drawing paper.

Also, pack snacks and such. You can't depend on the airline to have enough food to keep a grumpy toddler happy.

Basically, try to make it as special as possible.

Good luck!

[DariusMom]

Originally Posted by Martha_2sons

This will probably get me a lot of flack but ... when recently traveling alone with my four y/o and 1 y/o the portable DVD was a life saver. The library books that I brought along and didn't show him until we were on the plane were also a big hit.

I can't imagine who would give you flack for that! It's fine if people don't believe in much (any) TV for their kids, but I'd love to hear from a parent with one (much less *two*) child(ren) who has flown on a long haul flight who hasn't at least wished for something like a portable DVD player to distract the kid(s).

As I said in my other post, I do long haul international flights at least yearly and the portable DVD player has been wonderful for me, my son, and the other passengers. No apologies from me for using it!

[pixiesmommy]

I vote for pipecleaners too- you can bend them into flowers, animals, all kinds of fun shapes and make up stories with them. They have kept my daughter entertained for hours at a time on our 2-day car rides since she was about 4. Just bend and use them like puppets, then unbend and re-use if you want!

'Manda

[Eman'smom]

I just flew across country with a 5 year old and a 3 year old alone, including a nice little over 2 hour stink on the tramac not counting the flights.


The DVD player was beyond a lifesaver. The kids plowed through there other entertainement pretty quickly, the movies were wonderful. I even got to read a bit.



I went to the Target "dollar spot" before going they had mini dry erase boards that were a huge hit.

[daniedb]

Absolutely a DVD player. I do have to warn you - I've gotten flak (but only once) from a flight attendant that I had to use headphones so the other passengers weren't disturbed. FIrst of all, that an 18 mo would wear headphones, and secondly, that passengers would rather hear a bored, rambling, crying child than a very low volume, pleasant movie score.

Tennis shoes, because you'll be going up and down the aisle, and up and down again, and up and down and up and down.....

My kiddo is in love with the Color Wonder coloring books, it's one of the only things that keeps him in one place. Also, Play Doh is a great, sitting activity.

And, :, but something that keeps him entertained on long trips is his letters game. I abhor those Leappad thingies, but my sister bought Henry this game from TRU (it's also at Target) and he loves, loves, loves it. It keeps him busy for an hour, at least. TRU has different colors and characters, but they're all brands, which sucks.

Oh, Walmart has some really cool letter-practicing books that use dry erase markers that would keep H busy. They also have numbers, and it's geared toward preschool kids, so it would be something challenging but not too much over his head, I think. They're on the school supplies aisle in our store, down from the crayons.

ANyway, best wishes on finding busy work!

[mommy68]

pillow
blanket
new toys he's never seen before
writing tablet or workbooks/coloring books
pencil/crayons
portable DVD player
Leapster game if you have one (my DD is extremely hyper and this helps her be quiet)
sippy cup
snacks in baggies or containers
EXTRA CLOTHING (sometimes they will puke when you least expect it)

And be ready to walk back and forth to the bathroom if you have a little one that is potty training or trained. My kids have all gone through that phase of wanting to go the potty a hundred times during flight or in the bathrooms at the airports.

[hubris]

I second the magnadoodle. Another favorite here is the Crayola ColorWonder stuff. A pack of pens and a CW coloring book or two and my 4 y/o is set for hours...and I don't have to worry about marker ending up on airline upholstery.

If you have access to one, an old ViewMaster and a pile of extra reels is fun.

Maybe an I Spy book?

Snacks are a fabulous idea, but I *don't* bring sweet treat food. The last thing I need is to give my kids more juice/sugary food than they're used to when we're in a confined space and need to remain relatively sedate. I'd stick with time-tested family favorites, or maybe a new twist on a favorite - like pretzels with different shapes, or a new fun drink container/cup/bottle filled with water.

[PumpkinSeeds]

Ditto this. I didn't give my kids any kind of sugar at all on the airplane. I know my kids too well. They are fidgety and boisterous enough without it.

Originally Posted by hubris

Snacks are a fabulous idea, but I *don't* bring sweet treat food. The last thing I need is to give my kids more juice/sugary food than they're used to when we're in a confined space and need to remain relatively sedate.

[Cinder]

Small presents, cheapish ones, that are wrapped...having 1 present per hour (or half hour for the younger ones) really really helps out on long trips, just small things that can keep them happy for awhile, like a new colouring book, magna doodle, glow sticks (if it will be a night time flight), favorite snacks/drinks, etc.

[roxyrox]

Matchbox cars are good - I normally get ds a new 5 pack for flights - it takes him 20 mins to open all the packaging and then he really likes to drive them all over they pull down tray. They are really cheap too!

[hergrace]

Originally Posted by daniedb

Absolutely a DVD player. I do have to warn you - I've gotten flak (but only once) from a flight attendant that I had to use headphones so the other passengers weren't disturbed. FIrst of all, that an 18 mo would wear headphones, and secondly, that passengers would rather hear a bored, rambling, crying child than a very low volume, pleasant movie score.

A three-year old can wear headphones, but may need some help getting them tight enough to stay decently. And, of course, you want to check the volume before you give the headphones to the kid and make sure they don't know where the volume up button is.