“Traveling tends to magnify all human emotions.” - Peter Hoeg

Was he talking about traveling with kids? Because that hit the nail on the head.

It can be stressful traveling with kids. And sometimes there's absolutely no amount of planning that can avoid it. But my Type A personality loves to obscess over the details and plan it out weeks in advance. We've done more plane trips than road trips but a lot of these things work well for both. Mostly this post focuses on Air Travel, though, from the infant to toddler/preschool phase.

What to check, gate check, and carry on?

There are so many variables and a million ways to do this. So much just depends on the specifics of your trip. Most importantly, check as much as possible to free your hands!

So what do you need for the airport and plane?

• CAR SEAT BAG - I'm a huge fan of putting my car seats in bags if I'm checking it or handing it over to the airline. The absolute safest way to check a car seat is in its original box, but let's be real, that's just not feasible. I love these car seat bags with wheels and backpack style straps. It keeps the seat clean and provides a little more protection than just handing the seat to the airline. This model has thicker material which is nice. Pro tip- there's usually room for more items like an older child's booster, a pack of diapers, or heavy coats, etc!

• STROLLER BAG - same story. Check your stroller brand to see if there's a specific bag that's easier for your stroller but the universal ones I've used have held up well for the price and number of trips we've done. Pro tip: open and spread your bag out on the floor, lock the stroller wheels and collapse it, then sit the collapsed stroller into the open bag and pull the sides of the bag up to get the larger strollers into the bags easier if you're doing this alone. Check for any parts like trays or canopies that can be detached to prevent them breaking during handling. *Dont forget a luggage tag with your contact info, not just the little tag the airline gives you!

• TRAVEL STROLLER - in the infant stage it's super easy to take your infant seat and stroller combo travel systems. That way you have your car seat if needed at your destination and a stroller. Just be aware that some of those strollers won't fit through the normal luggage scanners and you have to have them manually checked by a TSA agent, which can add time. If you have the patience and time it's fine though. Once we were past the infant stage we loved a more lightweight stroller like the Summer Infant 3DLite. It collapses nicely and fits through the luggage scanner. When we needed a double we upgraded to the Joovy Caboose. This one has to be manually checked but was worth it. This was great until the boys started fighting over who got to sit in the "jump seat". We're currently rocking our Graco Modes Wagon Stroller and the boys are the envy of everyone, even adults that don't even have kids traveling with them! Now I'm waiting for my little one to be coordinated enough to master those Suitcase Scooters the 6 yr old is begging for....

• BABY CARRIER or SLING - my babies were/are clingers. They'd be content for a while in the stroller but then would demand to be held. I'd be lucky making it half way through the airport without having to pick them up. So even with a stroller I'd be holding the baby if it weren't for the carrier/sling. I found that the K'tan and ring slings were easier to slip baby in and out of (if you already had practice with it) rather than fooling with all the straps and buckles of my other carriers. But ultimately you should go with what you and baby are more comfortable with. I always liked to go ahead and pack up all the things while waiting at the gate and have baby in the sling ready to go for boarding to make handing off items for gate check easier. A lot of this just depends on what you have with you and if you have help with you or are flying solo (literally and figuratively). Also, most (if not all) airlines will make you take baby out of the carrier for take off and landing. I found it way easier to just slip the straps of the K'tan or ring sling down off baby and leave it around my body rather than having to unbuckle and tuck away the other carrier.

• DIAPER BAG/BACKPACK - I am a big fan of backpack style diaper bags. I loved this one when mine were little. It has a fold out changing pad as well that can be removed if needed. Now that we don't need the actual diaper bag I have this backpack for travel and am loving it. The main compartment can zip all the way down for easier access to items. There are enough compartments for me to separate their items and mine so I can find things easier. I try my best to pack one diaper bag/backpack for the kids and myself but once they start needing their tablets and more activities it gets harder. I recommend a second carry on that will fit under the seat as well (if you have extra under the seat space for you) if needed. Once they get old enough to carry their own backpack or manage their own kids rolling suitcase I have them pick out the travel suitcase and start giving them the responsibility of carrying/rolling their own bags. I give my 3yr and 5yr old boys the opportunity to pack what they want that fits in their bags then I inspect it and we discuss what makes sense and repack. I also have to be conscious of the fact that I still may end up responsible for carrying it at some point....

• LIGHT BLANKET - we take our favorite soft blankets during winter months. In the summer I love to travel with our lightweight Muslin Blankets for when the airplane gets a little chilly.

• TRAVEL PILLOW - we love these kids travel pillows! We snap them on the outside of our backpacks if there's no room inside. They're amazing for planes, car seats, etc.

• SNACKS - ALL. THE. SNACKS. and think outside the box here! Go for a good mix of their favorites and some new/special things for the novelty effect. One flight my toddler spent 30-45 min working on an apple because it was the first time I let him eat it without cutting it. I save their favorites like M&Ms, skittles, and suckers for landings or meltdowns. I always want to have something ready for them to eat and drink during take off and especially landing to help with the pressure in the ears. They also love to pick out one special snack at the store at the airport as well so this helps with the packing situation sometimes. Our new favorite things is a Snackle Box! Grab a divided container and have fun! I didn't want to splurge on a "leakproof" one so I covered ours with pressnseal and made sure they had their own bag in case of spills.

• ENTERTAINMENT DEVICES - to avoid losing your phone or tablet to your kid, go ahead and make sure your kid has a charged up and ready to go tablet! Pro tip: make sure their favorites are actually downloaded in the device ahead of time so you avoid meltdowns when Daniel Tiger won't play without WiFi! And don't forget the headphone. Those around you will appreciate it! I love the ones that somewhat fold up to save some space. Oh and for traveling, forget those screentime rules. Your sanity is more important right now.

• ACTIVITIES - I tend to go overboard with these and my kids don't end up needing half the things I pack most of the time but I love preparing these activity kits! I decided this needs it's own post: coming very soon-stay tuned!

• DIAPER CHANGE KIT - we always try to take a trip to the bathroom before boarding but we inevitably need to change a diaper or go to the bathroom in air. I like to have a small bag ready with just the essentials that I can grab quickly. I've seen some plane bathrooms that have the fold down baby changing table and I would assume all/most major airlines would have them. That's usually the easiest way for sure. But I have definitly put a pad down and changed a diaper on the seat next to me more than once. The SkipHop bag with the fold out changing pad is a great option for younger babies. The changing pad also detaches when you no longer need it. Especially when they're tiny I liked to have these disposable pads to lay down and just toss away if I needed to as well. We had a single reusable changing pad that was easy to pack as well. I always like to have diaper sacks for the smelly ones and this really helps on the plane.

• BATHROOM KIT - I dread bathroom trips everytime. Nothing makes me feel better about the situation and my kids have made it their mission to see how many times we can go potty on the plane (our current record is 6 time for a 2hr flight). I take wipes to wipe things down. If your little one needs to sit down this option comes with the compact seat and the toilet covers as well. Luckily with my boys half the time I can just hold them up "Superman" style for them to do their quick business. Then we flip the seat down for them to stand while washing their hands and then sanitize after too! If you can't shut the door don't stress over it. These are not ideal situations and your body is blocking the kid well enough.

• WATER BOTTLE - we fill them up as soon as we get through security. Pro tip: Just be sure to unscrew the caps before you pop open any spouts to release pressure after you're in the air. Otherwise with the change in pressure you'll get an unexpected shower. Unfortunately we know from experience...

• SIPPY CUP - be sure to take a favorite for comfort. We filled it up with milk once we got through security. We also love the Take and Toss cups for their special airplane drink during flight so that we're sure to have a lid and avoid spills. Most airlines won't have lids for the cups. And because of the price if something happens and we lose it then it's not that big of a deal.

• MEDICATIONS - be sure to pack your medication essentials in your carryon/backpack. I like to have Tylenol, Mortin, Benadryl, and any other essentials like teething meds or inhalers with me. Pro tip: I always pack an extra baggie for the used medication syringes so they don't get everything sticky. Then just wash later in the restroom or at your destination.

• EXTRA CLOTHES - I never get on a plane without a set of extra clothes for the kids and an extra top for myself. An everytime I need them I am SO happy with myself for having them. I try to pack the most lightweight and compact items for this and give them their own little bag that keeps them separate.

• TRAVEL BAGS - These bags are my absolute favorite things for travel! Everything is organized into these bags so items are easy to find and the color ones make it even more fun. We also use these all over our house for storage and especially in the playroom!

Other useful tips for traveling and packing:

• PACKING CUBES - Everyone gets their own cubes and it makes finding things so much easier! I love having multiple colors for this.

• SOUND MACHINES - we would travel with multiple when my kids were smaller - the small portable one and usually our standard one. i also have white/brown noise apps on all of our devices and love the spotify playlists with brown noise.

• MONITOR - This is just a preference but when my kids were smaller I took our monitors with us when we would be sleeping in separate rooms.

• TRAVEL CARSEATS AND STROLLERS - There are tons of posts out there and tons of options. But if you travel a lot or if you have really nice gear that you don't want ruined during travel you may want to invest in easy, lightweight travel gear.

And the most important things that you need when traveling with kids:

PATIENCE, FLEXIBILITY, AND A SENSE OF HUMOR!

Wherever you are headed on your travels, we wish you the best!

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