Surviving baby's first plane ride

I was excited to take the plane with blueberry. We were finally going to be those passengers with children who are called first for boarding....guess what? nobody called us...thanks turkish airlines for taking away our one moment of glory...

Anyways...here's what worked for us:

Before the ride:

1. If you can, pick a time where the baby won't be cranky: Plane rides around 7 PM for us are not a good idea.

2. Pick a weekday to travel: Keep in mind that Sundays are the worst.

3.  Call the airline to ask a few tips: I asked where to sit on the plane, what time to arrive to the gate, what to do with the stroller etc. Really, nothing they said was new information to me but hey I felt better and less stressed, which is essential.

3. Pack light: Really just take the essential.

4. Do online check-in to save time:  Choose a window sit (it's really nice to have some privacy while breastfeeding, plus you can use the shades).

5. Convince someone to come with you.

S. eating his boarding pass and showing proudly his passport 

On the day of the ride:

1. Dress your baby in layers and comfortable clothes: I wasn't sure what to put on him, so I did layers, a short-sleeve body, a long-sleeve thin sweater, and it worked well.

2. Pack for the carry-on: Diapers, an extra set of clothes, pacifier, a hat, a blanket, socks, water, a silent toy, a changing pad, an antibacterial pocket gel. Oh and also, we were advised to take our baby carrier to be able to walk with the baby on the plane, but our plane ride was only for 3 hours and we really didn't use it

2. Go there earlier than you normally would, we all know that even to get out of the house with a baby is an adventure.
 
3. Check if there's a family counter for the airline: I discovered that only on our way back. Apparently sometimes there's a hidden family counter for only families with children to dispose your luggage. Yes, you can avoid the line.

4. Ask the flight attendant if the plane is full and whether you can have an empty sit next to you. You won't always get it but it doesn't hurt to ask.

5. If you are traveling with your stroller don't let them damage it!!

•  Ask for a plastic bag to pack your stroller at the check-in counter. This is essential!!! We didn't know this on our way...our brand new stroller was all scratched and the baby insert of our carseat was gone. And there's nothing you can do about it :(
•  Remove all parts that you can from the carseat and stroller: pillows, inserts, extra covers, anything that may fall...
• Try to protect your stroller by any way you can: I did some foam padding on the way back. Apparently there are also travel bags like these that you can purchase.

6. Get yourself a coffee and something to eat cause on board you won't have the possibility, unless you're traveling with someone.


During the ride:

1. During take off and landing: Nurse, nurse, nurse!! Or bottle feed, give a pacifier, anything that will cause the sucking motion will be good.

2. I know you soo want another coffee but you don't want to spill your hot drink on your bébé.So no to hot drinks.

3. Try to reassure your baby, hug or talk or sing or do whatever works for your child. Not sure if it was the noise on the plane, the unknown environment, or the pressure but I noticed Sevan needed that.

and relax...

If it goes well and the baby falls asleep, great, if not, think that you will never see the people who sit around you and complain ever again...

How did it go for us??We were so comfortable on our first ride that yes, I had the time to read about 70 pages of my book, go me!!! On our way back, sunday evening, 0 pages!

Blueberry was on vacation

We went to Bodrum,we survived our first plane ride (which will be my next entry), Sevan got to meet the sea and the sun more intimately, on the beach, he rocked his first bathing suit, his crocs (thanks yaya) and his awesome firefighter hat, he was spoiled as much as possible, my family completely fell in love with him, there were tears when we were leaving.

Sevan continues to giggle and nowadays he seems to be fascinated with his fingers... he's still not rolling despite all my mom's efforts :)


Claude and I celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary, there was my birthday that nobody really remembered, nor cared enough to buy me a gift (apparently when you are a mother, all the gifts go to the baby).

I'm feeling a little blah nowadays...Don't know...I feel negative, I think negative...I'm really happy to be back but I'm not in a good mood, must be the coming of the fall