Tips for Summer Travel with Children

I have 4 children. Our grandparents live on opposite sides of the country, and neither is near us. We have become rather seasoned veterans in the world of long-distance travel and we journey from coast to coast in search of extended family memories. I will do a follow-up post with tips for road trips but wanted to start out with some  helps for plane travel. Most of our traveling is done without daddy. Not always, but usually we are headed out for a long stay (if you have to spend $2,000 to get there, you might as well stay a while right?) and daddy as the bread winner has to get back to work before we have to get back home. So more often than not, I am acting as the single parent on the flight. Here are some little bits of wisdom I have gleaned from our traveling experiences. Enjoy!

First, look at all of your flight options. Think about what kind of flight you want: Non-stop or connecting with one or more lay-overs.

Non stop is great for a shorter overall trip, especially if you have lots of baggage or baby equipment to haul around the airport from plane to plane. It also cuts down on the nauseating take off and landing times which is great for those with motion sickness. It also allows for nice long naps and for settling in. However, if you don't like the people sitting around you or feel a little claustrophobic in a small space, five hours with no break is a long time.

You may want to look for a flight with an hour or so layover if you don't mind a slightly longer traveling day. This cuts the time you have to keep your wiggly child in one place in half, since he or she will be distracted by the more frequent landing and taking off, the change in planes, seats, and airports. They will get to experience running through the terminal and most likely an escalator ride or two. If the person sharing your row isn't as thrilled about having young children as traveling companions, or there is a grouchy old man in front of you who winces, then turns and glares every time your child moves his feet, the endurance time for everyone is much shorter. However, this increases the chance of losing a suitcase, leaving Barbie behind, and having no time to eat anything but airplane snacks for about 8 hours, which isn't so good for digestion, calorie counters, or cranky kids who hate peanuts and soda.

Next, when booking your flight consider how one mother and three children under the age of 8 can be seated.

If you are brave and your children are a bit older, opt for the two-by-two arrangement. Put the older kids together behind you and keep the baby. Then it will be your seat they are kicking with every move, and the poor stranger sitting in the aisle seat will get to referee the sibling squabbles. If it gets really out of hand, you can put in your earphones and pretend not to know who they are.

You may also consider the whole-row arrangement, holding the baby in your lap. Who knows, your husband may find the bruises on your thighs from all those little kicks attractive upon your return and what mom can't use an 8-hour-long arm workout from holding, rocking, lifting, feeding, and moving that 20 pound bundle of joy? It makes it much more interesting to be presented with the challenge of finding ways to retrieve dropped army men, colored pencils, teethers, shoes, headphones, and pillows or to open snacks and drinks while holding a baby and trying not to bonk her head on the wall, seat, armrest, or tray table. And when one of you needs to use the bathroom, everyone gets a mini-workout and trip to the back of the plane. Resist the urge to make everyone wear pull-ups to stretch the time between potty trips. They probably don't come in sizes that big anyway.

Now that you have booked your flight and taken care of seating arrangements, its time to do some research. Head to your local library to find the answers to the following questions. Remember, no detail is to small to be left out or repeated at least five times.

Why do we have to stand in line?
Where is that man taking my suitcase?
What can't I follow it down the conveyor belt?
Why can't I take my juice bottle with me?
Why do I have to take off my shoes?
Why does that man have funny socks on?
Why can't I carry my doll/car/blanket/backpack with me through the metal detector?
Why can't I hold your hand as I go through?
Why can't I stop in the middle?
What is that funny beeping sound? Why do I have to go through again?
Why is that man holding a gun?
Why can't I have one?
Why can't I stop in the middle of the aisle and sit down to put on my shoes?
Why can't I run around and get lost or play hide and seek to make things more fun?
How much longer?
What does that sign say?
Can I have a t-shirt/mug/toy/(insert anything overpriced in a shop window here)?
Which plane is ours?
Why can't we get on that one?
What is that man/ woman's job? (this question will be repeated for all employees, from gate agents to flight attendants, to truck drivers, maintenance crew, etc, so be ready with answer for every kind of uniform you see)
Where are we going?
Where is the potty?
What is that part of the plane?
Where are the suitcases going?
Where is mine?
Why are we in line again?
Where does this tunnel lead?
Are we on the plane now?
Which seat is mine?
Why can't I sit over there?
How does the seat belt work?
How do I get it off?
What is an emergency landing?
Are we going to have one?
Will you save me if the plane lands in the water and I am not wearing my floaties?
What is this little white bag for?
Are you going to throw up this time?
Can I put the window shade up/down?
Are we going yet?
Where is my TV?
Can I turn on the light?
What happens when I push the orange button with the lady?
Can I turn off the air?
Can I turn it back on?
What is that noise?
Where is the engine?
Does this plane have a propeller?
Do I get to wear a parachute if we run out of gas?
Why are we driving instead of flying?
What are the wing flaps doing?
When is it our turn to go?
Why can't I put my hands up and yell "wheee!" as the plane goes up?
Why can't I kick the seat in front of me?
Why can't I put the tray table up and down a thousand times?
When are we going to get drinks?
Can I get in my suitcase now?
Can I take off my seat belt?
Can you trade me seats?
Does that lady have candy bars or chocolate milk?
Can I go to the bathroom now?
Why is it so small?
What happens when you flush the toilet?
Where does everything go?
Why is the water blue?
How much longer?
Can you sing me to sleep?
Does it count as a nap if I just close my eyes for a minute?
Why are we flying under the clouds?
Why are we flying above the clouds?
Why are we flying through the clouds?
Where are the care bears?
What are clouds made of?
Can I open the window and stick my hand out?
What is that down there?
Why is the plane bumping?
Is the plane bumping up and down because we are flying over the mountains?
Why do I have to wear my seat belt?
Why is the wing moving?
Why do the cars look like ants?
Where is grandma's house?
Are the wheels going to come down in time?
What if they don't?
When are we going to stop?
Why can't I get off yet?
Can I go see the pilot?
Where are we going?
Where are my suitcases?
Can I push the cart?
Can I ride with grandma all the way home? (Answer yes to this one and enjoy the few minutes of quiet!)

Be prepared with satisfactory answers to all of the above questions. You may want to consult a pilot or engineer or good book on the dynamics of airports.

Next, pack your carry-ons. Don't make the same mistake I did and assume that each child will be able to pull or carry their own bag from one plane to another. At each stop it is nearly guaranteed that at least one of the three children will be sound asleep or too groggy to handle their own luggage. Plan a way to carry an infant, a sleeping child, a stroller and all carry on bags (in our case three back packs and three roller bags) from one gate to the next in less than an hour, including a stop at the bathroom and a fast food place. Trust me, just fork over the extra $15 per bag and check everything but the essentials. It is worth every penny.

What essentials? Here is my recommended list:

diapers- obviously
wipes- to accompany the diapers, and to wash hands, faces, tray tables, arm rests, seat cushions, dropped toys, and your shoes after a child drops his lunch on them.
snacks- for when your kids won't eat the "yucky" "weird" or "funny" food in the $8 plane meal or the $5 snack box and can't seem to survive on peanuts and apple juice.
dvd player- because even with headphones or the fancy seat-back tvs, your kids won't be entertained by Seinfeld re-runs or Confessions of a Shop-a-holic.
a change of clothes for everyone- because when one kid spills his juice seconds after the flight attendant hands it to him in a lid-less cup filled to the brim (why? Do they not have kids? Do they know what "half-full" means?) you all will have sticky and wet laps.
lollipops, big ones- because when all else fails, even the baby can be quieted for five or ten minutes by sucking on some crystallized high-fructose corn syrup and artificial flavors. Just time it so you are at least on the descent before the sugar high kicks in.

Once you get to the airport, check everything you can. Stop at every bathroom you pass, just in case its the last one you might see. Do your best going through security. Know that everything will have to pass through the xray machine, so be prepared to remove babies and toddlers from the strollers (those kid leashes are helpful here) along with everything else and try to get it on the belt, along with all 6 pairs of shoes, while simultaneously holding on to your small child and id cards. Then after giving them non-stop lectures about never letting go of your and never moving more than 2 steps away from you- force them to go one by one without you through the security scanner and hope that your watch doesn't beep  and cause a delay while your four children stand on the other side of the detector sobbing while a guard has to pat down mommy for stray deadly weapons. Just practice smiling and saying "I'm so sorry, we are going as fast as we can." to everyone around you. Arrive at your boarding area a little early. Decide if you want to pre-board or wait to be the last ones on the plane.

I prefer to pre-board and make a pre-take off trip to the bathroom and galley and try to make friends with the flight attendants before we take off. You never know when you might need that extra bag of cookies. You are less likely to have to climb over people to get to your seat, will have first access to the blankets (only use the shrink wrapped ones, you never know what the guy before you was breathing on them) and plenty of time to start answering all those questions. Bring out all the toys, especially little ones that drop. This way you will easily get to know all of the people around you right away, since you will have to ask them to retrieve things for you throughout the flight.

Don't forget to charge the batteries for the portable DVD player, along with headphones and a few favorite movies.

Bring a book for yourself. You probably won't get to read it, but it might make a good prop for car ramps or Barbie furniture or something, or maybe a fan when the air is out.

Finally, make sure you have a few kind-hearted relatives meet you at your destination to help with collecting luggage, finding a rental car, and most importantly, to hug your sticky, tired kids while you breathe freely for a minute and remind yourself why you got on the plane in the first place. Bonus points if you can convince them to sit in back with the kids while you drive home.

Enjoy your flight!!

Little feet and a big sky. Trying some phone pics in desperate times.

Camp W- Weeks 3-5 and Summer Reading Tips

The second installment of the Camp Wannalaffalotta by Mom summer survival guide. Click here for part 1 and a sample brochure.

A bit about summer reading. Most kids will come home from school with some sort of summer reading game to fill out for school the next year. Some older kids will even have a stack of books they are supposed to read over the summer. My daughter was given an assignment to read at least 10 books and do a diorama book report on her favorite to turn in the first week of school.
I know that some kids just don't like to read, and summer is a good time to learn how to read for fun or to read for a reward instead of homework. For kids who already love to read, summer is a good time to read all of the "just for fun" books they haven't had a chance to get to during the school year or to explore new areas of interest. I read to my kids at various time during the day and in the summer I read an advanced chapter book to my older kids while the little ones are napping to start their rest time. This summer we are reading the "Dealing with Dragons" series by Patricia Wrede. It is a good series for my mixed age group, with dragons, magic, wizards, knights, and princesses, but doesn't have the scary or violent parts that are in so many other popular fantasy books right now.



I don't use reading time as a reward or punishment at our house or reward my kids for reading a set amount of pages. In our house reading is just something we do, like taking naps or eating dessert or picking up your shoes off the floor or playing outside. If it isn't so easy for you, you might want to devise some sort of your own incentive chart at home, giving points for minutes or pages read in order to earn a reward of some kind.

In our house the biggest challenge is keeping track of all the lists for the many programs they are enrolled in. I found it easiest to just use the summer reading log we got from the library (or two or three of them) and keep a master list of books read for each kid. Then I transfer the titles into whatever reward form we are getting ready to turn in.

The easiest programs to participate in are ran by national bookstore chains, Borders and Barnes and Noble. They both have forms you can get in store or online, where you just list the ten books you read and turn in the form to the store to get a free book. They let three of my kids, ages 2,6, and 9, participate so we will end up with 6 free books.
The best program is probably ran by your local library. They will have some sort of form to fill out with weekly or monthly small prizes like stickers and bookmarks then a goody bag at the end that usually has a free book and coupons for all sorts of stuff- kids meals, donuts, ice cream cones, bowling, baseball games, mini golf, etc, depending on the local sponsors, and toys like Frisbees or balls.

Besides the reading program, libraries usually pull out all the stops when it comes to summer programs and there is bound to be something cool happening there all summer. In our county my kids can go to story time- usually different age groups from infant to teens-, craft time, language classes, book clubs, and parties. They also have all sorts of  visitors- characters like Cookie Monster or Pooh, Polynesian dancers, magicians, animal shows, petting zoos, clowns, puppets shows, baseball players, and authors.
You might try the library next to yours- most libraries within the county or state have a loan policy that lets you check out and return books to any branch, not just your local one. You might have a bookmobile stopping near you, another interesting way to find a good book. You can get DVDs, music CDs, and audio books. Some have a digital library that you can get books for your computer or nook and audio books for your mp3 player or ipod. And if they don't have the book you want, just tell them and they will go find it for you- from their shelves, when it gets returned if someone else has it right now, or from another library in the state or county.

I figure if a kid spends all that time in a library, he or she is bound to stumble upon something they love eventually!

Besides hanging out at the library, here is what we did for Camp W for weeks 3-5.


Week 3-5: Settling into a summer routine

Some things we did:

Learn to cook a simple meal (taco salad at our house)

Make cookies for grandpa

Go to the library and sign up for the summer reading program

Visit a local ice cream parlor. We are trying a new one each month then will vote on a family favorite!

Visit a local farm- this creamery gives free tours and let you bottle feed the calves!

Sneak into grandma's house while she is at work and clean it like crazy, leave dinner in the fridge, then run away fast before she gets home!

Take free Spanish classes at the library every day for a week

Visit an indoor bounce house (Monkey Joe's where we are)

Take a piano lesson from an older cousin

Swim in Aunt L's pool

Have a sleepover with cousins- ride their neighbor's horse, pick berries, and do free summer bowling

Have a sleepover with Aunt T and have a board game and movie party

Go to the park and have a picnic- simple picnic is throwing your regular lunch in a bag and eating it outside at the park!

Have a squirt gun/water balloon fight

Make lemonade or kool aid popsicles

Visit the bookmobile

Splash in a summer rain storm
Join a local 4-H horse club for a camp and barn sleepover
 
So after all that, I hope you are getting ready to go to the library! More to come, of course.

Camp W- week 1 and 2

We have been very busy having fun and learning new things this summer! I would love to say that the lack of blog posts here is a conscientious decision to blog less and mother more, but it was really a result of lots of chaos and no time or energy left over to write. And my brain is feeling the effects! Now that things have calmed down a little I am back to writing and reading and using an expanded vocabulary again and feeling much better!

Here is an update of what we have been doing in our corner of the woods. Maybe there is something here you can use for your family this summer as well! Nothing takes much advance planning, most are inexpensive or free, and all are lots of fun for lots of different ages-in our family we range ages 5 months to 9 years and we usually have an extra cousin or friend or neighbor kid thrown in the mix as well. And they require minimal adult involvement, as it is usually just me wrangling the kids around while dad works during the day.

A bit on scheduling. Routines save my sanity and are good for kids, too. They like knowing what to expect and what to do next. Our daily routine: breakfast, dressed, and chores done by 9 or 10. This keeps things from falling completely apart and the kids know if they get their chores done now I won't bug them about them the rest of the day. Outings and fun until lunch before it gets too hot. Rest time with naps for the under 5 crowd and reading time for the older ones. After rest time we have indoor adventures, free play at home, swimming, or craft projects in the hot afternoon. Then dinner followed by chores and a slightly later bedtime routine. My kids are still the first ones to go to bed on our block, but I think they are the happiest! We limit after dark activities to once a week so they get to stay up for fireworks, lightening bugs, campfires, or sleepovers, but still get the rest they need to be up with the sun and running around all day!

Every week we hit the library for story time, summer reading check-in, and to get a new stash of books and movies. We are also exploring all the local parks by picnicking at a new one each week. We also do an extended family visit to a grandparent or aunt and uncle. Anyway, that's the basic schedule we work off.

Here is what we have done for the first weeks of our summer vacation at Camp Wannalaffalotta!

Week 1: Welcome summer vacation!

Get a crazy haircut! 
Go to the lake/beach/river anywhere to swim.
Have an end of year/graduation party
Visit a local landmark (LDS temple for us) and meet an old friend
Make a train out of the dining chairs
Plant some flowers
Climb a tree
Week 2: visiting friends, an away from home stay vacation
We met some friends at a relatives house for a week of simple stay at home fun, except neither of us stayed home, so it was more exciting for the kids. We stayed at "grandma's" house out in the country. It was much cooler there so the kids spent most of their time outside playing on the lawn doing nearly forgotten but important things such as chasing butterflies, catching lightening bugs, following frogs, playing tag, working in the garden, and eating outside.

A few other highlights:
Wild life in the sleeping quarters- boarding with a hunter is exciting!
A swimming pool. Kids don't need much water to be happy!
A fire pit for roasting marshmallows and hot dogs
Berry picking, whatever is in season!
Homemade lemonade
The local playgrounds
A nature scavenger hunt. I just made up the lists as we were heading out the door and handed out empty jars for collecting specimens. It doesn't have to be fancy, just something to direct their exploration after the novelty wears off, to avoid boredom or mischief making!
Some homemade fun, courtesy the Daring Book for Girls- kool-aid hair dye, cookies, friendship bracelets and more
Fireworks, for the night after it has rained all day to avoid fire danger
A week-long slumber party with friends and lots of pillows!
A cool bubble machine, so you don't hyperventilate trying to keep 7 kids happily popping!
Yummy home cooking from someone besides mom, they always eat so much better when someone else is in the kitchen!

Next weeks will include some summer reading tips and our at-home summer routine activities. Stay tuned!