[MargotV]

I leave for my p/u trip this week and have been struggling to think of things that my 15 mo. old DS can play with on the plane (keeping in mind little space and trying not to make too much noice).

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

[CEB]

No idea if its is going to work, but I just picked up a travel magnadoodle thing for an upcoming trip with our 18 month old. He likes to scribble and its a quiet activity so I am hopeful.

[LilmissBrianna]

At 15 months, I found that soft padded books were wonderful to keep their attention until they ususally fall asleep. My children had a tendency to throw at this age and I want something that would not give the other passengers a concussion! Have fun! Also I am not sure whether or not our children will have a pacifier or not, but if you let them drink a bottle or suck a paci while the plane is ascending or descending it helps their ears to clear. Just a suggestion

[kathleenmarie]

food

[jeck]

Originally Posted by LilmissBrianna

At 15 months, I found that soft padded books were wonderful to keep their attention until they ususally fall asleep. My children had a tendency to throw at this age and I want something that would not give the other passengers a concussion! Have fun! Also I am not sure whether or not our children will have a pacifier or not, but if you let them drink a bottle or suck a paci while the plane is ascending or descending it helps their ears to clear. Just a suggestion

I agree! Our son slept the majority of the way so that was nice. Also if your child can take Benadryl I read that this can also help with their ears. We did this and I am so glad that we did. Our ds would not drink anything and certainly didn't want to have anything to do with a pacifier!

[DPline]

Both my children (home at 11 months and 20 months) were enthralled with the movie headphones and the jack to plug them in the armrest.
Neither slept at all but the headphones provided a LOT of entertainment value. Not guaranteeing it will work for you, but something to try!

Be careful of the Benedryl. It hypes my daughter up!

[SKL]

I agree with food and soft books. I also had a soft snuggly toy which was helpful for my 12-month-old. I would also suggest small toys that you could link to something with those plastic chain links. My kids had all too much fun playing with their bottle covers, which ended up rolling all over the place.

The soft books that I brought were "SoftPlay" books which have lots of interactive hands-on activities that don't separate from the book. I had "Donde Esta Elmo" and "A Vestirse con Elmo" but there are lots of other titles in English and a few in Spanish. (I should note, however, that they liked the carrying bags even more than they liked the books . . . .) There is also a wonderful cloth puppet book with Dora - can't remember the name, and it's in with my napping kid - my daughter absolutely adores this toy, and it would travel well.

Good luck!

[robandjulie]

Magnadoodles worked like a charm on my dd whenever we flew. Also, if you have a video ipod or a laptop you can download some free sesame street episodes from itunes (or have soem dvd's with you). I don't usually promote TV as a babysitter, but for the plane...totally one of those "whatever works!" situations. I had some old "over the ear" headphones for my daughter teh first time but then we just got some little speakers. I figure it may slightly bother neighbors, but no more than a casual conversation adn way less annoying than a squirmy screamy baby!

Food, especially fun stuff like teddy grahams or goldfish or something "new".

[AndreaP]

Another possibility are books with flaps. DD loved having whatever was under the flap play "peek-a-boo" at that age.

[Justhavfaith]

I second what others have said. The only thing that worked for DS on the plane was food (bottles, gerber puffs and cheerios) but, he was only 12 months. I think the soft books are a great idea in the event that they would be thrown. :-)

[Clare'sMom]

Originally Posted by CEB

No idea if its is going to work, but I just picked up a travel magnadoodle thing for an upcoming trip with our 18 month old. He likes to scribble and its a quiet activity so I am hopeful.

When I saw this post, a magnadoodle is the first thing I thought of! My son LOVES them!! Also gold fish crackers and other little finger food snacks......

Have a Great Trip!! Ann

[MargotV]

Thanks everyone - these are great suggestions!

[Alexa07]

I always used to hit the Dollar store before I traveled to pick up quite a few things. Then every 30 mins or an hour or so I would pull out something different. That really used to keep my son occupied. And even if we lost part of the game/toy/book or forgot it completely, it wasn't a huge waste of money. This worked especially well when my son was about 15months, too. Good luck.

[Michelle Smiles]

I packed a bunch of things to entertain my daughter on our last plane ride...but the only thing she was entertained by was the safety card from the airplane seat pocket. She mangled 3 of them between her snacks. Go figure.