I’ve now flown two roundtrips with T1, which certainly makes me no expert on flying with baby, but I’ve certainly learned some things that should be helpful to some.

1. Have proof of age

I flew on Delta with no ID for him, so I foolishly assumed that all airlines used common sense to determine that an infant as small as he is (hello, he is 3 months!) is under 2 years old. Not so with Southwest. At first I thought they weren’t going to let me on the plane, but they agreed to let me get on for the first flight as long as I had proof of age by the time I returned. This proof of age could either be a birth certificate, which I didn’t have yet, or a shot record from the doctor’s office. The shot record is a joke, a Word document with a list of shots and the date they were administered (i.e. we could totally forge it ourselves if we wanted), but it was enough for them and he was able to get on the plane to come home with me.

2. Wear your baby

I decided to wear T1 in the Moby wrap instead of lugging a stroller around. Not only did I love this, the other passengers on the plane and in the airport just about died whenever they saw his bald head peeking out. He likes to face out and see the world so I would put him in facing away from me and everyone who saw him would coo in his direction, some of them openly laughing and remarking how adorable he looked. It’s a crowd pleaser for sure.

I walked right through security with him on my chest, no need to take him out. I don’t understand why but on both airlines they made me take him out for takeoff and landing, which was extra annoying when he was sleeping. I loved that wearing him gave me two free hands to write emails on my phone while he was sleeping. Another benefit of wearing him? I was able to go pee and use both hands while doing it.

Added at 12:00 pm: One more thing I forgot to mention. Because I flew “hands free” with him in the Moby, I was able to carry on all my luggage both times. Before all of the airlines charged a “checked baggage” fee this might not have been a very big deal, but now that it can cost you $25 to check a bag I think it is. I walked with my diaper bag balanced on top of my carry on sized rolling suitcase and didn’t have to check anything, something I could not have done if I were pushing a stroller around the airport.

If you’re considering wearing your baby instead of taking a stroller, I say DO IT. I’ll be wearing him whenever we fly from now on.

3. Think about the car seat

When you’re flying with a baby there is one critical thing you have to think about, and that is how you will transport him around when you get there. If you’re driving in a car a car seat is essential, and if you’re like me and wear him in in a carrier you won’t have one with you. Each time I traveled I was headed to a place where someone had a car seat ready for me, but this is the one drawback to wearing your baby while flying that I found.

4. Go to the gate counter early

Getting there early will give you the chance to make sure they know you have an infant-in-arms (they need an accurate head count before they take off), and I found that they went out of their way to try to get me a good seat. On my very first flight I sat in the bulkhead seat, the kind with buckets of legroom AND the ability to stash the diaper bag under the first class seat in front of me. So nice.

5. Look for larger planes

This is just me guessing, but I think most larger planes would have a changing station in the bathroom, something that you’ll really, really, want to have. On my first round of flights I had to change him while he was lying on the toilet seat, with his lower half on the seat and his head wedged in the space between the seat and the wall. He was not happy about this, and I don’t blame him, it was really disgusting. The Southwest flight had changing tables in the rear bathrooms and it made a big difference.

Bonus tip: Be willing to let fellow seatmates hold your baby

If the thought of their non-sterilized hands on your child gives you the heebee-jeebees you can offer them some hand sanitizer, but I loved handing the baby over so I could read my magazine in peace for a few minutes. Plus, people love babies and it really makes them happy to spend some time with one! I feel like I’m making the world a better place in some small way when I give someone a few minutes of my baby smiling up at them. Do note that babies should only be handed over to people who are making “I-want-to-hold-your-baby-eyes” in your direction.

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