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I recently went on a trip with my almost 1 yr old. She sounds alot like your baby , pretty quiet. She was great on all four flights, but she didn't sleep at all. She is very social and there were just too many people to charm. We brought along little snacks for the pressure because swallowing helps. We got the kind that melt rather quickly in the mouth so she would swallow alot when there was pressure. Sometimes it was difficult to tell when she felt pressure, so I would give her some whenever I did. Sometimes it was obvious because the wee one was rubbing the ears. As far as what you can bring on the plane, I was fortunate enough to get the extra seat. That was only on one leg though. The others we did have to hold the baby, and gate check the carrier. If I could do over again, I think I would rather have the stroller. The wee one was a big lug to carry from gate to gate, in addition to all of the other bags we had. Or at least a Snugli or a sling to make carrying her easier. Those carriers are pretyy bulky and made her even heavier. You should check with the airline you will be flying for their rules on baggage, they vary by airline and your travel agent may have given you general rules. The rules are posted on the internet at their website or you can call directly. I wouldn't advise the latter because in my experience they don't always know the correct answer. So if you do call, call more than once just to make sure you get the same answer. I was able to bring my diaper bag/doubling as a purse, my laptop, and a backpack. Take lots of toys, if its a long flight you will need distractions. Most of all do not let others get to you. Although lots of people came up to us after the flight and commented on how good our baby was, intially we gots lots of dirty looks and "oh Gods". One more tip, if you are going on an international flight, most airlines will let you sit in their "VIP" lounge while waiting for your flight. They have a great selection of wines, soft drinks and snacks for free. Plus it's much more comfy there with the wee one. Bon voyage!

Yes, you can check her stroller as well. Not to scare you more, but I would never travel on a plane with my baby unless he was strapped in. If an airline offered me a free seat but without a seatbelt, I would not fly on it. Northwest offers 1/2 price tickets for infants if that helps you in the future. You may want to use a sling or a bjorn to carry her through the airport, check her stroller at check in, and take the infant seat on the plane. You will have all your bases covered. If there is no seat, you can check the infant seat at the gate (they use the stairs on the jetway to put it under the plane) and use the bjorn or an infant sling on the plane. It could prevent her from injury if you are strapped in your seat and she is strapped to you.

I've been a several plane trips since my 4 year old was a baby. The first time, she was about 6 months old. I brought along her whole bedroom, I swear! I had the stroller, which I checked with my bags, and pack n' play. I think the airport had a rate of $25 per additional luggage. (They allowed 2 bags, no charge.) I didn't have to pay the additional fee's though. Think they felt sorry for me traveling alone with the baby. She definately had her car seat on the plane. I never had to pay for an additional seat. Children under 24 months, are allowed free. They gave me the 3 window seats, no charge. I could use them as I needed. (Unless they needed the seat for another pa__senger. I had baby in car seat for the whole flight, however, when the seatbelt signs came on, and during take off and landing, I had to have her in my lap. Policy. Any child under 24 months, has to be in parents lap when those occur. also, I wasn't allowed to take any connecting flights, or stop overs. It had to be a direct flight. Not airport policy, but Doctors reccomendation. He said it wasn't good for baby's ears to be subject to too many ups and downs. (take off, landing etc.) You dont have to carry Jadyn in her carrier throughout the airport. They have those carts for baggage, that car seats can attach to, and are quite safe. So, if I were you, check the stroller with the luggage, bring the seat on the plane. Most airports will accomodate you.

Flew NW on my trip last month, they do not charge 1/2 price for your infant. It was full price, and to top it off they don't even give you meals in flight anymore. I don't know if it is because they went bankrupt or what. Now only soft drinks are free, "snack boxes" are $3, trail mix is $1 and drinks are $5.

Never found those special carts for babies in carriers, and I flew out of several major airports and one small one.

They aren't special carts. They are the normal carts for luggage. Some have the extra rack on the top, like a shopping cart almost. Sorry you haven't seen them. Must be a Canadian thing.

Thanks everybody for your ideas. I didnt even think of the Snugli so that is a great idea and I will definitely be looking for a cart because flying solo with Jadyn is going to involve alot of baby gear :-) The flight itself is only 3 hours so I hope she doesnt make a liar out of me and scream the entire flight!!! hehe

I flew when my daughter was about 5 months old also. It was only a 2 hour trip which was nice. She was on my lap the whole time. Not a big deal. She still had her pacifier then so when we took off or landed I made sure she was sucking on that, or even a bottle of milk/water. I never brought my stroller, to me there was no need and it was just another thing to lug around. Bring her seat with you though.

I forgot all about the paci, my bub stopped using hers at 2 months. thats another good tip though!

i flew with my daughter she was 3 months old. i had her car seat and her stroller and you can check both at the gate. make sure you have toys for her to play with just incase she gets bored. and just makes sure that she is drinking something on take off and on the landing. i thought you only needed it on take off but her ears bothered her when we were landing also. dont worry you'll be fine i was kinda nervous but she did excellent. good luck

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I HAVENT FLOWN WITH MY BABY YET BECAUSE THEY SAY TO KEEP THEM ON YOUR LAP AND I WOULD NEVER TRUST THAT. WHAT IF THERE WAS A CRASH? WOULD YOU BE ABLE TO HOLD ON TO YOUR BABY? DO THE AIRLINES LET YOU KEEP THE BABY STRAPPED TO YOU IN THE SEAT? I READ THAT THEY STOPPED ALLOWING THAT.

Oh God! Dont say that! I am counting on the fact that I can have her strapped to me in the Snugli. If not I cant get on the plane. I am calling them to find out.