Sunday, September 12, 2010

Homemaker Monday: How to Dress When Flying With Small Children

Today I am going to have to fore go the "YOURS" feature of Homemaker Monday. I'm getting on a plane tomorrow morning, and will be traveling with the 18-year-old boy and Baby Hippo until about midnight, and I'm tired. I'm tired right now, and I'm tired just thinking about it. I'll explain later. Anyways, here is my post, and I want to read about yours, too, in the thumbnail linky below. Thank you for understanding!

A few weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to have traveled with eight kids to both coasts of the U.S. by air. This was a challenging task, and wearing the right clothes was a MUST! Here are my top three tips...

1. Start off with a good pair of comfortable black pants. I actually choose my stretchy elastic-waist maternity pants, since I knew the top of them would be covered by my shirts, but you could wear something cute like this...

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Wearing comfortable pants helps when bending over to pick up bags and luggage, helping small children get to where they need to be and making super-quick trips to the bathroom. Black also hides stains, such as when children spill their root beer on your lap during the first 5 minutes of flight.

2. Since I'm a currently a breast-feeding mom, I wear two shirts, a stretchy black t-shirt underneath a dark-colored button-down, like so...

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For my flight, I chose a black t-shirt, again, for the stain-hiding factor, and I chose a purple button-down. The button-down comes in handy for three reasons. First, it's a dark color, so helps to hide the same root beer that was also spilled on my pants. Second, it can be removed in case it becomes warm in the plane or in the airport, but can be put on again if it should become chilly. Third, wearing a second shirt makes a great side-cover while nursing a baby. It's still great to have a receiving blanket to cover the top of the chest, but sometimes we nursing mothers are unaware of how much we are really showing on the side.

3. While tennis shoes aren't the most stylish of footwear, these are a must while traveling. We will be uncomfortable enough hauling who-knows-how-many carry-on bags, diaper bags, blankets, car seats and strollers, so why add to that by wearing a stylish, but possibly uncomfortable pair of shoes? Try something like this...

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Cute, but functional!

Hope this helps anyone insane enough to fly with 8 children! Stay tuned for a later post on what to pack in your carry-on while traveling by air with a nursing baby. Thanks for listening!

Okay, I totally LOVED the thumbnail linky last week. So many fun pictures, so don't forget to link up again this week. And if you're a first-timer, don't be shy. Dig through your archives and link one or two of your great ideas!




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8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Great tips. You are a pro! Lol Travel safely.

alessandra said...

Yeah it's insane to fly even with one small child, if he runs all over the airport, I remeber my past experiences :(
never again!...I hope

Julie said...

Great tips! Thanks for the linky hosting. :)

Pati @ A Crafty Escape said...

Perfect timing for this post! I'm flying home to Spain this upcoming weekend by myself with the kids. I'm a tad scared as I've never done it solo before. I will think of you with 8 kids if I get overwhelmed!

Christine said...

Excellent tips. The only thing I'd add - make sure the pants have pockets. Perfect for carrying an extra pacifier...

Beth-u-knee said...

Dont forget to mention that slip on shoes are a must when going through airport security! I always bring a small blanket and pillow with me also, or else i am too uncomfortable to sleep or do anything on the flight. But thats kind of a hassle and you probably wont get much sleeping in if you are flying with kids. But yes, definitely wear slip on shoes

Betsy Escandon said...

I cannot imagine traveling with 8 children. I hate traveling with 2. I agree with the dark shirt -- a great choice anytime while breastfeeding (I leak a lot).

Katie Riddle said...

Great tips! Traveling with children is definitely an art.