11 Baby Travel Disasters

Inspired by my favourite communications guy.

11. The baby puke-a-rama. You may have a pukey baby. You may not. This does not guarantee they won't turn into the exorcist when you're travelling. Carry multiple extra clothes…and a set for you too. A friend was in the Halifax airport in a tank top and pajama shorts in January with a carry on full of sicky clothing.  Nice look.

10. Baby runs. A friend said baby poo smells like buttermilk. When it just won't stop coming and you only have a limited number of nappies, buttermilk sucks.  You only carry on a logical number of nappies for a regular poop situation.  Solution? ...when you find out let me know.

9. Overtired immobile kids. The ones too young to run around. Instead they just cry and cry. I was on a plane from HK to London beside a mum that had already come from Sydney on her own with her 9 month old baby girl, Neve. Neve turned into a red, howling monster about 10 minutes after takeoff and kept it up pretty much solidly through to London. Nothing to be done. Try really hard not to scream at the on board team when they suggest she may want some milk. LIKE YOU HADN'T THOUGHT OF THAT ALREADY!

8. Overtired mobile kids. These are the ones that run maniacly up and down the airplane. Polite smiles turn into glares in no time when kiddo is yelling and bumping into elbows and knees on the upteenth trip. Let them run a bit, then tempt them into seats with books, videos, toys...pull out the big guns, otherwise they'll never stop.  Perhaps a shameless plug for the travel pack here??

7. Baby spikes a fever on a long haul flight. Okay, so you're panicing that it is airborne Ebola, but try to stay calm. Air stewards are great at running around and fetching you things (cloths for the baby...gin for you). If you have brought baby drugs - give them that and cuddle them and try to monitor their temperature. There isn't much you can do.

6. Your kid is bored. I realise, this may not seem like a disaster to many. However, on an airplane filled with people to annoy, this could be going in the direction of disaster. Have an emergency toy to hand. Ideally something new for the trip that should keep their attention for a while.

5. To really scare you - have a read about this nightmare with a travelling toddler. They have improved safety conditions since... http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Business/Ryanair-Says-It-Has-Toughened-Up-Safety-Rules-After-A-Child-Fell-From-Steps-While-Boarding-A-Plane/Article/201008215681940?f=rss

4. Delays to return trip takes you past the 2 year old birthday. This is a good logistical nightmare. We were trapped by the ashcloud for 8 days in India past our return date. During those 8 days, Little Jet turned 2! Happy birthday! You now need a real airplane seat! This caused no end of problems with rebooking. If you have unexpected travel changes, consider calling the airline direct to talk it through. There are no systems in place for this sort of thing, so be prepared to be on the phone a long long time.

3. Nightmare when travelling with children nearby. Your kids may be angels, but when someone is feeding THEIR kids chocolate as a bribe to get them to pipe down on a flight to Malta, it is the longest 3 hours in the air ever. Sugar and kids and long journeys just don't mix.

2. Forgetting the key item. Little Jet has a doggie she does not sleep without. What happens when you are all on the airplane and doggie is not? We found that distraction with other cuddly toys specifically for travelling helped. A bit. Best advice? Don't forget doggie.

1. Travelling on your own with a small child on no sleep on a long haul flight that gets redirected to an airport in the middle of nowhere for a 4 hour emergency stop because someone in the cabin has taken ill. And your mobile phone battery died.  Tears all around.