Flying Baby

Finn Gunn has been on his first airplane ride—actually, now he’s been on two. Our little family went on a weekend getaway and although we’d had some trepidation about being “those people” with the crying infant on board, he traveled like a seasoned road warrior in the million mile club.

We boarded early—this little perk was the first pleasant surprise of our trip—and sat in our seats immediately behind the bulkhead separating us from the rich people. Soon a parade of passengers passed. Side note: my son loves women (he gets this from his father, of course), so he flirted with every single woman who strode by, each one cooing and smiling back at him as he giggled and gurgled.

When the engines roared and the jet lurched forward, he had absolutely no anxiety. Who could be anxious after about three dozen pretty women have just smiled and blown kisses at you? But that’s not the reason he did so well.

I think he was so good during our flights because this wasn’t exactly our son’s first time flying.

We were told very early on that we would become world class entertainers for our baby. In fact, it was only about halfway into our pregnancy when Obstetrician said, “For the first year of his life his favorite toys are going to be the two of you.”

When he gets a little sideways, one of my first moves is the one we call Flying Baby. I’m not into tossing him into the air—some folks are that brave but I’m not one of them—but he loves it when I lift him up above my head so he’s outstretched in a “Superman.” A broad smile is an almost immediate effect.

If he’s lying down and unhappy, merely blowing raspberries in his tummy will reverse his mood—he loves it. The only downside is that he’s begun blowing his own raspberries into the air in public places. That gets me some interesting looks.

Penelope uses a form of peek-a-boo that includes the rhetorical question and answer: “Where’s Finn Gunn? THERE’S FINN GUNN!” She can also take a crying baby and tickle, tickle, tickle him to hysterical laughter.

Naturally, we didn’t board the airplane entirely empty handed. In my carry-on we had a host of familiar items: a sippy cup with cool water, his favorite rattle, two books we’ve read to him a thousand times, and a little stuffed monkey he’s been teething on forever.

Among the tips for flying with baby we’ve been told about but chose to not use:
• A small dose of Infants’ Ibuprofen can alleviate painful pressure changes in the ears
• Particularly when everyone is eating, a jar of food can be an excellent mid-flight distraction
• If you’re into giving baby sweets, a lollipop will keep him swallowing during descent

Oh yeah, this one almost goes without saying: when in doubt, boob solves everything. This is often as true for daddy as it is for baby.

In December 2008, Doug Wyllie became a first-time dad. A veteran of more than ten years in corporate communications and journalism, Doug was writing about streaming video before YouTube, digital music before Napster, and wireless technology since the original Palm Pilot debuted. Doug presently serves as the editor of PoliceOne, where he writes on a broad range of topics and trends that affect public safety professionals. Here, Doug writes about all sorts of poop.