Thanksgiving 2018 in Florida with the whole family. Gramma Betty front and center.
Elizabeth Schlotterbeck. September 21, 1916 - February 8, 2021
Once we arrived in Florida.. Still a happy baby and loved feeling the new salty air on her face.
My little travel warrior on the way from Florida to Nevada. 11 hours (ish) worth of travel time, getting ready, transportation, flights, switching planes, and AHHHHH, home!
Changed planes in Atlanta, had a bit to eat, changed into jammies, boarded our 4.5 hour flight. She ate and then slept for 4 hours comfy cozy.
The backpack I used on the way home. Very comfortable, lightweight, lots of pockets and fun features.
To be honest, I was very nervous about travelling back from Florida alone with my 7 month old baby on our second flight ever! I put on a good game face most of the time. The way I live my life and also what I talk about and help others with is growing, empowering, living your best life, and getting out of your comfort zone. So why was my solo flight to Florida with my baby making me so nervous? The unknown. Who wants their baby to cry the entire time? Nobody. I’m sharing my story so others travelling alone with their babies maybe have a little less unknown, and some more assurance you CAN do this.
To set the stage, first, a week and half prior to travelling alone, my husband, our baby and I, had travelled from Nevada to Florida to attend my grandmother’s funeral. My gramma Betty would have been 105 in September!
It’s not very often we know of someone personally who lives 104 years, right? She lived a wonderful life and up until just months before she died, this former school teacher from Ohio, wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother, scrabble champion, hummingbird lover, strong stoic German woman and woman of faith, was making prayer shawls and quilt tops at church!
My husband and I decided, though our baby is 7 months old and we were going to fly for the first time wearing masks for her first flight, it was time to be with family! Afterall, my theme in 2020 was “faith over fear”.
We boarded the only nonstop available from NV to FL which was Southwest. I do like Southwest airlines. What I didn’t know was Southwest was now booking middle seats. I am completely fine with having people close to me but one of the top 5 requirements you need when travelling with a baby is, a little more SPACE (at least for this first time mamma). Even with limited space, we managed that flight just fine with a few solid reminders, I’ll share below. FYI, I did fly home Delta for a little extra cash, but to ensure I had enough room.
My husband had to leave Florida early for work commitments, so now I had to make the decision to either fly home with him or stay and fly home alone with our baby.
Given I haven’t been to Florida to see my family and friends since before I was pregnant (December 4th, 2019), and with the lock downs, travel restrictions and a lot of uncertainty, I like so many others, didn’t have the chance to see my family and friends who don’t live near me… So I of course took the opportunity to visit, hug, laugh and make memories.
Let me also say for all of your corporate America or business owner travel experts, I get you! We know how to travel. We are prepared and we sort of glide right through the airports, TSA, even restaurants where we’ve made friends with the local staff since we frequent that airport. We show up in cities, navigate around, meet colleagues and local friends and family for dinner, go about our business and return. It’s almost like clockwork or riding a bike. Not too many uncertainties.
For me, given I had travelled the US and internationally for a majority of my career in corporate America, it was throwing me off a little that I was so nervous about this easy cross country flight, alone. I had travelled alone my entire career!
Just as I talk about during the G.R.I.T. Leadership programs, we have to find the courage to keep going. There are going to be unknowns, obstacles, even last minute things that pop up that you may not have a contingency plan for, but we tap into what we do know, our experiences, our strength and our GRIT and we push through!
I also suggest, calling upon people you trust. For me, I only listened to people who were optimistic and had a positive attitude about my travels. I’m sure there were some realistic opinions flying around, but I didn’t need to hear that. I know it could be stressful, my hands were going to be full, etc etc. What I needed was reassurance that I could do this and some helpful tips. I listed to my husband a few trusted people who had done this before.
Not only did I survive the trip, I enjoyed it. I bonded with my little hero travel warrior. She was amazing and though I realize it could change next time, I feel more confident in my travel with her and want others to feel the same.
HERE IS WHAT WORKED FOR US:
I travelled with my BOB running stroller so I could run on the beach in Florida. I also knew my mother had a carseat already installed in her car. Therefore, I took the BOB through security, gate checked it, and my daughter sat on my lap. If you’re nervous about breaking down the stroller before gate checking with one hand or when you get it back… don’t worry, most of the airline staff are very helpful and will assist even without asking. Don’t worry about that big red bag amazon sells. I bought one, but you don’t have hands or time to mess with it and the strollers are in good shape when you get them back. This is a free service offered by airlines. Don’t you love that?!
Travel bag for baby. On the flight out, I took my diaper bag from home because it had all the pockets, zippers and such. HOWEVER, as soon as we landed, my husband went right to amazon and ordered me an amazing backpack! My other top 5 must haves besides extra space, is extra hands. Having a backpack was amazing on the return. The one he purchased had insulated bottle holders in each side AND a wipe dispenser built in. WOW! The only thing I did notice was if you do pack it full (which I still have not mastered), it is a little snug under the seat, but attendants didn’t complain. We were quite and they were happy. So, I used my backpack for baby and turned my diaper bag into my purse. Worked really well and allowed me to have everything at my finger tips.
Once on the plane, I set up my area. Full wipe down, blankets on empty seat next to me, and then formula out and available, toys out and available and don’t forget YOUR water and snacks available too. ( I completely forgot about myself on the first flight). I did have every electronic cued up with Monsters Inc also. For moms who are against it, I am too. But for travel, I let her indulge and enjoy and stay distracted. I was happy and so were my flying companions around me as she never cried ONE time in 11 hours…
The takeoff and landing are SUPER important. A binky/pacifier or a bottle MUST be in mouth. I think others said a toy to chew also would work to clear the ears, but I wasn’t taking any risks and made sure she was hungry when we boarded for a bottle. And if she didn’t want to eat or have a binky, I just held it in her mouth and wiggled it a bit and she sucked enough to clear her ears. Both flights, she ate, then fell right to sleep. Remember, babies love white/brown noise and the engine provides a great calming sound with a few bumps and turbulence to put your little one right to sleep.
Toys - I took a collection of light weight and not bulky items. My husband found and purchased some chewy toy lanyards for us. He found them on amazon. They are bright colored and attach one end to say your stroller, car seat, high chair or diaper bag and the other end to the toy. When baby launches the toy, they may hit other things but they don’t hit the ground and you can easily get them back with baby in one hand!
If I were going to give you an extra tip….here is my #6. Who cares if your baby does cry? I mean, none of us want our baby to be uncomfortable, scared, or hungry. Remember, they have you, you have prepared and they will have everything they need. But if you stress, chances are they will stress. Stay calm, stay quite, stay focused. YOU CAN DO THIS! People all around are helpful and also feel for anyone travelling alone with a baby. If a baby cries, so be it. They are babies. Remember that guy/gal sitting next to you on the last flight, mouth wide open, snoring like a bear? Yep, it happens! Or that guy/gal who boarded with eggs or a tuna sandwich? Yep, that happens too. So your baby poops on the plane…. Grown people toot all time and they know better. Gross, by the way, adults who pass gas on the plane.
I love working with people in all facets of life. I got married for the first time at 40, had my first baby at 43 years old, I am raising two other kiddos who are my loves also (18 and in college and 13 and schooling at home) all in the middle of a pandemic, started a business right before the pandemic, and am too navigating through all of this. Never will I claim to be perfect, but I do practice a positive outlook and work hard to share the optimism with others.
My baby, Stevie Faith, slept both flights, she sat with me in Atlanta to eat, we changed diapers right before each flight, changed into jammies before our evening flight, and ended up enjoying our time together travelling alone for the first time! If we can do it, you can do it.
We have each other. If you have any questions, please email me or call me. I will do my best to address any and all concerns and questions.
Just don’t forget how incredibly courageous you are.
Have fun travelling!
Jeannie Sanders (and Stevie Faith Sanders says “you can do this mom/dad” too!)
President and Owner, Practice of Positivity Leadership Consulting
Founder, G.R.I.T. Leadership Programs “Go Reinvigorate Intrinsic Talents”
Jeannie@practiceofpositivity.com 702-757-7111 www.practiceofpositivity.com
