I have just returned from a short trip to Idaho, where we are looking to purchase a new home. I had to fly there from where I am living now, and the flight up was very nice and peaceful. The flight home on the other hand, was horrendous.
Flying home to California, I expected more children on the plane due to the popularity of amusement parks here and such, but never in my wildest dreams did I expect children who would spend the better part of two hours screaming and kicking my chair.
There was a woman sitting behind me with her son, I’d say he was about five years old. I saw them sitting in the airport while we were waiting for the plane, and I noticed the mother was a bit loud, but the child was really just playing and being a kid. When we got on the plane, I saw that they were sitting behind me, and that didn’t bother me at all.
I have four children in my home at any given time, give or take a few more depending on who has friends over, and still I have never experienced a child so out of control as the one sitting behind me on the plane.
Outside of kicking my chair and screaming in my ear, he and his mother were having very loud conversations with each other and anybody else that looked their way. She must have sung “twinkle, twinkle, little star” about ten times in her loudest voice. She read him a book as if she were reading to a classroom. At one point, the boy did something she didn’t like, and she took a toy away from him, so he had a full-blown fit in his seat. All this while she was putting down a friend of hers to a stranger stating that her friend didn’t have any control of her kids.
Here’s the point of this article, when you’re flying with your children, be respectful of other people. You’re confined in a pretty small space for an extended period of time, and not everybody wants to listen to you sing, read and scream at your kid. Some of us (even those with children who understand) want to take the two hour plane ride to relax and read a magazine. The plane isn’t a playground, and shouldn’t be treated as such.
Bring things that can keep your child occupied while you’re in the air. Coloring books, travel books or small puzzles are great. Bring sugar-free snacks and water. We also got to listen to Junior begging for something to drink before the attendants were ready to serve. Talk or read to your child quietly. The more calm and quiet you are, the more calm and quiet they will be. If you have a portable DVD player, bring it with some headphones, or even a portable CD player with some relaxing music for them to listen to.
Nobody expects your child to be perfect on a plane, or absolutely quiet. But, teaching them to be respectful of other people in any situation will do them a world of good later on.