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We did a 5 hour flight at that age. It was fine. Yes to wearing. Check the stroller if you need one there. Bring a copy of the birth certificate for baby. So will they be a lap child or have their own seat? Try to keep baby awake at the airport before leg 1 so they will sleep on the plane. Breast or bottle feed if you can during takeoff or landing, but don't wake the babe to do so. The flight attendants will ask you to take baby out of the carrier if it's a lap baby during takeoff/landing.

You can totally do this! Get an aisle and middle seat, if possible.

A stroller and car seat are not counted towards your baggage count and you can gate check (you can also curb check, but there is more risk of damage). Breast pump / breast milk / premixed formula / cooler / ice pack are considered medical equipment, so standard liquid size requirements do not apply. What we do:

Click the car seat into the stroller, put the diaper bag and any other carry on bags in the stroller and wear the baby. Having the stroller will get you into a faster line at security (at least at the airports I've been to).

When you get to security, they'll want to send the car seat and stroller through the X-ray, or if it's too big, they can hand check. They'll probably ask you to take baby out of carrier, which you can do, or you can ask for a hand check. If you have pre-mixed formula or pumped breastmilk, they will need to go through X-ray or get hand-checked which involves opening the bottle, waving an absorbent pad over (but not in) the milk) and running it through a machine.

Once you get to your gate put the car seat and stroller into travel bags and ask for gate check tags for them. When they call for preboarding of families with kids, have one person (my husband does this) board with the stroller, car seat and any carry on bags you have, other than the diaper bag. This ensures you have overhead space for your carry ons. The other person keeps baby playing in the terminal until most other people have boarded. I change diaper right before boarding, then put baby in carrier, throw diaper bag over my shoulder and board last.

You'll probably have to take baby out of carrier for take off, if he is asleep, I try to just keep him on my chest and have my husband unclip the back and pull the panel down, but leave the waist attached. If he's awake, I nurse during take off to encourage his ears to pop with the altitude change.

During the flight my son often sleeps. If he's not sleeping we keep some toys in the diaper bag, we play or walk the aisle. Flight attendants are usually very helpful if you need anything (like bottled water for formula or warm water to heat up a bottle).

Overall, my biggest advice is to try not to stress or get flustered. If it takes a little longer to get through security, it's fine. People are usually very understanding when you have a baby. And don't be afraid to ask for / accept help. People love to help babies. Seriously. We were once on a flight with a mom who had a baby by herself and people helped her carry her luggage, set up her stroller, open doors, everything. You can totally do it!

@peaches1038: Aw I am sorry to hear about your grandpa. I think traveling with DS will be fine! We did it about a month ago. No problems. We didn't do anything special. Didn't buy him a seat; I sat next to a stranger with him on my lap in the middle seat! He either slept or played with a couple toys. Feed him, bring something interesting for him to look at and if all else fails ..... in-flight cartoons!

@peaches1038: Glad to help. I was the exact same way before our first flight! As you can see, I like to have a plan. But, really, it's not a big deal. Way easier than driving long distances.

My best tips are really for you, the parent!

1. Go to the bathroom frequently, before you board the plane especially.
2. Once you get on the plane, put a bottle of water inside the barf bag and put it inside the seat pocket. Put your diaper go bag in there as well.
3. Wear a small crossbody bag with your valuables. Keep it on your person the entire flight.
4. Bring a small grocery bag for garbage, trust me, you will suddenly have a ton of things to throw out and no where to put them.