Flying alone for 13 hours with a toddler and a baby?!

Just the thought of flying alone with baby Sterling (then 3.5 months) and Lennox (exactly 2 years) was scary and intimidating. I even considered NOT flying to Singapore because i was afraid that i wouldn't be able to handle the 13 hour flight alone with them. But that would mean that my whole family (sister, brothers, grandma, nephews, nieces, uncles, aunts etc etc) and my Singapore friends would not be able to see the new baby... and it had already been a year since they saw Lennox.

So i told myself i had to do it! And i did! Here's a few things i did to prep for the flight and to make the flight that much less scary:

• I chose a night flight instead of day time ones: obviously, to follow their sleep rhythm. I was lucky enough to have a choice of 9pm flight instead of a 11am one;

• I made sure they had a 'regular/boring' day with naps etc, so that they were not overly excited or over tired;

• confirm my baby bassinet. Flying with KLM with a baby for the first time, i realised after booking online that my baby bassinet was NOT confirmed until 30 hours before the flight (that's when we do online check in). WHATTTTT?! No way i was going to 'maybe' get a bassinet for a 13-hour flight, with a toddler in tow! I did not have this problem with Singapore Airlines previously when they confirmed my bassinet seat once i made the booking. Calling the KLM helpline didn't help, they told me the same :( Luckily for me i have a friend working for KLM and she managed to help me secure the bassinet seat. That was definitely a sigh of relief and one less thing to think about!

Sterling slept in the bassinet for most of the 13-hour flight!

• diaper bag: the usual stuff (diapers, wipes, change of clothes, bibs etc), everything multiplied by 2. You can always count on the poop explosion on flights and messy eating on the plane. ALWAYS. Also, an extra shirt/blouse for mama! We usually pack so many things for the kids that we forget about ourselves. No fun walking around with food/puke stains on our bodies :P I also packed some fruits and cookies that Lennox liked. 

• entertainment: since Sterling was only a newborn he didn't need much other than boob; but for Lennox i did pack a couple of his favourite puzzles, colouring book, cars and lastly the ipad. There are tons of blogs with lists of stuff to bring for a toddler, one which i enjoyed very much was this blog by Travel Mad Mum.

• logistics: i knew i was going to use my Tula baby carrier to front-carry Sterling, so i had a backpack that i carried containing the 'diaper bag' stuff. I also had a small sling bag which contained my wallet, phone, passport and the kids' papers (since i was travelling alone out of the country with the kids, i needed 'authorisation' from my husband with a copy of his passport, the kids' birth certificates etc). The sling bag was definitely handy since it was always on me and i didnt have to dig through the big backpack. Then i made sure Lennox was strapped into his stroller/buggy when he had to walk to gates/ go through immigration.

Before our flight to Singapore!

• i was considering getting one of those toddler flight beds like the Jet Kids Bed Box and Fly Legs Up but i decided against them because of the hefty price tag. Also, i wasn't sure if all flights would allow it since recently an Australian airline Qantas has banned the use of this;

• i had a great sleeper Sterling. Ok this is not really a prep.. haha :P But man, am i lucky that Sterling is an awesome sleeper. From about 6 weeks old he started sleeping through the night (from 11pm-6am.... really!). He's one of those babies that i read in books where you can put him down in his crib while he's drowsy but awake. Then he falls asleep. like... WHAT??? He is the opposite of his older brother Lennox who only slept through the night at about 20 months and still now at 2yr3m wakes up once or twice a night.

Flying to Singapore was the better flight for us. Once we were in the air (around 10pm), Sterling fell asleep and i transferred him to the bassinet. And he stayed there till about 7am, waking up just once. Once he was awake, after some milk he just stayed awake lying in the bassinet and occupied himself with a toy. Lennox was up till about 1030pm watching the ipad then he fell asleep and i managed to get some shut-eye too. Lennox was up maybe 3-4 times and he wanted to sleep ON me instead of the (uncomfortable) seat so that was annoying for me. But otherwise he did well and when he was up he was busy with the toddler play package they gave us and also watching his shows on the iPad. Before i knew it we were having breakfast, then we were in Singapore!

Flying back to Holland was a tougher one. It was a midnight flight so both kids were a little overtired by the time we got to our seats. Sterling at this time was 5months old and starting to turn and crawl so he was also waking up abit more in the night. Thankfully the kids 'took turns' to wake up so i could deal with them separately. I probably only had about 3-4 hours of broken sleep during that flight. We did have a nice English couple across the aisle from us and they loved the kids. They held Sterling a couple of times for me when i had to go to the toilet or when Lennox was acting up and i had to deal with him. Thank goodness for those kind people.

Arrived back in Holland after the vacation. Man, I was BEAT!

So... would i recommend flying alone with a toddler and a baby? The answer is a resounding NO!!! hahaha... but CAN you do it? Yes! Definitely. 

I realised after being a mom that i am really capable of so much more than i thought i could. It was definitely a daunting experience but the 7 weeks in Singapore really made up for it. My kids spent time with their cousins and family and I couldn't have asked for a better time.