Mom shares what it was like taking her toddler on a 22-hour flight

This TikTok parent shared how she got her toddler through a 22 hour flight with minimal tantrums!

Kristy (@drkristysommer) is a parent and parenting podcaster with a PhD in child development. Kristy shares plenty of useful parenting advice on TikTok, along with sweet videos of her daughter. In a recent video, Kristy shared a play-by-play of her daughter’s first airplane trip—which just so happened to be a whopping 22 hours long! The mom also shared her tips for getting her toddler through the arduous flight with minimal tantrums.

@drkristynsommer

In hindsight we probably should have done a shorter flight first, but all things considered, she nailed it! Jetlag on the other hand 😵‍💫 #parentsoftiktok #toddlersoftiktok #momtok #longhaulflight #flyinywithtoddlers #travellingwithtoddlers #travelhacks #toddlersonplanes

♬ Pieces (Solo Piano Version) – Danilo Stankovic

The video begins with a shot of the toddler sitting in the window seat of an airplane, a green blanket wrapped around her lap as she watches TV. “I took my toddler on her first flight for 22 hours,” Kristy explains in a voiceover. “Here’s how it went down.”

“We got to the airport 5 hours early,” Kristy recalls, showing footage of herself and her toddler strolling through the airport, pulling suitcases behind them. 

“We went through customs, we waited in a lounge, [and] she decided to give herself a sensory activity,” Kristy says, showing her toddler pouring juice from one glass to another. 

“Our first flight was from Brisbane to Dubai. It’s about 14 hours,” Kristy explains. “She’s hanging out, watching the inflight entertainment system for a second. Notice we haven’t even left the ground yet before she switches to her iPad.”

Kristy shows her toddler watching TV on her iPad, then explains that soon after that, the exhausted toddler fell asleep. The toddler slept for about 6 hours, then woke up, ate some snacks, and worked on some arts and crafts activities.

The toddler moves from activity to activity, tiring quickly of each one. Fortunately, Kristy has come prepared with plenty for her toddler to do. While making Cheerio necklaces and playing with toy cars were only momentarily distracting, Kristy recalls that Play-Doh was a hit. “That lasted for ages,” she says. “It’s probably the best thing we brought on this flight other than the snack pack.”

Finally, the first leg of the journey is over, and the toddler and her mom transfer to a new airplane flying from Dubai to Glasgow. On the second flight, the toddler naps for a couple hours, then plays with a sensory toy. 

When the toddler starts to get restless, the creative mom uses a blanket to make a little fort for her. “It was great,” Kristy recalls. 

Finally, the family arrives in Glasgow. “She really surprised me because she had very few tantrums the entire trip,” Kristy says as the video ends. 

TikTokers applauded the mom for being prepared for the flight!

“Wow, go lil lady! She did better than most adults,” one viewer wrote. 

“I would have had a dozen tantrums on a 22 hour flight. I’m 42,” another TikToker joked. 

“Y’all did amazing!” wrote another viewer.   

While long trips can be tough for toddlers, bringing plenty of snacks and activities is a great way to ensure everything goes as smoothly as possible!

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