Air travel is stressful for most people. Between TSA, changing/made-up guidelines and the threat of being beaten and pulled off a plane it can be a bit much. Throw in a newborn and even the most frequent flyers pee their pants a little. Husband and I fly a lot. While I was pregnant with #TheGreatScoutdoors I flew more than 60,000 miles, and that was on a restricted travel schedule. Since our little world traveler is now a Platinum flyer of the Mile-High Womb Airlines we can only hope she will be a great traveler.

So far our carry-on has been on 6 flights so we are obviously experts. This post is merely for entertainment; we aren’t actually smug enough to think we are experts after 6 whole flights. There is a panic that fills new parents from the moment the flight is booked to the moment the plane has landed. If you’re lucky and you’re really quiet you can hear the universal sigh of relief when wheels hit the tarmac. No matter how the flight went, you are just happy it’s over. With an intense travel schedule ahead we have been holding our breath for weeks! When you go from being a frequent flyer to flying with a child everything changes. In a weird turn of events, every suitcase you have is now dedicated to the smallest person in your party. If you’re like Husband and I you NEVER check bags. EVER! We have traveled for weeks in Europe with one, yes one, shared carry-on size suitcase. There’s an arrogance amongst us frequent flyers, we cannot be seen with a luggage tag, no matter the circumstances. The problem is, babies have a ton of crap! For somebody that was naked and living off my body mere months ago she can’t seem to live without her collapsible play mat, 500 binky’s, 4 outfits a day with matching headbands, the entire Little Remedy’s kit that we’ve never once needed, diapers, burp rags and apparently sign language flash cards to study in her free time. My god! It’s outrageous. To think, Husband and I have backpacked with a can of tuna and a change of undies, and we’re gonna let this kid bring us down? I think not.

We have been lucky that so far we have been able to avoid checked baggage, code browns and midflight meltdowns (all parties included). Of course we aren’t cocky enough to think this will be true for every flight. We have a healthy fear of our 12lb sack of potatoes. It’s no secret that babies are ticking time bombs (just realized I’m typing the word bomb while I’m on a plane, oops). While they may be sleeping like an angel, that could and will likely change at any moment. Now imagine doing this as a solo parent. Nope, not me. The Husband has decided he is parent enough for the both of us and can totally handle the “Solo Dad Life” on cross country flight. Good looking dad, adorable baby, I think they’ll be just fine. (Check back for his post).

Because of our life on the road, we did get #TheGreatScoutdoors Global Entry, which comes with TSA precheck. You don’t have to get your child precheck. If you have it, you can bring your child through precheck with you. However, if you travel as much as we do I think it’s a great idea to get your little one registered as a known traveler. When booking your travel you now have three known travelers, which increases your chances that you’ll have precheck (I don’t know any of this for fact, but I fly a lot and can say I get “randomly” selected less when I’m booked with other known travelers). The BEST part of all of this is that our 4 month old has a Homeland Security interview. As if flying isn’t enough, now I have to worry about what this little, irrational creature is going to do in an interview. I’m guessing she will refuse to answer their questions. I haven’t known her for all that long, so I really can’t vouch for her whereabouts. Don’t worry, we’ll be sure to share if she is detained or deported.