Infants and Airplanes

I'm going to be working on something. After all that holiday travel with BabyGirl, I really want something that makes keeping her happy throughout the flight easier. She does great, but as she gets older, I'm sure she'll want more to do. Here is a rough sketch of what I'd like to make.

It slips over the tray table and works like a busy box when the tray table is in the 'locked' position. I'll probably leave the backside fairly plain, maybe sew some vinyl or other plastic type fabric on it for an easy wipe down surface for snacks and such. I'm not much of a seamstress. I'm generally pleased if I can sew straight lines so the design is pretty basic. The ribbons down either side will have loops to hook toys into using the ubiquitous and miraculous interlocking rings we have. No more bending over in a cramped seat to pick something up off the floor, never mind how dirty that floor may be. The other elements are a string of wooden beads, and a flap secured with Velcro with a little surprise underneath.

If sewing isn't your thing, there are activity centers like this for sale. I found one on Ebay that is really impressive.

Do you have advice on traveling with small kids? My one bit of invaluable baby advice is to bring the Boppy or other similar nursing pillow. BabyGirl eats and sleeps so well in hers on my lap on the plane, and it is much more comfortable than supporting her solely with our arms for 5 or 6 hours. Feel free to leave your advice, tricks, and tips in the comments.

(I'll be working on this project throughout the week as naps allow, so please check back later for updates and more pictures.)