Advice please: Surviving airline security with 3 kids

working hard

Thu, Apr 03 2014, 10:41 pm

I am due to fly to my in-laws Thursday of Chol Hamoed. I am flying with my 2 year old and my 10 month old twins. The flight is one thing but how will I manage security. This is what happened the past 2 times.

The kids fell asleep in the car on the way to the airport. We woke them up taking them out of the car and putting them in the stroller. I have a double with a jumpseat. They were kvetchy the whole 45 minutes till we checked in and fell asleep as we got to security
For some reason, my husband gets pulled over for a special check every time we fly. (He must look like a terrorist, it must be the black hat!). I am alone with 3 kids and 6 carry ons. I put the carry ons on the belt. We need to collapse the stroller. I take out the 2 year old and take off his seat. I take out the twins and hold them as I collapse the stroller. I take off coats/ wraps... The kids scream as they were woken up again. I try to go through with 3 kids. On the other side, I have to hold 2 kids, keep track of the third, take all my baggage off... In the meantime, they are testing the stroller for explosives as it beeped so I cannot even put the babies down.
So do you hear why I have a hard time?
In the meantime, everyone is yelling at me to get out of the way, my stuff is a big mound on the floor. I left at least one bag by the machine and the security guy is calling me to get it. How does he expect me to do that?
Finally they are done with the stroller and I put the babies back inside. I put on the third seat and put my big boy inside. I gather all our bags, just in time to greet my husband, back from his extended check who says Wow, all done, you look great. Everything is nice and calm...

Thanks for the vent. I hope I gave someone a good laugh and if anyone has any advice for me it would really be appreciated.

acccdac

Thu, Apr 03 2014, 11:02 pm

2 comments to make

1) not all airports and not all airline have it, but there is such a thing as a family line. When you get to the first person who checks ask if you can get some assistance.

2) you can do what I did once, act like a crazy and they leave you alone. We were flying with 3 kids (spread apart in age) with the youngest 10 months as a lap baby. I was in charge of the kids, and my dh had all the bags. They decided to pull him aside, so I went to take the bags and they said he has to keep them since he was pushing them (I packed them) and then they said he had to take the baby because her "lap ticket" was stapled to his ticket verses mine. I stared unloading the cart with the luggage and it fell my dh went to pick it up and I yelled at him "don't you dare pick it up, if they think my 10 month old has a bc on her diaper and that baggage that I packed had to be checked becausey husbands hands were on it for a minute, then they can continue to waste their time and pick up the cart on their own!" As I contiued to go through security I kept on making rude comments and being totally sarcastic and syndical.

So if they say "ma'am you need to move your bags" I would answer "you know what, if you wouldn't be screening inappeopirately my luggage wouldn't be in your way, so you're just gonna have to wait until I'm able to move it. And if you were smart enough to realize that I could use some help maybe you wouldn't be asking the stupid question you just asked"

spring13

Thu, Apr 03 2014, 11:06 pm

How long is the flight?

First of all, it sounds like it would be worth it to pay to check more bags so that you can take the minimum with you on the plane - a diaper bag and a big purse or something like that.

Also, bring a baby carrier (like an Ergo or Beco) so you can put a kid on your back and free an arm - maybe even borrow a second one for your DH to use for the 2nd twin. I know people aren't huge fans of toddler backpack/leash things, but it might be warranted in your case for your big kid. Maybe a one that attaches to the wrist? You can keep it in a pocket and only pull it out if this kind of drama happens again. If those are possibilities, is there any chance that you could borrow strollers to use at your ILs (from their neighbors or friends or whatever) and avoid shlepping your huge one? I took DD on a place once by myself and I just used a carrier since my parents have a stroller at their house. It was great having one less thing to haul around in the airport.

You're a brave lady. If you've survived all that before, you'll survive again!

Last edited by spring13 on Thu, Apr 03 2014, 11:11 pm; edited 2 times in total

goodmorning

Thu, Apr 03 2014, 11:16 pm

working hard wrote:

A few points that have worked for us:
1. If he claims that the luggage is his, they have to personally remove it from the belt and take it to the testing area. Let every one of those six bags be his. They might go through those bags, but you will be saved the bother of having to lift them off the conveyor belt.
2. Why is your husband going through alone? If he goes through with a child, they will have to wait until you come through with the other children in order to pass that child back to you.
3. If the hat and jacket are removed (in one of those bins to put through the X-ray machine), your husband will look safer.

working hard

Fri, Apr 04 2014, 8:54 am

To answer everyone:

They usually take about 15 minutes to check DH. Also they do not pull him over until we get to the machine so I cannot wait for him to come back. I am left with everyone and everything.
Sending DH ahead so he is cleared on time may be a good idea. I have not in the past because each time I hope he will not be pulled over and it is so hard to manage on my own even for a few minutes.
This happened in the family line!
I wonder if using baby carriers can work. For one twin maybe, but the other weighs 20 pounds (at 10 months). There is no way my DH can carry him as well as luggage. I would probably need the stroller anyway. I will think about it.
We do not fly frequently enough to be eligible for pre check.
He takes 2 bags with him but they do not let him claim more than that. He usually gets pulled over before we go through as he is unloading so he does not have a child with him.

This is after regular check in. We are not dealing with big suitcases here.

Thank you everyone for your advice and sympathy. I appreciate it

chocolate chips

Fri, Apr 04 2014, 9:46 am

Ugh I hate security!
It is the epicenter of my nervous anxiety attacks when we get ready to travel.

I once travelled alone with my then 2 yr old. It was late at night/early morning and my son was sleeping so I had him in the stroller plus my 2 bags and his bag. Not only that I was changing flights so there and back I had to go through twice. Each time I had to take him out remove his coat and shoes fold the stroller remove my coat and shoes push everything through then taste his bottles and food then put everything back together all with a SCREAMING toddler.
And all they do is make faces and get upset if you don't do everything as they say.

I honestly can't imagine how you do it.

My tips are
Send your husband through with your toddler and two bags and you wait 10minutes before going through security. It might be a bit hard for him but not as hard as it will be for you alone.
When you go wear one baby to make it easier.
Another idea is what I did last time. Remove all coats and shoes before you get into the line and put them in a carrier bag it is so much easier.

Good luck!

MiracleMama

Fri, Apr 04 2014, 11:01 am

I just thought of something else. I wish I could think of what it's called, but there is some sort of security clearance pass people get who travel a lot. You fill out lots of paperwork and TSA or some gov't agency background checks you and then once you have the pass you get through security very quickly and easily. Since you keep having this problem with DH, it might be worth the hassle of getting for you and DH, even if you're not frequent flyers. Hopefully someone reading this will know what I'm talking about and tell you what this pass is called and how to get it.

goodmorning

Fri, Apr 04 2014, 11:01 am

working hard wrote:

If you use a baby carrier, you are not allowed to hold anything in your hands (or hold the hand of an older walking child) as you go through security. They need to check your hands for gunpowder residue.

If you are traveling with a bunch of children and have 6 bags of mainly kids' stuff, there is room for argument that they are all his. (Really, they are the kids' but nobody expects toddlers or infants to take control of their own belongings, so they are either yours or his -- and then why more yours than his?) We have had this argument many a time with security (BTDT with 3 children under the age of 3 and one parent pulled aside for extra checking) and if you argue enough, they will give in. Sometimes.

Have your husband take off his hat and jacket before any other unloading of luggage onto the conveyor belt to decrease the odds of him being pulled aside.

Take off kids' coats when you get into the airport so that's one less thing to do at security. (Blankets are easier to pull off than coats.)

Also, not relevant now but next time, consider looking into getting a rewards credit card with the carrier that you are flying. They often give you priority check-in, so you will cut most of the first 45 minutes of hassle. (They usually have annual fees but they are often waived for the first year.)

cinnamon

Sun, Apr 06 2014, 7:13 am

Would it work for you to have two single strollers instead of one double?
You go through first with one twin in your hands, the stroller on the conveyor belt and some of the bags. Then once twin #1 is safely in his stroller dh comes through with twin #2 and the toddler. If he gets pulled away you still only have to deal with putting one twin in the stroller and moving the remaining bags to the side to wait for dh.

You can do it also with a double stroller - have dh get on line three or four people behind you, holding one twin and the toddler's hand so that when he comes through you are all done and the stroller is ready to put the twin in.