Pacifiers or sippy cups. The sucking motion keeps his pressure regulated. This may not be useful for you because Pacifier policy widely varies from household to household. I can vouch for it, though. My two year old and I were on a two hour flight last month, and I think I had worse trouble with pressure. I also brought a portable DVD player and plenty of coloring/sticker books to keep him occupied during the flight. We have a strict policy that he not watch DVD's while travelling around town, but for long trips it's a godsend.

I don't envy you. Mine was hitting his limit at two hours. We drove back from Orlando, which is a 7-8 hour drive, and those last two hours were tough. At least we could stop and let him stretch his legs. Dunno what I'd do on a plane for that long.

If you can't find the face plugs or sippy cups (like if you're at the airport), buy two bags of gummy worms to accomplish the same thing. Well, one bag is actually so you don't have to eat you're kids candy.

Or you could try not bringing a 2-year-old on flights/cruises. He won't remember it and everyone around you will be grateful.

I'll second the Benadryl suggestion. I know it makes you feel like you are drugging your kid, which you essentially are, but it does keep them more relaxed and docile. Especially at such a young age where they really can't keep themselves entertained for that long a period.

Yeah, because that's totally what I suggested. Too bad people don't have other individuals they know related by blood or familiarity that are capable of caring for children.

Look, on a long flight, crying kids are really annoying. I'm not "delicate" for feeling that way and I'm certainly not in the minority. Given that a two-year-old isn't going to remember the trip I don't really see a compelling reason to bring them along at all. Sorry if that offends anyone.

Y'know, what Zoidberg said wasn't exactly constructive either but nobody jumps all over him.

Sorry buzz, I wasn't aware that I wasn't permitted to express my frikkin opinion unless it was an immediately actionable and viable suggestion. Do forgive the trespass of an ignorant, self-righteous, childless outsider.

While I don't condone the Lobster pile on, I'd just like to say that with this:

You assume too much.

Nasal spray will do the trick for adults. I've flown with my 15-month old several times, including over to Europe. She doesn't cry. Weird child.

I must share Magnus' luck. My daughter was around 18-20 months for a 4.5 hour flight. We had a sippy cup and pacifiers on hand, as well as lots of other stuff. She watched some DVD's, fell asleep for a while, etc. and never had a problem.

We had a crap ton of stuff to try and entertain her, but didn't really end up using it. I think having her in a dedicated seat in her car seat made the biggest difference. We have taken long car trips to the grandparents, so she was used to sitting in it for lengthy periods on occasion. Not that this helps you.

I'm guessing that entertainment is a much larger issue than ears, but you never know. If it is ears, suction and swallowing are your friends. Good luck, jerk!

For pressure earaches, don't bother with earplugs or nasal sprays. Just pinch your nose closed with your fingers and then breath out through your nose. Works every time.

Yeah Lobster, if it were my choice we would have left the kids at home. At least the 2 year old. This trip was a gift from their grandparents, and this is just the way it is. Believe me, us parents are probably more annoyed by the crying than the other people on board. He is not a fussy kid, so the crying is due to uncomfort, or pain. If there is one thing in the world that I would consider my weakness, it is to see my child in pain.

We bought some Benadryl just in case the Gravol didn't work, but we couldn't really double dose the poor kid on the way here. It was only the last part of the flight that got him. Flying into Orlando was frikkin hellish, with so much turbulance and pressure change.

I am hoping the flight back will be smooth enough for me to carry him up and down the aisle a bit just to break it up.

Funny, huh? See Mobster, your suggestion could be construed as a call to child neglect, while I mearly implied murder. One will draw a worse response than the other my friend, there are rules about these things, rules.

That being said, I'm glad Aries got better advice than either of us were willing/able to give.

You're permitted to do whatever you like I suppose, but that doesn't mean people shouldn't call you on it when you say something insensitive and/or clueless. People with kids actually have lives to lead, regardless of whether it is convenient for you.

I don't think anyone ever seriously suggested that every kid who cries is a mark of bad parenting or an unbearable nuisance. Sure it can be aggravating but that's part of life. I'm fairly sure we all know that when a topic like this comes up there will be 75% sarcastic/inappropriate suggestions, such as: