Flying with a baby - seating preference question

[jend1018]

We are flying direct to Rome in 3 weeks with our 9 month old son.

I keep waffling back and forth between seating options and I'm looking for other people's experiences flying with a baby.

Right now, my husband and I are in our own row of 2 seats and had planned to keep DS on our laps/in the Ergo.

Note: my parents are sitting in front of us and my inlaws are sitting behind us so we do have people to pass DS to during the early part of the flight.

I did put in a request for the bulkhead seats where I can get a bassinet but I know it's not guaranteed. And by the time we fly, DS might exceed the weight (20lbs) or height limit (28"). He's about 19.5lbs and I haven't measured his height lately.

I breastfeed so it would be nice to have the privacy of our own row and be able to keep our bags under our seats instead of overhead. But I wonder if I'm really going to regret trying to keep him on my lap, especially trying to sleep. But then I think what if there's another baby/child that might keep DS awake if we are sharing the bulkhead seating?

Thanks for any suggestions/advice.

[frlcb]

You won't know if you get the bulkhead until you are there, so I wouldn't stress about it now anyway. If you get the bulkhead and he will still fit in it I would take it, because it is nice to have a place to lay them for a flight that long. But, depending on the airline, they make you take them out every time the fasten seatbelt light is on (British Air does, for example, but Delta doesn't).