I am certainly not an expert when it comes to traveling with babies and children! But I did learn a few things on our recent trip! I'm recording them now while they are still fresh in my mind. Maybe this will help me to remember later on! :-)
Next time we travel (this June, for my sister's wedding!), I plan to:
:::take a stroller. This will make things so much easier in the airport!
:::forget the laptop. I didn't use it enough to make lugging it through the airport worth its while!
:::get a bigger diaper bag. I have a small diaper bag I use for church, and the diaper bag I got from the hospital. The bag from the hospital is bigger, so that is what I used for travel. It worked perfectly when we traveled with a 6-week old who slept the entire time we were in the air! But when you start adding food, spoons, a sippy cup, toys, etc., it was just impossible to get things in and out. OK, not impossible, but a pain in the neck!
:::pack more chocolate. Seriously.
Now, you tell me! Any top secrets for perfectly happy babies while traveling?
5 comments:
Good tips! There's no such thing as a perfectly happy baby on a long trip, though!
One thing we did when traveling by car was to take our pack & play. It was the baby's bed wherever we stopped - a familiar environment for him, convenient for hotels and Grandma's house. I don't know if you could check it as luggage when flying? It's handy, for sure.
You probably already know this one - make sure you have a bottle ready for baby while flying - the sucking stops her ears from popping/hurting.
A kazillion clothing changes should be enough (but won't be).
Try to time her nap for while you are flying.
Never NEVER forget he snuggy/teddy/blankie whatever.
Maybe even try a backpack as a diaper bag so your hands are free and DH can grab stuff you need while in the airport/walking.
Umbrella strollers are the best. They wheel right up the aisle of the plane and can be put in the overhead easily. Other strollers are taken from you at the gate.
Thanks for the great tips!
There are good tips here from others. We travelled with twins quite abit: and yes really portable strollers are great. One thing we found out was diversion could save us all from disaster. We took along a new book or small toy the children had never seen before and would bring it out at strategic moments when the trip looked like going pear shaped. Worked really well.
And, you can never have enough disposable nappies, wipes and nappy sacks for disposal of used nappies- pack more than you think you will ever need, plus extra changes of clothes beyond what you think you will need. When you haven't got those things to hand is when you will need them.
Honestly the best advice I ever got was just to chill out: even though things will happen along the way that make travel with children challenging, if you are relaxed you will handle any situation better than if worried or stressed about what can go wrong. Have fun!
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