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Trip with Baby - tips
Trip with Baby - tips
Our first trip with our baby is coming up in a couple of short weeks. We are really excited but a tad bit nervous to travel with him. We do have my in-laws coming for half the week to assist with childcare so we can have some adult time.
I am looking for any words of wisdom the seasoned parents can provide. Basic info: baby is 9 months old, thankfully, not crawling yet and we hope that holds out since our villa does have a pool.
I am particularly interested in what folks do about a stroller - do you bring one or just use a bjorn or backpack?
We've got good sunscreen and bug protection.
I am looking for any words of wisdom the seasoned parents can provide. Basic info: baby is 9 months old, thankfully, not crawling yet and we hope that holds out since our villa does have a pool.
I am particularly interested in what folks do about a stroller - do you bring one or just use a bjorn or backpack?
We've got good sunscreen and bug protection.
We were a baby-wearing family - bjorn when he was little and later used a backpack carrier. Because both of us prefered to wear our son (Mr. PA actually carried him more than I did on vacation), we never took a stroller and never missed having one.
Other people can't live without a stroller. Depends on your family's style.
Some other quick thoughts -
Have an airport plan. One person is in charge of the baby, the other person in charge of the bags, period. This helps to eliminate confusion during the security process. Mr. PA was in charge of our son and would go through the line directly in front of me. They would clear and immediately leave the security area. I would follow behind.
Personally, I took all needed supplies. I would use his baggage allowance to pack diapers, wipes and such.
Baby travel was so easy for us, we have very fond memories of the early years.
Other people can't live without a stroller. Depends on your family's style.
Some other quick thoughts -
Have an airport plan. One person is in charge of the baby, the other person in charge of the bags, period. This helps to eliminate confusion during the security process. Mr. PA was in charge of our son and would go through the line directly in front of me. They would clear and immediately leave the security area. I would follow behind.
Personally, I took all needed supplies. I would use his baggage allowance to pack diapers, wipes and such.
Baby travel was so easy for us, we have very fond memories of the early years.
Here is the link from something I wrote back in 2007. Some of it is "duh!" for an STJ repeater but maybe you will find some of the information useful -
http://www.virgin-islands-on-line.com/f ... highlight=
http://www.virgin-islands-on-line.com/f ... highlight=
whoops! maybe I had the wrong personPA Girl wrote:Here is the link from something I wrote back in 2007. Some of it is "duh!" for an STJ repeater but maybe you will find some of the information useful -
http://www.virgin-islands-on-line.com/f ... highlight=
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olivias dad
- Posts: 92
- Joined: Sun Aug 16, 2009 10:13 am
Also, another good resource is Island Baby. They have many items you can rent daily/weekly that could save you some packing (we did this with our car seat a few weeks back - worth the money)!
http://www.islandbabyvi.com/
http://www.islandbabyvi.com/
Our guy was a little older than 9 months, but he loved the backpack:
dadnb by Sandra Maynard, on Flickr
It sure beats a stroller and having to look at everyone's behinds...
dadnb by Sandra Maynard, on Flickr
It sure beats a stroller and having to look at everyone's behinds...
We typically brought both (small stroller and backpack) for our kiddos when they were of that size. Its not ideal for light travel, but we found the hassle of getting both wherever we were going was worth it. Usually we'd pack the backpack and gatecheck the stroller as we are airport stroller people.
Here's why....
If we were hiking or expected the toddler to be awake, we'd use the backpack. However it is tough (not impossible) but tough to nap in a backpack. My mini made it work but it was not ideal.
If we were going out to the beach or to dinner or lunch and if we expected any sleep to occur we'd take the stroller. If you have a fussy kid you can stroll them abit until they pass out and then they can continue sleeping in the stroller while you have a nice relaxing time at the beach/lunch/dinner. My kids were never good about just passing out while laying in a beach tent or on the ground on blankets. They needed motion.
The other nice thing about a stroller is that you can use it as a make-shift feeding station if you have no highchair.
See much more comfy...
Here's why....
If we were hiking or expected the toddler to be awake, we'd use the backpack. However it is tough (not impossible) but tough to nap in a backpack. My mini made it work but it was not ideal.
If we were going out to the beach or to dinner or lunch and if we expected any sleep to occur we'd take the stroller. If you have a fussy kid you can stroll them abit until they pass out and then they can continue sleeping in the stroller while you have a nice relaxing time at the beach/lunch/dinner. My kids were never good about just passing out while laying in a beach tent or on the ground on blankets. They needed motion.
The other nice thing about a stroller is that you can use it as a make-shift feeding station if you have no highchair.
See much more comfy...
Last edited by flip-flop on Thu Sep 09, 2010 1:55 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Thanks everybody. We don't have a backpack carrier yet, but this may be a good reason to get one (or borrow one).
PAGirl, funny thing about the Peapod... we have one that we took on our May beach trip to Hilton Head. I was so excited about that darn thing, and it turns out we must be idiots. We have no clue how to get the thing properly closed. We had 10 college-educated adults (mostly sober) give it a whirl with the instructions sitting in front of us, to no avail. Have you ever faced a similar issue?
PAGirl, funny thing about the Peapod... we have one that we took on our May beach trip to Hilton Head. I was so excited about that darn thing, and it turns out we must be idiots. We have no clue how to get the thing properly closed. We had 10 college-educated adults (mostly sober) give it a whirl with the instructions sitting in front of us, to no avail. Have you ever faced a similar issue?
Two kids and many years later I still am not able to consistently set up a packnplay. So no help from me. Sorryalw1977 wrote:Thanks everybody. We don't have a backpack carrier yet, but this may be a good reason to get one (or borrow one).
PAGirl, funny thing about the Peapod... we have one that we took on our May beach trip to Hilton Head. I was so excited about that darn thing, and it turns out we must be idiots. We have no clue how to get the thing properly closed. We had 10 college-educated adults (mostly sober) give it a whirl with the instructions sitting in front of us, to no avail. Have you ever faced a similar issue?
What do you mean by closed.....?
Ours has a zipper so when your kid is inside, you either zip it closed (caged mode, as we called it) or roll up the door and fasten it to the top, like a tent, leaving the pod open.
Or are you talking about getting it back into the carrying case? Now that is a little trickier and I would look at the instructions each time.
Ours has a zipper so when your kid is inside, you either zip it closed (caged mode, as we called it) or roll up the door and fasten it to the top, like a tent, leaving the pod open.
Or are you talking about getting it back into the carrying case? Now that is a little trickier and I would look at the instructions each time.
Oh no!alw1977 wrote:Getting it back in the carrying case. You should see ours now. It's all wampus from being bent.
Yes, I can completely understand how that could happen.
When Little PA was an infant, I had this great little pop up tent thingy that I loved. It was big enough for one adult and a child yet is packed down into a very flat disk-shaped case. It had that same construction as a Peapod, the bending metal spring frame.
Well, one day at Maho my half-sober husband and half-sober friend thought they would "help" me and pack up the Jeep when I wasn't looking.
Things went downhill, fast. Soon both of my guys were out in the middle of the road, wrestling with this thing and causing such a fuss, it attracted the attention of another man.
He tells them to step aside, that he is a professional photographer and they use these things all the time.
Soon Mr. Professional was cursing and kicking too
It was then jammed into the back of the Jeep and that was the end of that, we could never get it back into the case.
So by the time we got our first Peapod, I was the only one allowed to touch it. No joke, I would lay out the directions each time I folded it. It is so freaking simple yet so hard if you don't force the bend "just so"
Good for you taking the baby!
We took our kids in April daughter was 5 and our son was 9 months. He was not crawling yet and that was perfect!
Here are some things I did to make the trip go easier.
Take planty of Formula (if you use it) I took 3 for a 9 day stay and we ended up running out. I bought one of the small containers of Formula at Starfish Market and it cost $28.00 - crazy, at home I paid $12.00
I also had rash guards, t-shirts, shorts, and sun hats from One-Step Ahead that had 50 sunblock built into them. They were perfect. From One Step Ahead I also got some bug repllent made from natural products. I got the tip on here from St. John Julie to rub a little in the babies hair to keep mozzies off the face and it worked great. I also applied it morning and night. I loved the smell and it worked very well. I also bought a $5.00 mosquito net from Amazon to put over the pack and play and that worked for keeping all kinds of critters off of baby at night.
We used the stroller for feeding at the villa so we did not have to rent a high chair. i also felt comfortable pushing him around Cruz Bay and had no problems. We bought the Pea Pod (best buy ever). And used it for naps on the beach and just a safe cool place for him to hang out. Getting it shut is tricky at first but easy once you get the hang of it.
Hope this help and have fun, Wish we were going t!
We took our kids in April daughter was 5 and our son was 9 months. He was not crawling yet and that was perfect!
Here are some things I did to make the trip go easier.
Take planty of Formula (if you use it) I took 3 for a 9 day stay and we ended up running out. I bought one of the small containers of Formula at Starfish Market and it cost $28.00 - crazy, at home I paid $12.00
I also had rash guards, t-shirts, shorts, and sun hats from One-Step Ahead that had 50 sunblock built into them. They were perfect. From One Step Ahead I also got some bug repllent made from natural products. I got the tip on here from St. John Julie to rub a little in the babies hair to keep mozzies off the face and it worked great. I also applied it morning and night. I loved the smell and it worked very well. I also bought a $5.00 mosquito net from Amazon to put over the pack and play and that worked for keeping all kinds of critters off of baby at night.
We used the stroller for feeding at the villa so we did not have to rent a high chair. i also felt comfortable pushing him around Cruz Bay and had no problems. We bought the Pea Pod (best buy ever). And used it for naps on the beach and just a safe cool place for him to hang out. Getting it shut is tricky at first but easy once you get the hang of it.
Hope this help and have fun, Wish we were going t!
We have travelled quite a bit with our now 4.5 year old, the .5 is very important to her. I was reluctant to drag along a stroller at first. I have since learned that the stroller is a very valuable tool. This is especially true when the kid is not in it. We use it more as a "cart" for all the gear. Our carry ons, personal item/purse, diaper bag for baby Jack- all in the strolling while going throught the airport. Once at the destination, we use it like a shopping cart.