I’m on holiday so I’m blogging from the iPhone, Zoey Barnes-style! Please forgive the lack of formatting holiday blogging begets.
After months of planning hubby and I finally embarked on the 24-hour journey to his family, with miss nine-month-old in tow. I was terrified. I expected the worst: non-stop crying, poo explosions, vomit, costume changes and no sleep. We were lucky. Little miss exceeded our expectations (in the positive) and we got through relatively unscathed. Here are my five top reasons why:
We brought the baby carrier
I cannot emphasise enough how much this saved us. We could walk up and down the plane with little miss strapped to us, gently rocking her and singing her to sleep before sinking back into the chair with baby strapped to our chest. No turbulence concerns and easier than hitting fellow passengers with our elbows as we elaborately rocked her.
We booked a transit hotel
This is not always an option, I realise, however if you have a layover of more than four hours I highly recommend it. For a fraction of the price of a normal airport hotel we had a bed for six hours, which meant baby could rest and we could shower. Bliss!
Related: How to handle hotel rooms with baby
We brought our own food
Yes, packaged food is a great option. Hey, some kids even prefer it! For our little miss, it’s the home-cooked variety she likes. Customs waved her bag of purées through without hesitation. It gave her consistency and meant she ate her dinner — something she didn’t do when she tried a packet a few days later. I guess the message here is not cook a meal, but give baby whatever they are used to and don’t stress too much about liquid allowances — they’re much more lenient on babies.
Related: Purées on the go
We slept when she slept
Now is the time to follow that newborn mantra. Imagine 24 hours of no sleep and a baby who is in a new environment and in need of some extra love and attention. Those extra zzzzs will pay off after you land.
Related: What we do while babies sleep
And finally, we relaxed
Not necessarily something I am good at. I spent the two weeks preceding the holiday worrying about every detail, researching travel tips and gradually winding myself up to an almighty neck ache the day before we left. At this point I decided it was merely 24 hours. Who knew what would happen in that time, but it was finite. We would get through it. I think just taking that attitude in helped the whole family chill about the massive journey!
And now onto six weeks of European adventure. Prepare yourself for more travel tales as we attempt numerous trains, planes and automobiles with bubs.
musingmummablog 