I did a post a couple weeks ago about traveling with an infant. I posted it after Kevin and I took the first leg of our holiday trip with Molly (We went home for the Holidays early and are spending Christmas Day at home). After that first leg of our trip however, I realized there were a lot of things that I didn’t know when I wrote my first post. So today’s blog post is an extension of that first post. Hopefully some of the things I learned will help some of you as you get ready to go on all your holiday travel.
First thing I want to say is that Kevin and I were so stressed about traveling with Molly that we almost didn’t book our trip! Traveling with an infant seemed overwhelming to us. But now that we did it, we look back and think that we were crazy to stress so much! This trip home to see our families was a trip we will remember forever and I can’t believe we almost didn’t go.
That said, don’t be afraid to travel with your little one this holiday season! And here are some tips to help make it a bit easier.
Pack Light for Yourself
Normally when I go on trips I pack so many clothes! I have a different outfit for every single day (sometimes multiple outfits per day – daytime/evening looks) and I usually want to look pretty cute. But that just isn’t possible with an infant. On our trip I packed three outfits for six days and just washed clothes twice on the trip. And I actually think three was too many. On future trips I’ll probably pack one pair of leggings and one pair of jeans and three sweaters. Then I’ll mix-and-match the pieces with different jewelry throughout the trip. Jewelry is small so I can fit a little bit more of it in my suitcase. Packing light is essential because you have to bring so much stuff when you have an infant! Molly needed a ton of clothes because as we know infants spit up, have diaper blowouts, and just get really dirty in general. So we has to change her outfit multiple times throughout the day. Also we just needed to bring a ton of her stuff, so by packing light I was able to leave more room in my suitcase for Molly’s things. I didn’t want to have to bring a separate suitcase for her because we were already carrying so many extra things to the airport like a car seat, a stroller, a pack and play, etc. So trust me, you’ll wish you ditched the extra suitcase when you’re trying to get through a crowded holiday airport.
Relax
I really, really, REALLY worked myself up before our trip with Molly. It was to a point where I was feeling sick I was so anxious. And what’s the point in worrying? At the end of the day you have to get from point A to point B with your infant, so what is worrying going to do to help you? But telling yourself to relax is easier said than done right? That’s wear Teami Blends tea comes in for me. I’ve written about this tea before because I absolutely love it and it really helps me relax. I’ve always gotten anxious before flying in general – even before I had Molly. For those of you who know me from my Bachelor/ette days, you probably remember that I used to have an extreme fear of flying. And although I’ve gotten over that extreme fear, I still get pretty nervous every single time I get on a plane. I used to take a prescribed anti-anxiety medication when I would fly; however, I can’t do that now that I’m breastfeeding Molly. So I needed a breastfeeding safe way to calm down. Then I realized I could just bring my Teami Blends Relax tea on the plane with me and it’s helped so much. Obviously I can’t bring water through security so I just bring the Tumbler with my tea leaves and ask for hot water once I get on the plane or at a restaurant at the airport. I also drink their Profit tea that gives me much needed energy after nights where Molly doesn’t seep very well (but her sleep is getting better! Yay!). It also makes me feel much better about breastfeeding when I drink this tea instead of coffee. And I noticed that Molly sleeps much better when I’m drinking the tea instead of coffee. All the caffeine can’t be great for her sleeping, ya know. This tea has really helped me, so I’m hoping it can help you too! Since I started drinking it, a bunch of my friends have too and they also love it! Use code ALI50 to get 50% off your order pf $94+. With this discount, now might be a great time to try to the Detox tea – just in time for new years resolutions to get back in shape! Oh and they have free 2 day shipping from now until 12/23 so you can get it in time for the new year! I’m starting the cleanse as soon as I’m done breastfeeding (The skinny tea is BF safe, but they don’t recommend the Colon tea).
Stay Clear of the Bathrooms!
This is something I’ve never thought of before flying with an infant. But hear me when I say this – DON’T book your seats near the restrooms! On one of the legs of our trip we had purchased seats near the front of the plane. However it was on a smaller aircraft and I didn’t realize that an infant couldn’t be on the left side of the plane. I guess the left side of our plane didn’t have three oxygen masks in case of an emergency (I wish the airline representative I spoke to when I to added Molly to our reservation had known this. But that’s a whole other frustration and story that I won’t get into now). So once we got to the airport they had to move our seats to the right side of the plane and moved us to the very back of the plane, right next the restroom. It made me sick with worry to have Molly near the restroom with all those germs coming in and out every time the door was open. Am I being a crazy mom? Maybe I am. But I just didn’t like it. Also a line formed near the bathroom multiple times and people we didn’t know (who very well could have been sick) we’re hovering over our seats and breathing down on Molly.
Babies (and adults) are much more likely to get sick when traveling. And if you’re traveling during the holidays, there’s an even greater chance your little one will get sick. So take it from me avoid sitting in the back of the plane and secure seats elsewhere.
Breastfeed/Bottle
I mentioned this in my first post about traveling with an infant but it’s so important that I’m going to mention it again. We were so concerned about Molly’s little ears during take off and landing. Especially during take off. Because if her ears didn’t pop then there was a good chance that we’d have a miserable baby the entire flight. So what we do (because I read this on other forums) is I’ll start nursing Molly right before we take off. The sucking and swallowing allows her ears to pop and hopefully keep her from having any discomfort as we take off. If you don’t breastfeed, just bring a bottle of formula. I promise you this is a step you absolutely don’t want to miss when traveling with an infant.
Keep Yourself Healthy!
On our trip I was hyper aware of how many sick people were around us. And if you’re sick, your baby is more likely to get sick. So keep yourself healthy when traveling this holiday season! I bought vitamin C and Zinc halfway through the trip and wish I was taking it from the very beginning to protect myself and Molly. And let’s face it, when we’re traveling we tend to not take care of ourselves as well. I know that I drink a little more than normal and eat more unhealthy foods than normal. Both of which could cause me to get sick more easily. So take your vitamins and wash your hands frequently!
It can be hard…but it’s SO worth it!
Is traveling with a baby hard? Yeah, it’s not easy. But it’s so worth it! On our trip little Molly got to meet her cousins for the first time and spend time with her grammies and grandpa. She also saw her first snow! It was a trip to remember and I’m so glad we didn’t skip it because we were too scared to travel with an infant. I hope these tips inspire you to travel with your little one and help make that trip a little but easier 🙂
Luv, Ali
Read my other traveling with a baby tips HERE.
Me and my little family on our trip…
Big thanks you to Teami for patterning with me on this post!
I too got suuuper anxious before my first cross country flight with my 3 month old. About to travel with her again (6 months now). Thanks for the reminder to take a deep breath. It will all work out!
You’ll get through it no matter what! 😉
I just ordered the Teami Detox tea and profit! I can’t wait to get them and start the detox in the new year. Thanks for the 50 % code, that is awesome!
Please let me know what you think of the Detox! I haven’t done it yet (cause I’m breastfeeding) but I’m dying to! Keep me posted girl!
I’m from Indiana and my husband, 4 month old (at the time) son and myself flew to LA at the beginning of last month for our first family vacation and I can totally relate to the anxiety. I was so worried about how he would do on our flights but I was pleasantly surprised, he did amazing. It’s so hard to not know what to expect. How funny though that we basically took the opposite trips of each other!
Same here. So nervous but she did GREAT!!!! I was worked up over nothing 😉
Don’t forget a copy of the birth certificate for the baby!! We forgot it the first time we flew and almost weren’t allowed on the plane.
Wow really? That’s crazy. They didn’t required any identification on any of our flights. And we’ve flown with her on 5 flights now! What airline required a BC?
Southwest out of Ontario, CA. We had to prove she is under 2 because she was flying for free. She was 4 months at that time. It was a little crazy because my MIL called ahead of time, asked if we needed to bring anything, and was told we didn’t. We found out as we were checking in. Odd that you didn’t……..but also makes sense you didn’t because clearly you have a baby and not a possible 2 year old…..as did we.
Ali- how did she do with the 3 hour time change? We are flying East to West to ski in January and I’m super nervous we will all. R up at 4am everyday!
Be up*
We did that with a 5mth old and we were up to start our day between 4&5 am the first two days and then we adjusted.
She normally goes to bed at 6-6:30pm and when we went to MA we just put her to bed at 9pm instead. So we tried out best to keep the same schedule. She was a bit off when we got home, but went back to her schedule within a few days.
Another key thing is not to book an Aisle seat! I had thought with my 5mth old it would be easier so if he was fussy I could get up and soothe him without disturbing others, but when it came to breastfeeding him, I felt his feet or top of his head were always in the aisle a bit and with the drink cart and other passengers going by I was super stressed he would get bumped!!! Last flight we had a window seat and we had sooo much more room, it made the world of difference!
Good call! I always book window so I didn’t even think of this as a tip. Great recommendation!!! 🙂
I love your matching hats. Where are they from?
I got them on Amazon for only $9 for both! Here is the link: http://bit.ly/2dWp4cr
Traveling in February to see my family with by that time she will be 6 going on 7 months and my anxiety already has me freaking out. Because she is just starting to sleep better and she likes to look at everything rather than nurse when there is noise.
Ali-I was on the flight with you to Chicago-sat directly across from you & your family…..we kept complaining about the plane being 100 degrees back there! It was terrible..couldn’t even breath.
& Molly did great! Made for a better flight with the gibberish…she’s adorable!
Ps: I knew you looked familiar 😉
Thanks for sharing your nursing journey and encouraging those who have made that choice. I nursed my three girls til their first birthday and think of those days fondly. You never get alone time with your child like that, it is precious.
Where did you get that bow for Molly? It’s precious!
One thing that has helped us on flights is wiping down all the surfaces with disinfectant wipes. One of the first times we flew with our infant she caught the flu which was horrible at 4 or 5 months old. Maybe it works, maybe we look like crazy neurotic parents, or maybe it makes us feel like we’re being proactive in combatting germs, but she’s now 16 months old and has probably been on 10 flights since and hasn’t even gotten the sniffles when traveling.
Btw, love your blog and tips. Wish our daughters were similar in age because some of the things you’re discovering would have been so helpful. Good luck!
I am a Grandma with two beautiful Granddaughters 1 and 3. Just a suggestion for you to make future trips easier. Buy a set of those heavier items to leave at Grandma’s like a pack n play and stroller and travel with car seat if you use it on the plane. My Grandchildren are close by but I buy everything to have here at my home so the kids can come here anytime without needing anything and can be comfortable. I am guessing most trips would be to go back home.
One other thought to share. It use to be that first row behind first class was larger. I was told by a flight attendant many years ago it is bigger because it use to have space for bassinets. We used it whenever it was available even when our child was older.
Hi Ali! Thanks for the tips on traveling with babies! I want to try the Teami teas but your discount code isn’t working…do you have an updated code?