travel with baby Archives - Page 8 of 8

Our President’s Day weekend/week was an eventful, and adventurous one full of meeting lots of new family and friends (for B), a wedding, and getting to show Slaed and B my hometown. We ran into some new challenges as we explored Washington, D.C. and Maryland with B. At the same time, we learned a lot about how to make our travel fun and adventurous for all of us!

First the challenges:

1. B is teething. Big time.

2. B is now eating solid foods, which adds a whole new dimension to our routine.

3. We found it best to keep B on west coast time, which meant late starts to our days.

Now some lessons:

1. Plan, plan, plan.

Plan for where and how baby will sleep throughout your escapades. The sleep part was not such a big deal on day 1 and 2 as we were visiting with friends and in and out of the car seeing sights. B could nap in his carseat. On day 3, we took the metro into D.C. B was not happy in his stroller. Luckily we were prepared. See below.

carseat sleeping at the wedding...he slept through the whole ceremony! (15 minutes :))

ergo sleeping at the white house.

Plan for how and where baby will eat. I’m always on the look out for good spots to nurse, and for me, packing a nursing cover is important so that everyone is comfortable. Sometimes private places outside pop up…we found one on a bench at one of the memorials. We were also able to sneak into a hotel without anyone noticing we weren’t staying there! We try to have a back-up bottle too in case an easy nursing situation isn’t in the cards. Also, now that B eats some solids we pack baby food as another food option.

Plan for how and where baby will have a chance to be active and play while you are out and about. This is especially important for our rambunctious little guy. He loves to be on the move, so he needs some time to be free and explore.

playtime at the FDR Memorial.

2. A teething baby (at least our teething baby) needs comfort, which is why we think B was not happy in the stroller for this trip. Thank goodness we brought along our ergo & bjorn. We were able to trade off as Bergen sleeps really well in the ergo, and loves to bop around with his dad facing out in the bjorn.

more ergo sleeping at the washington monument

ready to wine taste at Sugar Loaf Mountain Winery.

3. While it may be somewhat overstimulating, dance music and lights can be very entertaining and fun for baby!

dancing with the bride!

Three new sights to us that shouldn’t be missed;

1. World War II Memorial: We were bummed because the fountains and water features were not working, but even without that, it was a beautiful sight, and a lot of fun to explore.

Slaed by the Washington pillar

2. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial: We were expecting a large statue of MLK, but this sculpture is literally larger than life; as well it should be! I like how MLK is shown breaking away from the rest of the “rock”, and then from a distance, all three pieces appear to be set right next to each other.

3. The Old Post Office Pavilion: We stumbled upon this place as we were venturing away from the National Mall, and towards a place to celebrate happy hour. Recently bought by Donald Trump, it features a beautiful glass ceiling, some dining, and fun shops that would be great entertainment for older kids. BUT, the best part of this sight is the Clock Tower tour. With the help of National Park Service Rangers, you can check out the spectacular views of D.C. from the 318 foot tower. AND…it’s FREE! A great way to reflect on all of the beautiful buildings, memorials, and monuments of our nation’s capital. With an older child, I can imagine it being fun to point out all of sights you visited that day.

I guess I was too busy taking in the views to snap a picture!

All in all, a wonderful trip.

Tomorrow we head to Washington, D.C.: my hometown. To be exact, I grew up in Gaithersburg, Maryland, which is where we will be staying. The agenda includes a wedding, many visits with family and friends who will meet our little adventurer for the first time, and a day of sightseeing downtown to see the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial and the World War II Memorial among other typical capital area sights.

This will be Bergen’s 3rd plane trip. I’d like to say we have it all figured out, but babies are constantly changing, and we really only have 6 months of experience with this little guy. We have, however, come up with a routine and process for airplane travel that works for us.

We bring these bigger items:

Ergo Carrier
Car Seat
Baby Jogger City Mini Stroller with carry bag
Go Crib

Once we get to the airport, B gets carried in the Ergo, and our bags, car seat, stroller, and go crib get checked. It turns out that the car seat bag has enough room to fit our go crib: bonus! We have come to grips with checking baggage. Before B, we were fairly strict non-checkers. Now we’ve accepted that it’s best to have as little as possible as we go through security, hang out in the terminal, and finally board the plane, so along with B in the ergo, I carry the diaper bag, and Slaed carries a backpack with other essentials.

We also don’t necessarily go through the family line for security. We scope out the situation, and based on what is going on at that moment. Even though it might be more family-friendly, sometimes the family line is MUCH slower than the regular lines.

Our bag of tricks on the plane:

at least 2 full bottles of milk (sometimes B gets too distracted to nurse)
a few exciting toys (must include a toy that makes crinkle sound)
teething biscuits/baby mum mums
comfort item (froggie blankie)
usual necessities like burp clothes, blanket, diapers, extra clothes, wipes, etc.

On the plane, we try to go through our normal routines of the day…eat, play, sleep just in a compact space.

Eat. Nursing can be tricky due to the cramped space, and high level or distractions, which is why, as I said above, we resort to the bottle if nursing fails. We make sure he is nursing/bottling during take-off and landing. Though I’ve heard that this is actually not that essential, I personally don’t want to take any chances. If nothing else, the little guy will be well hydrated.

Play. Playtime is great. Between the two of us, friendly passengers nearby, and nice flight attendants, we can keep B pretty entertained. In fact, it was on our flight to Atlanta for Thanksgiving that he laughed for the first time! We even caught it on video.

Sleep. Then comes the sleeping part. Like nursing, it can be hard to get B to settle down in the cramped space of an airplane. When he was younger (3 months), swaddling and rocking while still seated worked well. At 4 1/2 months, I walked up and down the aisles, and he was able to go down for a nap. We’ll see how 6 months goes! I plan to try utilize all of the these tricks along with carrying him in the ergo. He’s very used to sleeping in the ergo on our long walks, so I’m hoping after pacing the aisles a bit, he can do the same on the long flight to D.C.

Our nation’s capital awaits us!

waiting for take-off with dad

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Challenges, Lessons & New Sights in Washington, D.C.

Preparing for Airplane Travel with an Infant

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