Five days, two adults, one baby, two carry on suitcases, a stroller, a carseat, a diaper bag and a breast pump.
Whew!
Last week we went on a trip to visit my sister and brother-in-law in East Hartford, CT. Here a few tips I learned along the way and perhaps some pieces of advice you may find helpful:
Let me start off by saying if you’re considering leaving the stroller at home because you mainly use a baby carrier (like the Ergo Baby carrier I use even for grocery shopping)… don’t. If nothing else, the stroller made it possible for Nick and I to move all our luggage about virtually pain free. Carseat rides atop the stroller, pump rides below it. Mama can carry baby on her hip or strapped to her in the carrier. Dad can wear the backpack and trail the two suitcases behind him. There will no doubt be lots of juggling and unfortunately carseats are so awkward to carry by themselves. Lightening your load and freeing up your hands are God sends when trying to navigate through security.Yep, all that in two carry on suitcases… I’m a notorious over packer.
I decided to swap out our usual diaper bag this trip for an actual back pack. So glad I did! Not only did it realistically hold more stuff, it was much more conducive to moving hands and hassle free. (Look out for more air travel related posts later this week, What to Put in Your Diaper Bag for the Flight and Tips if You’re a Nursing/Pumping Mom)
Since we were trying to swing it with packing stuff for all three of us in two carry on suitcases and two carry on personal items, I simply used my pump as my “personal item”, i.e., my purse. Nick was then designated the “diaper bag”.
Sweet boy…
We made sure to pack some toys for Wyatt along the way. His favorites but also mostly soft, for easy packing! The only hard toys we brought were a few of the smaller nesting boxes that he likes so much along with the corresponding shapes that fit the shape cut outs. And of course, a tractor.
toys we packed
soft tractor, gift
soft truck, gift
nesting boxes, Hape
soft owl puppet, Ikea
soft fox, Ikea
Although Wyatt does not have many toys that make sounds, I was sure not to pack any of those in general. Books and other quiet toys are more suited for air plane rides — in my opinion. And in case of delays, etc. I wanted to be able to pull out any and all toys and not have to worry about whether or not we would become obnoxious. (I had baby apps downloaded on my phone already just in case!)
Clothes I packed
These are the items I packed for myself. All super versatile, neutral pieces that can be worn, re-worn, and then worn again in different combinations. Maybe I’ll write a post about it with actual outfit demos sometime in the near future…
Remember when I said I was a notorious over packer earlier? Yeah, I definitely didn’t need all the pieces above for just 4 days. But I usually like options, and to pack for the “unexpected dressy occasion”. Take aways? There were really only 6 pieces I thought that I needed to pack for that trip. Six! I’ve highlighted them in the graphic below and of course included links to either the exact pieces I own or similar items…
clothes for baby
Just as I over packed for myself, I over packed clothes for Wyatt as well — this one however makes a little more sense seeing as he still under a year and well, a messy eater, drinker, slobberer, etc.
Surprisingly I don’t think we had to change outfits any day we were there. I must have been remembering to put bibs on him… Haha.
Here is what little man wore each day we were there:
day one
day two
day three
day four
What air travel and packing tips do you have to share from traveling with little ones?
More in this series:
Air Travel With an [Almost] 1 Year Old: Part 2, What to Put in Your Diaper Bag for the Flight
Air Travel With an [Almost] 1 Year Old: Part 3, Tips If You’re a Nursing/Pumping Mom