Tip for the Day: Travel with Baby

Happy Tuesday AMW Friends!
I'm right here, sitting in my friend's dining room enjoying a cup of Decaf on a cold weather!  The weather is really nice and cool here in San Francisco and I can't believe a week has passed and the AMW family is heading off to Los Angeles early morning! 

Well, the moment you're reading this, I'm already in LA so don't forget to follow me on Instagram (@AskMeWhats) for updates! :) 

A lot of my friends and readers who have babies are emailing me to ask how it is to travel with a baby!  Seriously speaking, this is one of the most challenging (and tiring) trip me and Mr. AMW encountered, but of course, I'm glad a bit of research and a lot of "mother's instincts" helped us in making this trip a tad bit smoother for both us and the baby! 

I'm sure there are more tips along the way but while it is still fresh on my mind, I'm definitely sharing some of the really effective tips and tricks I've done that worked!

Pack a separate bag for all baby essentials

I originally planned to carry only 2 bags for all our stuff, good thing I've decided to pack a 'smaller' check-in luggage bag and filled it all up with baby essentials!  Seriously, for such a tiny person, they get LOADS of stuff to bring!  

Don't hesitate to bring day and night clothes!  Always check the weather before you leave and make sure to keep your baby warm on a country with colder season.  What I do is that I separate tops and bottoms, bring a LOT of diapers and baby bottles.  As for the smaller items like socks, bibs and towels, I separate them in Zip Lock bags so it will be easier for us to grab the items we need without rummaging through a huge luggage for a small item!

Create a friendly environment/a home away from home
Traveling on plane is stressful enough for the baby (with air pressure, cramped space, etc..)  the least you can do is create a home away from home environment to ease them up!  How do I do that?  I bring some of his favorite toys and downloaded his favorite TV shows! 

brought out a lot of toys so Kyle won't get bored even on boarding area

10 hours on the air, played Baby TV program on air

Feed and Hydrate him!

To keep him from getting jetlagged, try to make him drink as much milk and water as possible and feed him healthy "in-between" meal snacks like fruits!  Kyle loves his bananas and the chewing and swallowing helped him forget about the air pressure!

Try to get the right flight
For long haul flight, choose a night time flight if possible so your baby gets to sleep most of the flying time!  Thankfully, my flight to San Francisco is at 10:00+ pm so Kyle managed to sleep at least half of his flying time.  It helps to call the airline company and request for a bassinet because it is VERY difficult and tiring for both moms  and dads to carry their baby in a cramped space!

Tired and sleepless mom and dad = FUZZY babies

Request for Bulkhead seats
If you have extra cash, feel free to pay the extra and book a good seat for extra leg space! 

Bring extra shirts
And I'm not talking about the baby!  Of course you need to bring extra clothing for your baby but moms and dads also need the extras!  You may never know if your baby gets sick and throw up on you inflight! 

 Organize your Carry On Bag
You are so busy thinking about your baby stuff you probably forgot about the essentials!  It makes your life really easy if your carry on bag is organized!  Try to bring the least stuff as possible so you don't need to rummage through your belongings just to get a passport or a pen!

What's inside my carry-on bag

•  An eco-bag
• My mini planner
• A clear envelope for tickets and other papers like birth certificates, marriage license, etc..
• Passports
• Makeup bag
• Another bag to store my passport and mobile phone.
• Sunglasses

The reason why I have a separate pouch for passports...I always have a hard time rummaging my bag to get passports so I've decided to put it inside a pouch and store my mobile phone inside as well.  For families, I prefer to color coordinate my passport sleeves so I get to know which passport belongs to who without flipping them one by one! 

There are so many more tips out there when you Travel with Babies!
Let me know yours !

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Keep smilin'
Stay happy!