Either I’m very adventurous or I’ve lost my mind… I’m not sure yet. What I do know is that I’ve traveled with my now thirteen week old baby on two LONG trips in the last few weeks and it went surprisingly well!
First, my husband and I took the baby to see my husband’s family in Kentucky. They live about five to six hours from us (when NOT traveling with a baby). We stayed there for a few days and then finished the drive to Solon, Ohio to a blogger roundtable discussion. All in all we traveled all the way across the United States – Georgia to Lake Eerie split into two different days of travel. How did we keep our sanity?
Well, I must tell you that one week before our car trip we took the baby with us out to eat and he screamed the entire way home – a thirty minute drive – without ceasing! We were scared to death that he would scream and cry the whole way to Kentucky. What I had noticed in his few short weeks of life is that he seems to travel better in the morning when he less tired and in a much better mood. He doesn’t travel so well at night, which is why he screamed the whole way home from the restaurant.
With those things in mind we planned to embark on our road trip very early in the morning in hopes that he would be in a good mood and we could keep our sanity. It worked! He did so great! He didn’t cry at all! It did take us a LOT longer to get there though, with all the stops to feed him. We tried to time his feedings with our own quick stops for restroom breaks or lunch so we could kill two birds with one stone.
The second trip we took was to Miami, Florida to the WOMMA (Word of Mouth Marketing Association) Conference. Again, I took the baby and my husband to help me. On this trip we got to fly – thanks to Walmart. I went to represent the 11moms. We flew out of a small town airport by choice, rather than the HUGE Atlanta airport. This way we would have a shorter distance to walk and fewer security check points since we had the baby and all the extra baby stuff. We took the baby’s stroller and car seat as well as one shared suitcase, a diaper bag, a garment bag, and a carry on which contained my laptop. I also had a Rockin’ Baby sling. It made things so much easier! I carried the baby in the sling and we were able to pile our stuff in the stroller and push it through the airport!
He did well on the plane. I fed him and he slept on nearly all of our flights! I think he slept so well because I held him and he loves to be held and to snuggle. Breast feeding him on the plane wasn’t too bad either, I had my cover up with me and feeding him kept him quiet!
So, if you have to take your newborn on a long trip – whether for fun or to meet his new extended family – FEAR NOT… it can be done all while keeping your sanity!