By the time this post is published, I will have a 10 month old. While I grapple with the fact that time is literally flying; I can’t help but also reflect on how much we’ve done these past ten months which not only helps to slow things down (just a little), but it also offers some perspective on just how expansive time CAN be when you let it.

For me, traveling has always been a way to shake things up. A way to get a new perspective; a chance to explore and perhaps get a little uncomfortable (the good kind – lol). It was important to Craig and I that when Ren came along, we’d do our best to hang on to that sense of adventure and continue to travel and explore. I never wanted the hassle of “preparing all the things baby needs” to be a deterrent or a reason to NOT do something. Especially taking trips.

Ren took her first flight at six months old and has flown two more times since then. We’ve also done several short distance road trips (2-5 hours) with her starting when she was around one month old.

I get a lot of questions about flying for the first time with baby and thought I’d compile everything here to share in one spot. This is by no means an exhaustive list, but it’s some of our favorite hacks to help make those travel days run a little smoother.

Side note: I will say that she was MUCH easier to travel with when she was little. All she would do is sleep! Parents, I’m telling you now – take advantage of this if you can. The older they get, the more entertaining is required. It’s not impossible. It just requires a little more effort.

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The Number ONE thing we never leave home without is a good attitude. I can’t stress this enough. You can only control so much. You can only prepare for so many scenarios. Shit happens and babies cry. We’re all just doing the best we can. The calmer you remain and the easier it is for you to shake it off – the quicker you’ll be able to get things “back together” if they go off track (ie crying baby on the plane). For a good attitude, it helps for YOU to be well slept, well fed, and have the tools you need at your fingertips. When you take care of yourself first, you can better take care of everyone (and everything) else. It’s the difference between responding and reacting.

I also love this mental shift: let go of expectations. We have this idea of how we want things to go and that’s great! What happens though, is we can get stuck on that image and end up forcing things when really we should be paying attention to baby’s cues and adjusting/modifying plans in the moment. Often, if we can make these little course adjustments along the way – it leads to a much smoother overall experience…even if things don’t go exactly as we planned.

We like to pack at least one “new” toy and save it for that moment when baby is starting to get cranky and nothing else is helping to soothe them. I put “new” in quotes because you don’t necessarily have to go out and buy something – it can be a toy you’ve been saving or an ordinary household item (we brought a small rolling pin on our last trip and it bought us about 20 minutes of focused play when girl was starting to get cranky!) The newness of an item engages baby’s curiosity as they figure out how it works. I also found a painter’s tape trick on pinterest and it was a hit! Check out this reel on Instagram to see it in action. The idea is to save these for when baby is starting to get fussy and you need to divert their attention. If baby is good, no need to pull anything out or do anything different. Sometimes just being on the airplane and people watching is entertaining enough to them!

Bring plenty of food and snacks for baby. And plan for flight delays and lost luggage just in case. Since Ren is formula fed, we bring 1-3 empty bottles in the diaper bag. Once we’re through security, we fill them up at one of the filtered water stations. (LEARN FROM US: one time we waited to fill the bottles on the plane using their bottled water instead of the filling station at the airport. This backfired because our flight experienced a lot of turbulence and the flight attendants never came around for drink service. Luckily, Ren slept the entire time and missed that feeding, but it could have been really rough.) We pack a pre-portioned formula container in her diaper bag and also carry a full can (with the lid taped in case of spillage – again, learned this the hard way) of formula just in case of any delays or lost luggage.

Everyone always asks about her ears popping on take off and landing. There’s only one time that she seemed bothered by it and I think it was more to do with a cold she was fighting than anything else. We like to have a bottle of formula prepared and a pacifier close by. The sucking/swallowing helps to adjust the pressure in their inner ears as the elevation changes. Right before take off or as we begin our descent – we offer her the milk or pacifier and she usually takes one and is fine.

Last, but certainly not least: the four things we pack for every trip (that truly make a difference):

• Sound machine. For longer trips, we pack the hatch. We also have this portable sound machine and this app on our phones for “emergencies”. We’ve been known to play white noise over the rental car bluetooth just so Ren can squeeze that nap in!
• Audio baby monitor. We have this set just for traveling purposes. Depending on your accommodations, you might be able to hear baby without a monitor, but it always brings a little peace of mind in case baby will be sleeping/napping in a separate area. We even bring these with us on day trips to the in-laws for nap time.
• Backseat mirror for the headrest above baby’s carseat. If you’re planning to get a rental car at your destination, this sure is nice to have! We ended up buying one on our first trip and just take that one with us now whenever we fly.
• Medicine bag. You never know what’ll happen, so I always pack a little bag with infant pain reliever, a thermometer, our nose Frida, the oogie boogie, teething drops, etc. IMHO, it’s better to have this and not need it than to need it and not have it!

I sure hope this helps you feel more confident and ready to travel with your little one. Have more questions? Let me know in the comments below or find me on Instagram! I’m here to help. xoxo