Travelling with a 15-month old child a.k.a. Travelling volume 2

Last year we wrote about traveling with a 3-month old. It is time for part 2!

Yet again we traveled to Estonia, which means a 3-hour train ride (1 hour longer due to railway track work), 1,5 hour wait at the airport, 2,5 hours on the plane, and 1 hour by car. Needless to say, we were all exhausted after!

Transport

• We traveled mainly with a travel buggy (Babyzen Yoyo) which we can strongly recommend. It can be used as a carry-on item. For the train ride, we brought the Tula FTG carrier as we knew she would like to sleep (it was after all 5 am!) and it would be the easiest to carry her like that. I wouldn't have done that any other way.

• Break the trip up a little bit! Looking back, we would have been better off staying at a hotel the previous night to save ourselves from waking up at 4:05 for the 3-hour train ride. We stayed at a hotel before departure and that was fine!

• We bought a new car seat for the car in Estonia. After long research, I decided on Axkid Minikid 2 as it is a very safe seat that can go up to 25 kg, all rear-facing. It is a big seat and we did miss the 360-degree function that we have in the NL with our Joie i-spin 360 a bit but M found the seat very comfortable and could sleep well in it!

Sleeping

• Time the travel in a way that the baby will most likely be sleeping during the most crucial part of the trip (for us, the plane ride). Have the child move a lot before to get all that energy out to maximize your chances for a nap :-)

• Bring an item with a familiar smell with you for sleeping and all the sleep gear your baby needs (a sleeping bag, a teddy, white noise, etc.).

• We bought a travel bed for M to sleep in when we go for trips (she has a crib at my parents where we stay mostly), but as it was one of these pop-up type beds, it took her a little time to get used to.

• Bonus tip: when you stay at a hotel with a baby who sleeps in a separate (dark room), you can put her crib in the bathroom for the naps and the nighttime sleep. M sleeps from 19 to 7 and has a nap at 12, so at these times, we just put her sleeping in the bathroom. She needed to adjust a little and had the door slightly open so it wouldn't be pitch black (as it is normally not). It was annoying for us to need to use the hotel bathroom downstairs but we are willing to do it again for the sake of her sleep!

Eating

• We brought easy-to-transport foods (waffles, apples, dry snacks, and squeezable baby purees). The latter is a blessing and a curse - they always calm her down but even if the puree tube seems to be completely empty, there is always that little bit left that squirts out unexpectedly (like when you are sitting at the gate at the airport and that apple puree misses a man sitting 2 seats from you just barely!). Buying her extra snacks in Estonia though cost us a fortune! These tubes and fruit bars are pricy there.

• M just drank water on the way, she is not so keen on her milk anymore and will get it in a cup during meals only. She had been weaned from the bottle and breast by the time the trip took place.

• For take-off and landing, we gave her the paci, but on the way back, she refused this and her water bottle and we handed her a fruit bar. It seemed to work! As long as they swallow, it should be good.

• Be aware that a different eating pattern and products might mean indigestion! After that happened, we started to limit how many fresh berries and fruit she was allowed per day.

• When you go eating out, we suggest ordering food and then taking the baby for a walk or playing somewhere so you shorten the sitting-down time. When the food comes, baby can eat theirs and you can eat yours (in the ideal world...). We brought along a long-sleeved bib, muslin cloth, wet wipes, and a baby puree and some fruit as our set supplies.

Packing

• I packed all M's carry-on in her diaper bag with million different pockets. We had a wet bag with diaper supply, wipes, and spare clothes (needed it all!), a big pocket with entertainment, and a big pocket with snacks.

• In our luggage, I put M's clothes in another wet bag so we could pull them out immediately when needed.

• During the trip, M wore a short-sleeved romper, long pants, anti-slip socks, shoes, and a light woolen sweater. I am debating if I would have done a short-sleeved shirt instead of a romper because it makes the diaper changes easier but I also didn't want her to be cold or have her back all bare.

• Bring along a jacket or a warmer scarf that you can put over the baby when they sleep or if it is windy.

• We ended up buying several things we didn't bring, such as long-sleeved bibs, a summer hat, and a scarf. You will see this (and the full set of wardrobe in size 86/92 I purchased way ahead of time for her) back in my budget...

• For the sunny days at the beach (which we had 2 of...), we bought her a UV suit with a cap. Better be safe than sorry!

• Always have a spare diaper and wipes with you, even if you just go for a little stroll. We have been parents for 15 months but we still forgot that several times.

Entertainment

• (Public) transit with a child means a lot of entertaining. Firstly, if it ain't broken, don't fix it! If your child is totally fine doing whatever they are doing, don't offer them a new activity. Make one last as long as you can! M is bored very quickly, so we had a lot prepared for her.

• What worked? Closing and opening our water bottles. Lifting shoes up and down. Walking at the aisle. From toys, her Maileg mouse with a mattress, cushion, and a blanket was a lot of fun. She is in a phase of putting things into things, so she enjoyed it very much. I also made the mouse walk up to her and greet her and she loved it. I also made up a spider game where the adult hand becomes a spider and walks all over and jumps around. She loved it! Moreover, she liked looking at her new books with flaps and moving parts. Very much into that now as well.

• What didn't work? I brought along 2 new Schleich animal figurines, a cat and a dog but she didn't do much with them. I made them talk and walk but that was about it. These things are also too small and valuable to lose on a trip. I had also brought along a little set of 6 small board books but we never even took them out of the bag as the other books were already doing their job. We also took along 2 plastic durable toy cars for her from Estonia, but she didn't play with them much on the plane or the train and they kept falling and rolling away under the seats. Not pleasant!

Miscellaneous

• Medication: I brought along a minimum range of medication for her, including a 120 mg suppository of paracetamol, bandages, disinfection spray, sunscreen, and vaseline for her skin. We ended up purchasing a nebulizer because of her cough (recommendation by an Estonian doctor) and hydrocortisone creme because of another eczema spot. When going to a foreign country in which health system you can't orient very well, I would bring some anti-diarrhea medication, allergy pills, creme against sunburns, and maybe even broad-spectrum antibiotics (although this is nothing one should give to their baby without a doctors prescription!).

• It is easy to let the rules slip while you are traveling (and it is perfectly fine for a day!) but I would have been quicker on getting back at the track. When M realized that there are snacks offered when she is whining in the buggy, she just started whining and stretching her hand out, asking for it even if it was a 30-minute walk... The same might be true for screens, for example, but we didn't thankfully get into that.

• Everyone was super nice and friendly to us, such a blessing!

Have a good trip!