How to Travel (and Fly!) with a Baby: Packing Tips, Logistics & Stress Free Advice with the Local Passport Family | Ep. 103

0:00Learning To Mom:We almost always take car seats with us if we need them. I generally really do not recommend renting them from a car rental agency because you are generally not certain of the condition of the seat. They almost never guarantee that they will have one available for you. They say that they most likely will, but you can't guarantee it. I've heard of so many, many, many people who have gotten there and they've had, you know, an infant car seat for a toddler or a high back booster for an infant. But I, yeah, I would generally say bring one if at all possible. Hello, mom friend. Welcome to learning to mom podcast.

0:33Learning To Mom:If you're new here, my name is Layla and here you and I get the inside scoop from experts. As I ask them all of our gazillion first time mom questions. Now this is the only podcast that grows with you in your motherhood journey. Season one was all about pregnancy and birth. And now season two is all about postpartum and your baby's first year of life. And season three coming out next month is all about your baby's second year of life. So 12 months to 24 months. I was the first of my friends to get pregnant and become a mom. So I didn't have anyone to ask my first time mom questions to. So I wanted to give you the resource in your motherhood journey that I wish I could have had in mind here.

1:12Learning To Mom:You'll get your questions answered by experts without feeling judged, belittled, or overwhelmed. This is a safe judgment-free, super honest space. I'm so glad to have you here. Hi, Preeti. Welcome to the Learning to Mom podcast. Hi, thank you so much for having me. It's going to be a really great conversation that so many first-time moms have questions about. I feel like I still have questions about it, even though I've flown and traveled with a baby, but I'm still like, what's the best way to do this? So before we get into all of that, do you mind just telling us a little bit about yourself and what spurred you to start Local Passport family?

1:52Absolutely. So again, I'm Preeti and I manage the account Local Passport family. I am wife to Daniel and a mom of six. We have children ages 13 down to almost two. So we are kind of moving out of the baby phase, but we've had lots of years of fun and practice. And so it's been a joy and an exciting adventure to share some of those thoughts and tips and tricks with others around the world. Daniel and I have both always loved to travel. We kind of built in the summer of travel for the two of us about a year after we got married, I was getting ready to go back to graduate school, he was about to start a new job.

2:27So we kind of built in two months where we figured we could travel around the world a little bit. Super cheap. It was a very like budget trip, where we did some couch surfing, we used airline points, that kind of thing. But we figured we wouldn't really have the opportunity to travel very much after we had kids, which we knew we wanted to do within the next couple of years. And so we figured like, let's take this opportunity need to travel because we probably won't get too much for the next few decades. And then we had our oldest, I guess about a year and a half after that. And a few months after he was born, I needed to go on a trip to South Africa for part of my program.

2:59I needed to go for a project that I was working on there. So since he was so little, he was only about four months old. I figured I had to take him along. I was breastfeeding. And so it's like, okay, he's going to come along. And then Daniel came along as well so that he could help out with the baby while I was doing my project. So we kind of built that into a little bit of a bigger trip. We figured if we're going to go all the way to South Africa, we might as well try to see a few other interesting things near there. And it was amazing. We loved the adventure. We loved the experience. And we kind of figured like, okay, we managed that with the baby.

3:29Let's do one last trip with him before we have our second child. So our daughter was born about two years later. So when I was pregnant with her, when our oldest was about 18 months old, we figured let's go somewhere really far away while he's still a laugh child and we don't have to pay for any kids on a plane. So we went to Australia and New Zealand. Again, an amazing trip. We loved the experience, but we figured that was kind of the last hurrah. So then our daughter came along and we did a few other shorter trips. You see where this is going, right? We did a few shorter trips. And then when she was almost two, when she was still a laugh child, we were like, okay, let's do another last hurrah trip while she's still free before we have our third baby who I was then pregnant with.

4:09And at that point, we went to the Middle East and stopped in Europe on the way back. And I think it was after we had our third that we finally figured out like, you know what, if we can travel with three, then maybe

4:19Learning To Mom:we can continue this adventure even with more kids. And we found some ways to manage the budgeting part of it, the travel, you know, logistics part of it. And it kind of went from there. And we got lots of questions, lots of comments, especially with a lot of kids. And I have loved sharing some of those tips and experiences with others to hopefully give them confidence and joy in the adventure as well. Do you have any stats on like how many countries you guys have visited as a family? Yes, I am a giant data nerd and keep a Google spreadsheet with all of this information. So I have been to 94 countries.

4:55Well, it's either 91 or 94, depending on how you count it. But anyway, I've talked to a few people recently who think that it should be 94. So I'm going to go with 94. And then our oldest has been to 79 countries and the other kids have been, you know, to some number less than that. So.

5:12Learning To Mom:Wow. And why don't you tell the listeners where you guys currently reside? We are currently living in London. And it's been amazing. We've really loved it here. We always had a dream of living abroad somewhere. And London was a place that we loved and was also a place that we were able to work out with my husband's work after a few years of trying really hard and we've been really grateful to be here. So cool. I'm so excited to get to talk to you and ask all of these travel questions. Something that I really appreciate about you guys and your whole platform is that the world tells young parents, like once you have a baby, your life is over.

5:50And I think that's why a lot of people put off starting families for so

5:54Learning To Mom:along because it's like, well, we want to travel. We want to see the world. And you don't even think it's like possible or that it's too hard, that it won't be worth it. That's what I thought. That's exactly how I felt because that's what I had been told, you know? So I just love that you are, I love that you're just teaching like it's, you know, you don't have to lose yourself to motherhood. You get to take your kids along with you on all of your interests. So the first question that I do have for you is what would you tell someone who's just really scared or anxious to travel with their baby?

6:27Learning To Mom:Or even someone who's wondering like, well, what's the point? They're never going to remember it. What would you tell them? Yeah, absolutely. So let's start with the second question, actually, what's the point? And I'll preface this by saying travel does not have to be for everyone. You know, I'm a firm believer that there's so many amazing, rich, wonderful experiences in life, right where you live. That's part of why my account is called Local Passport Family. A, because we love being able to travel like locals whenever possible and experience authentic cultures and get to know people. But a piece of that is also appreciating where we are and finding the joy in everyday places.

7:05I'm a big believer that everywhere has somewhere to offer, including where you are right now. So I'll start that out by saying travel is not a necessity. It is an enormous, massive privilege that I'm very aware of. That said, it's something that has brought so much joy to our family, both in terms of connection with each other, as well as connection with other people and learning about the world. So I will say that something that I heard a lot when, you know, when we were first having kids, when we were first debating whether we should travel was that it's not worth it until your kids get older, until they can remember.

7:39And something that I've thought about a lot since then is that there's so many other things that we do when our kids are babies, because we believe that it gets into their character, into their souls. It's something that builds them, even when they are tiny. You know, we read books to our kids, we sing music to our kids, we, you know, we feed them good foods when they are tiny, even if they don't necessarily remember all of those specific moments. I'm a big believer that it builds them from the inside out, that it's creating who they are as people and deepening their ability to interact with others as they grow older, to connect with those experiences, even as they grow.

8:20Learning To Mom:Do you have any words of wisdom then for anyone who like really wants to travel? And we'll get into the tangible tips in a moment, but just overarching words of wisdom for anyone that's like really wants to travel, but is, you know, anxious and nervous. I've never done this before with a baby. There's so much fear out there, et cetera. Yeah, absolutely. A know that it's normal to be fearful and nervous. You know, everyone feels like that the first time. It's a new experience. You've never toted this new human around the world before. And that's okay. It's okay to still do it. Even when you are nervous, you don't have to wait until you feel confident.

8:54And if we always waited until we felt completely sure in what we were doing and fully confident in what we were doing, we would never do most things in life, especially in parenthood. You We feel nervous. We feel a little bit concerned, but we move forward regardless. And a big part of that, I think, is just practice, you know, doing things and trying them out, even when we are unsure of them. Maybe start with a small local adventure, just going to the grocery store with your baby, going to the park or the playground or to Target or whatever. Make it easy in terms of that human connection with people that you feel comfortable with and support one another as you try those new things.

9:30Learning To Mom:Yeah. No, that was so well said. That's really great advice. The next question that I have for you, do you think it's easier to travel with a baby than a toddler? I'm just curious. Oh, 100%. That's what I think that that's something I was just thinking about when you were talking about it. And I was like, I think that's something just as a first time mom, you don't really like, cause it's so overwhelming and there's so many things to learn and it takes a long time to get your footing and to get the rhythm and like all of the things, right. When you have a newborn and then when you have your second, you realize how easy it was like the first time around.

10:03Learning To Mom:but you just took that for granted, but it still was so hard in the moment, you know, like I don't absolutely. And again, that's something that varies by parents as well. Um, I mean, I think everyone kind of connects with different ages or thinks that different ages are either easier, hard or easier or harder, you know, it's all hard, but, um, easier or harder, you know, um, like for me, I feel like four to six is a really challenging age and lots of people love that age. you know, I love toddlers. I think they're super fun. And you can generally like, you know, pick them up and move them even when they are pitching a fit.

10:36But a slightly older kid gets, you know, a little bit trickier and then they grow a little bit more and get really like practiced and responsible and helpful, you know, so varies by kid varies by parent.

10:48Learning To Mom:That's Yeah, no, that's a good point of just that everyone thinks that a different age is easier, whatever. Yeah. Okay, getting into some of the tangible tips here, which I'm so freaking excited about. I think so many parents are specifically scared about flying. And I think that's probably where most of the conversation today is going to be, at least with tips, because car rides, you know, you can just like pack the car up. It doesn't, you don't have to really worry about being efficient or anything. It's just like, here we go. Let's try to just jam it all in there. We don't want to forget anything.

11:18Learning To Mom:So there's so much fear, I guess, about not fear, fear. Questions, some stress, worry. Exactly. If you're a tad bit anxious thinking about how your baby is going to sleep in a new environment when you're on vacation, then listen up. I swear this is one of the most stressful parts of traveling. Worrying about getting your baby to sleep in a new bright and totally unfamiliar hotel or Airbnb or at a family member's house. No, first of all, that you're not alone. But as your mom friend, let me tell you about something that we use every time we travel because it is a game changer when it comes to getting our baby to fall asleep and stay asleep the whole night through.

12:08Learning To Mom:So I'm not having to deal with a hotel neighbor making a noise complaint at 2am. It's a portable blackout canopy that pops up right over your pack and play that creates a completely dark and private sleep space for your little one, no matter where you are. It gives them their own consistent little sleep environment on the go. You literally don't have to worry about whether a room has blackout curtains or if the lights from the hallway will sneak in. We don't go on a trip without it since getting one. It's been on two vacations so far and every trip to my in-laws and it'll be packed up again soon to come along with us while my family of four stays in a hotel for my best friend's wedding in a couple of months.

12:46Learning To Mom:It helps our babies stick to their routine, which means a better night's sleep for them and for the rest of the family and everyone else in the hotel or at grandma's house. So go get one for your peace of mind for your next trip. You can get your own SlumberPod at slumberpod.com. And because you're a listener, use code LEARNING2MOM, all one word, all caps, for 15 % off your order. That's a fantastic discount. you don't want to miss out on, especially because you're going to use this thing forever. The link is also in the episode show notes for your convenience. Regarding how do you fly with a baby, can you give us the rundown on the logistics of how to fly efficiently with a baby?

13:35Well, maybe let's start with packing. I will say it's really easy to pack the entire house for a baby, but I like to remember babies really don't need that much. you know, so we tend to be pretty minimal packers. So I like to avoid taking as much stuff as I possibly can. And I mean, obviously, babies need like diapers, wipes, place to sleep and some clothes, you know, so that's kind of those are sort of the basics that we usually focus on. We have a really portable little pop up baby bed that we'll usually take with us unless they provide a bed at wherever we're going, in which case we won't take that.

14:10If we are taking a stroller. We have a little folding portable lightweight one that is easy to take along. I would say just take what you need and leave behind what isn't really necessary.

14:21Learning To Mom:What about if you're flying in? So I mean, typically in the US, right, we don't have a great public transportation system. So if you're flying to another state, and you need to rent a car, or take an Uber, like what do you do about the car seat? We almost always take car seats with us if we need them. I generally really do not recommend renting them from a car rental agency because you are generally not certain of the condition of the seat. They almost never guarantee that they will have one available for you. They say that they most likely will, but you can't guarantee it. I've heard of so many, many, many people who have gotten there and they've had, an infant car seat for a toddler or a high back booster for an infant.

15:05But I would generally say, Bring one if at all possible.

15:08Learning To Mom:Why? If you don't use the car seat on the plane, then you have to check it? Yes. So for infant car seats, most people do not know this. Many flight attendants do not know this and sometimes won't allow it. But generally, an infant car seat, if you pop the handle all the way back, will fit in the overhead bin, depending on the style of the infant car seat. So whenever possible, we try to take it on board with us and stick it in the overhead bin if we're not using it in a seat because it's just easier than we have it available. It's less likely to get damaged in the overhead. If you cannot do that, then gate checking is probably going to keep it a little bit in better condition than checking it at the check-in desk.

15:48Of course, that means that you have to transport it to the gate yourself, which sometimes we will, we have a luggage strap that allows it to hook onto like a rolling suitcase. So that can make it easier. An infant car seat will actually hook. If you take the handle, you can hook it over the handle of the suitcase, which makes it convenient to roll along. And of course, put it in its original box, the shipping box, and then check it in that way. And that will keep it safe as well.

16:13Learning To Mom:Okay. This was incredible. Who knew that I would have so many follow-up questions about cart seats? No, you would just have a plethora of knowledge to share with us. That was so great. Okay. So do you gate check the stroller as well? Yeah. So that's what we always used to do. Now we have one that like folds down into, you know, it does the like accordion fold. So it fits in the overhead. So we usually take that off more of us as well. And they like, so then you just carry it kind of like a bag. Yeah. You just like hand carry it. Okay. Dang. Awesome. Okay. I think people have a lot of fear about like, what if my baby just screams the whole time and someone yells at me?

16:52I mean, honestly, my first and most important advice is focus on your baby. Ignore the other people. Do what you need to do, you know, because A, like, your primary responsibility is to your kid, not to all the other strangers on the plane. Like your job is not to create a perfect flight for them. Your job is to take care of your baby. That said, it's also going to be better for you, for your baby, and for all the other people on the flight, if you are focusing on your baby, you know, if you're doing what you can to address their needs. So the best thing you can do for everybody to just focus on what your baby needs.

17:27I will say kids under one generally don't need very much entertainment. We do not pack much in terms of activities, especially for young children. My older kids have like one, we actually use like a travel toiletries case to put different activities in there to keep them all organized and contained, which is really nice. But beyond that, if I just have the baby, I'll maybe like throw a few crayons in my bag and they can I don't even pack paper usually they just are fine drawing on like the vomit bag on the plane or like you know playing with a cup of ice or holding the emergency card or you know like babies are pretty easily entertained and I generally would rather just like pull whatever I have in my bag out for them you know like my lip balm or my keys or whatever and they're generally happy playing with that and it means less for me to carry and then tote around after the flight as well.

18:17No, 100%. That is such a good tip.

18:19Learning To Mom:Yeah. Whereas here I was like stuffing all of their favorite toys when she was nine months old into the diaper bag. Oh, yeah, she would have really loved just playing with my keys. Yeah. Well, I mean, and everyone is different. Like if it works for you to take some more toys, like great more power to you. Again, I tend to be a little bit of a minimalist, minimalist, especially when it comes to packing for travel. And I just really hate like schlepping around a ton of stuff. So I'm happy to just like pull out whatever we happen to have. That said, we have a few favorites that we usually will take that are like small and easy to pack.

18:57So like wiki sticks are great. There's a little like wax sticks that I feel like kids of a huge variety of ages like to play with. So they'll like bend those or play with those. We have these like little tiny toy animals that are great that, you know, shove easily in a bag. So little things like that are always great.

19:14Learning To Mom:Did you know that girls in America are going through puberty earlier than ever? In 1860, the average age for a girl to start her period was 16. Now it's common for puberty to start anywhere from 8 to 12 years old, which I know you may be listening and hearing that and saying, yeah, that was me. And I'm so sorry. Like that freaking sucks. The thing that I didn't know until I started researching this is that the research is clear on one of the biggest reasons for this. Hormone disrupting chemicals. Phthalates specifically are a huge culprit. So if you see on any ingredient label in your home, DEP, DBP, DEHP, or fragrance, run.

19:59Learning To Mom:They're nearly in every standard personal care and cleaning product. And I do want to just say, it's not just phthalates. We're talking about parabens, pesticides, artificial fragrances, processed food, even the plastic containers we store our food in. But basically all of this matters because it's getting into our baby's bodies, their bloodstreams, their hormones, their developing brains. And this is why I care. This is why I will not stop talking about this because childhood should be protected. And we are the first generation of moms who have had access to this level of information. So we actually can make better decisions.

20:36Learning To Mom:No, we won't do it perfectly. And yes, it feels extremely overwhelming at times, but what an absolute gift it is to even have the chance to choose better. This is why I am so particular about the products that I allow in my home. And this is why I use Truly Free in my home. It's free not just from phthalates, but also other extremely harmful chemicals. They emphasize using plant-based ingredients in their cleaning and laundry products to be safe for families and pets. and you can get 30 % off by being a listener of the podcast by going to the link in the show notes below using that link and then the code learning to mom.