Travel is one of those things that can cause extreme anxiety
for new moms. My daughter and I traveled when she was just 6 weeks old. My
husband was unable to come so it was just the two of us. We were going to wait
a few more weeks but honestly, I just missed my family too much.
The night before we were set to fly, I had a complete
meltdown. I was so nervous and overwhelmed by all that could go wrong.
How would I manage all
my stuff? What if the flight was late or canceled? What if I ran out of milk?
What if my daughter cried the whole time? What if I had to use the restroom?
Obviously all of these things were legitimate concerns.
Really what new mom could hold her bladder for 6-7 hours total?
So once I got through with my pity party the night before, I
organized and really thought of solutions for all my concerns.
How to manage all the baggage that goes with flying
·
Curbside check in. Have someone drop you right
at the counter. Tip the handler with a smile and $5. You’ll be golden!
o
Also consider buying the diapers and wipes you’ll
need when you arrive at your destination or have someone pick them up for you
if you are visiting family.
o
Same thing goes for your stroller and carseat.
See if you can borrow from a family member or rent one. But traveling with them
looks like a hassle.
·
Make your carry on light… Only the necessities
make the cut. We rolled on board with small diaper bag and my girl in the Baby
K’Tan. My diaper bag included:
o
3-4 diapers
o
A travel wipes case and changing pad
o
A receiving blanket
o
Extra outfit for baby
o
Extra t-shirt for me
o
2 toys (Note: NOT the whole toy box)
o
wristlet with all my "stuff" (lotion, tissues, credit cards, cash, phone, etc)
o
(2) 4 oz bottles of breastmilk
o
My nursing cover
o
AND THAT’S IT
·
Have someone there when you land to get a hug
from and help with luggage. This is when you really should pay to park at the
airport.
 |
The Essential Diaper Bag |
Changes in schedule
·
Unfortunately it happens. And it happened to us.
On the way there, we were golden. On the way back, at 11:00 pm the night before
our flight was canceled. We were rescheduled but not until later in the
afternoon. Fortunately, we had that notice the night before. Once we got to the
airport, we were delayed but we used the time to walk around, take in the
sites, get a snack… get another snack… and another snack.
·
Always try to talk to an agent and see if there
are options for you with a baby. Sometimes they might let you into their
presidents club or find you a seat on another flight that’s leaving earlier.
Food Supply
·
If you are nursing, you are able to take as much
breastmilk through security as you need. I don’t mean that as a joke. I mean if
you pump and put milk in bottles, they will scan it and let you through. BUT
feel free to have your boobs as full as you need too. ;)
·
Pack some snacks for you too. Sometimes those
flights are long and the pretzels and nuts are stale.
·
Also when they come by and ask if you want a
drink. Get yourself water. No use in dehydrating yourself so the chances you
have to go to the bathroom are less.
Crying babies on a plane
·
I think there are few people who have not been
aggravated when sharing the plan with a crying baby. As a new mom, I remembered
those times when I wanted to sleep but a fussy baby kept me up. I figured it
would be just my karma coming back on me to have THAT baby.
·
The night before I thought long and hard about
what automatically calms my girl down at any given moment. There were the
obvious: nursing and pacifier. But my daughter LOVES to snuggle. I was already
bringing the baby carrier so we would be nice and cozy the whole time.
Using the ladies room
·
If you are traveling on your own, this is a big
one. So I encourage you… to get to a yoga class and do chair pose. With the
baby carrier, I could go hands free but the tricky part was sitting low enough
and back enough. Sounds funny but seriously I took a deep inhale, and exhale
sat back in “chair.”
·
I will also say this. I didn’t want to have to
go on the flight so I went to the bathroom before boarding each and every time
regardless of it I had to go.
·
I also changed my girl prior to boarding so that
I didn’t feel like I needed to change her multiple times on the flight. I also
changed her right after we got off the flight.
Most important of all:
·
Laugh
when things go wrong. Our first flight, I boarded the wrong plane. I was so
nervous I misread the gate sign. WHOOPS. The gate agent came running after me
and no harm was done but I had a good laugh… as did the rest of the people in
line. It happens. J
