Yay! Our first family vacation was about to start and uhh…I hadn’t even begun to pack. Michael was still on the back-end of a cold and I was still recovering from one as well. We were tired, scratch that, exhausted (nothing new there). Howev
er, we were leaving for the best place in the world, HAWAII!! Yay! This was going to be my first time back since I had lived there and I was beyond excited. Not only was it my first time back, I was getting to go as a new family. Needless to say I was ecstatic to be taking Michael and getting to visit Hawaii with Kevin and his family. Back to packing. Being a FTM (first time mom) side note: When I would look through forums and search things I wanted to learn about, it took me forever to figure out some of the terms…so I’m here to help 😉. side note closed. Where the heck was I going to start?! Luckily since my head was lost somewhere with my memory Kevin’s mom helped come up with a great list of essentials for our vaca. Packing for myself was a breeze because in Hawaii the most clothes you wear on a daily basis is at dinner. So lots of bikinis and easy dresses to nurse in and I was pretty much set. Little man on the other hand had a WHOLE BUNCH MORE necessary items. If you are traveling with a baby and have NO IDEA what to bring, or you’re just frazzled and can’t even begin to put a list together, this is for you girl! Most things would seem obvious that I’m going to list below, reality though, having a specific checklist will help the obvious not get left behind.
- Diapers!- Yay. The easiest thing you would think to remember but do you really want to take up that much room in your suitcase? Probably not. Instead of packing diapers for the entire trip, pack enough to get you through your flying situation and the first day. Then find a local grocery store or pharmacy and pick up some diapers for the remainder of your trip.
- Wipes– Along with diapers grab some at the local store once you arrive to your destination. We made sure our diaper bag was fully stocked before we left so there wouldn’t be any uh-oh moments.
- Burp rags– Michael has reflux so we can never have too many around. For our trip we packed about 15.
- Outfits- Another obvious one but you have to remember ALL the different outfits a baby needs, plus some. We were on vacation for 11 days. I packed 2 basic onesies a day for Michael, a dinner outfit and pajamas for each day. DONT FORGET THE PAJAMAS! I added extra onesies in there, like 5, just to be safe. Because you never know. I would also recommend seeing if wherever you are staying has a laundry facility you could take advantage of. If they do I would bring some baby detergent just in case.
- Food– Fortunately I nurse so Michael’s food comes anywhere I am. wink wink. However, make sure to pack enough formula for the duration of your trip. If you are not taking it in a labeled case, measure it out accordingly and LABEL your clear Ziploc bag.
- Bottles and Accessories– Don’t forget to pack ALL the pieces you need and pack PLENTY of bottles. I brought bottles because I wanted to pump while I was there to enjoy a little date with Kevin…that lasted more than 30 minutes. Breastfeeding struggles. Also bring the cleaning supplies (which I’ve linked great travel cleaning supplies HERE and HERE) you will need to clean the bottles and pump accessories while you are away. It is WAY BETTER cleaning them while you are away than waiting until you get home and they have been sitting around…gross. And you wouldn’t want to pack a bajillion bottles for a trip so bringing just a minimum (that works for you) will be good on the packing situation.
- So bring the cleaning supplies too.
- Breast pump and supplies– This was AMAZING to have on hand for a dinner or if we wanted to have a little time to ourselves. Also if you are pumping and don’t bring your pump for while you’re away it could affect your supply with the demand change.
- Snacks– This applies to anyone who has a baby that is a little older and has started on solids…obviously. Make sure to pack enough for your flight and first day. Then you can grab some for the rest of your trip when you are grabbing diapers at the local grocery store.
- Blankets– We ALWAYS have a blanket in our diaper bag, ALWAYS. IF you haven’t read “Packing a Perfect Diaper Bag” click on the link and look at what you need to have in there to be prepared for any situation! So we kept the one in the diaper bag for while we were traveling on the plane and I grabbed a few more for our vacation. I think I packed around 3-4. One for during the day to get sandy and whatever (it was also a lighter muslin blanket) which are GREAT for warmer weather and getting sand off. There were a few of these packed. I also packed a larger blanket to throw on the bed or ground so he could play and roll around on. If you didn’t know yet, I am a slight germaphob so I am always on the look out with Michael and safe play! You never know what was in the hotel room before you so I play it safe. Grab a large play blanket for your little one to roll around on.
- Crib sheets/Portable crib– We called ahead to make sure the resort we were staying on had a roll away crib for Michael and they did. It wasn’t any luxury crib but it worked and Michael slept good the whole trip, after he pooped and I’ll go over that in a later post. Whenever you are traveling with a baby it is way better to call ahead and make sure where you are staying has a place for your little one to sleep than to just assume they do. We brought our own crib sheets in case of any harsh detergents used by the resort would irritate Michael’s sensitive baby skin.
- Toiletries– They have a bunch of different travel packs pre-done for babies. You can grab one of THESE before you head out on your next vacation. This is what I used and it was perfect! Has all the supplies you need for keeping your little one squeaky clean and moisturized. We also packed Michael’s baby wash clothes for his sensitive skin. The hotel rags are usually a little rougher and could irritate a baby’s skin, so it is better to not risk it and bring a few of their own wash clothes.
- Baby Medications– Make sure to bring any medications your little one is taking. Also for safe measure I would pack some gas relief or gripe water as we discovered traveling and time change can cause constipation…equaling one fussy baby on a vaca! I would also pack a Nose Frieda in case they get any sort of stuffy. Also grab some baby Tylenol just for safe measure.
- Carriers– You’ll definitely want every carrier you use with you. You won’t want to be toting a car seat around
your whole vaca! I use this ring sling and once I got a hang of it, I love it! We also brought Kevin’s chicco carrier for him to get to enjoy carrying around an extra 12 pounds on his stomach😉. It’s specially Kevin s because it doesn’t fit right when i wear it, odd. It was for sure made for non short people. They should have a height requirement to use. - Stroller and Car Seat– When you are traveling with an infant under 1-year-old you MUST have a car seat for getting to and from the airport and your destination. Wouldn’t ever think about these kinds of things and traveling until a baby arrives! Each family is different but we prefer to gate check our stroller and car seat. It makes it easier to get around in the airport AND you can bring more “carry on” items with it. 😉 We use the Chicco Key-Fit travel system and it is wonderful! We enjoy this because you can use your larger normal stroller for everyday use but when you are traveling they have a “light-weight” umbrella stroller which is perfect for traveling. The umbrella stroller also fits the infant seat, win!
- Gate check bags– These are essential when traveling with a stroller and car seat. You can find the bag for the stroller here and for the car seat and base here. You know how awful airlines handle your luggage, imagine what they do with your stroller and car seat?! AH! and all the germs, ugh I can’t even. No but seriously haha these are really efficient and do help keep your supplies safe. You spent a good amount of money investing in these items, take the little amount of money to invest protecting it!
Now if you are going to a beach you will need these items as well as everything mentioned above!
- Swim Diapers– We packed about 5 different ones and interchanged them throughout our vacation. Knowing Michael wouldn’t be getting in the water every day, all day it wouldn’t be too big of deal to not have an abundant amount.
- Rash Guards– Rash guards are always needed for babies under a year old to protect their sensitive skin. You want to make sure they also have an SPF as well. A I may be a tad over protective (Kevin would say I’m more than a tad but I’m a mom who are we kidding, I am going to protect my baby)! No but it is recommended by pediatricians to keep them protected with rash guards until a year old. It is also said to keep them out of the sun for long periods of time until them are 6 months old.
- Swim Trunks– This is obviously for little boys unless you want your little girl to wear swim trunks. And if so, then by all means have her wear some swim trunks! Lol. These help protect their little legs from the harsh sun rays too.
- Sun hats and sunglasses– Michael looked SO CUTE in his little sun hats, ah gosh! I’m getting all the feels thinking about it right now. I wonder what I’m going to think looking back in a few years or maybe 6 months after seeing the phrase “all the feels” in my post? Man has my literacy plummeted. For obvious reasons hats protect your little babies head from the suns harsh rays.
- Sunscreen– Even if your baby is under 6 months and won’t be in the sun putting some sun screen on the tops of their little hands and feet will keep them fully protected as much as you can.
- Baby beach/outdoor tent– These are fantastic to have for outdoor adventures to keep your baby out of the sun! This one works great and can be used anywhere. Michael didn’t like his tent (needed to be held constantly), ugh haha, but we look forward to using it again in the future!
- Portable fan– We used THIS ONE and it worked perfectly in Michael’s tent. Kept it cool and wasn’t too overpowering or intense for a baby. It does require a good amount of batteries so make sure to pick some up before you head off!
- A tiny spray bottle– This is great when you do not want to get them dressed up for the pool. If you haven’t been to Hawaii yet, YOU NEED TO GO! But it can get pretty sticky and it was definitely uncomfortable for Michael. Having a little spray bottle to cool him off was so nice and it kept him fascinated.
- Baby Powder– A great trick for getting sand off of a baby’s skin without scratching or irritating it. Literally so awesome and IT WORKS. Just put some baby powder on their skin and take one of their wash clothes, wipe and it comes right off.
These are the essentials we pack every time we go anywhere! Of course I am sure there are things not listed that are essentials for you and your family but as a great starting guide these items will get you through. And if you have items that you feel are absolute musts, please leave a comment and tell me why! I would love to update my list on anything I could use. For all those moms out there who have a friend that travels all the time (or did before a baby) SHARE the post with them so they too can have a checklist on what to bring! As always, keep rocking mammas!
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