Travel tips with infants

I traveled twice alone with Kobe in 2018. Once in February (to Seattle) at 4 months and again in August (to Seattle and California) when she was 10 months old. It wasn’t easy but totally doable with preparation and the right attitude! We will be traveling again soon, she will be 17 months old which I’m super nervous about for various reasons! 1) Toddlers are savages. All parents out there know exactly what I mean! 2) It’ll be our first time traveling since I’ve weaned her off the breast. (Nursing was a great and easy way to calm her down on flights.) 3) She can walk unlike our last trips. and 4) I must say again that toddlers are savages who are not to be messed with!

Have any parents traveled alone with their toddler? My comments/inbox are all open for your best travel tips! (BTW, we do not have an iPad so that suggestion isn’t an option, thanks!) Okay back to what this post is about..

I’ve broken down my best travel tips with infants into 6 different categories.

1) Booking the flight

2) Packing

3) Checking in

4) Going through TSA

5) At the gate

6) The flight

Booking the flight The younger the baby, the more they sleep! When my daughter was 4/10 months old she was not on a set schedule so I did not need to book our flights based on her nap time like I would now. I was fortunate because for both flights I had a ton of flexibility with my travel dates so I intentionally booked both our departure and return on a Tuesday since studies show that Tuesdays are the cheapest day to fly! As a mom, any amount of money I can save is a win. Both flights were booked around the same time. 7 am departure with a 2 hr layover. Some people thought I was crazy for doing that especially since I was alone but hey, I’m ballin’ on a budget! 

Packing Since I traveled alone, I could only pack what I could carry/push. I had one large suitcase, a car seat bag, carry on backpack and Babyzen Yoyo stroller.

The suitcase- For both trips the first thing I packed in the bottom of my suitcase was Kobe’s Dockatot. I bought it for her when I was pregnant! I liked that it provided her with a safe and consistent place to rest since we were going to a new place. After the dockatot came Kobe’s stuff. During our February trip she was only 4 months old and still exclusively breastfed meaning her poop was liquidy and had diaper blowouts pretty often! For our 14 day trip in February (20-40 degree weather) I packed 20 long sleeved onesies, 15 pants, 4 jackets, 10 pairs of socks, 2 beanies and one bunting. If you like to shop when you travel like me I suggest packing diapers in your suitcase! That way you have space to fill up on your way home once you use all the diapers. At the time we were averaging 7 diapers a day so I packed 98! Diapers are pretty light so hopefully they won’t make your bag go over the limit! For our 14 day trip in August (60-80 degree weather) I packed 5 long sleeved onesies, 5 short sleeved onesies, 2 shorts, 8 pants and 2 jackets! We were averaging about 6 diapers a day at this time but I decided to just go ahead and pack 98 because it’s better to be safe than sorry. Her poop got firmer during this time so I wasn’t as worried about those poopy explosions/soiling her clothes! Some people prefer to buy diapers at their destination which isn’t a bad idea. I personally think that seems inconvenient but it’s totally up to you. Everything else I used for Kobe was in my carry on. I packed my stuff last. Honestly no one really cares about mama so I’m not even going to bother telling y’all what I packed for myself, lol.

Carry on- My two carry on items were my Fjallraven Kanken backpack and my Babyzen Yoyo stroller (which can fit in the overhead compartment of a plane). My backpack consisted of 10 diapers (I know that sounds like a lot but just imagine somehow running out of diapers. Sounds terrible right? They also do not sell diapers at airports) wipes, diaper changing pad, swaddle blanket (works as a nursing cover too), two changes of clothes, a plastic bag (in case she soiled an outfit), an extra paci/clip (if your baby takes one), diaper rash cream, saline nose drops, Fridababy snot sucker, lavender/peppermint oil. I breastfed my daughter so I did not need to worry about packing bottles/formula which is kind of a relief! When traveling with a baby who hasn’t started solids yet there really isn’t much that you need. When we traveled in August I packed all that in addition to 4 baby food pouches, a bib, a spoon, baby snacks, a sippy cup (for water) and toys because at ten months she needed some sort of entertainment! Side note- both times I brought my daughters birth certificate to add her as a lap infant. I was told by an airline employee that you actually do not need to bring it with you. I feel like it doesn’t hurt to have it and when I travel next month I will probably bring it, just in case!

Checking in When we traveled in February my mom parked and walked me and Kobe to check in. It was very nice of her but we low key struggled to lug our stuff from the car all the way there without a smart cart! I wish they sold smart carts in the parking lot! In August I had my mom pull up to our terminal and wait in the car with Kobe. I grabbed a smart cart and loaded my suitcase, car seat, stroller and backpack. I kissed my mom goodbye and put Kobe in the Ergobaby (baby carrier). It was super easy for me to walk to the ticketing counter with Kobe on my chest and all of my things confined to the smart cart. I know some people like to gate check their car seat but I chose to check mine in for various reasons. 1) I did not want to have to lug it around the airport. 2) I had a layover and did not want to have to wait for it and then have to gate check it in again for my connecting flight. After I checked my bag and car seat in, the airline employees were nice enough to tell me they’d put my smart cart away for me. A little bit of kindness goes a long way.

Going through TSA Going through TSA with an infant really is not that bad as long as you have a baby carrier of some sort. I couldn’t imagine having to actually carry Kobe with my two hands along with my other stroller/backpack. If you have any liquids in your bag I suggest putting them in a clear plastic bag at the top of your bag. That way if they do need to check your bag it’ll be done in a quick manner. 

At the gate If you do decide to gate check anything, do so as soon as you can. If not relax as much as you can before the flight! 

In February Kobe actually fell asleep in her stroller while walking to the gate so I peed, scarfed down coffee/breakfast and took tons of deep breaths! They announced that pre-boarding was going to begin shortly (families with children under 2, people with disabilities, etc) so I had to wake Kobe up to 1) change her diaper (for both flights I put her in an overnight diaper since they are more absorbent) 2) put her in the baby carrier 3) fold up the stroller 4) get our boarding passes out 5) put my backpack on my back and stroller over my shoulder!

In August Kobe was crawling and I wanted her to crawl as much as possible before the flight so she’d be tired. I know every parent is different and some parents may not feel comfortable with their child crawling on the ground but I didn’t mind and sanitized her hands afterward. All that crawling had her pooped and she slept for the first half of the flight! 🙂 I changed Kobe’s diaper right after we got through TSA so I didn’t need to before we boarded. By doing so, I didn’t feel rushed at the gate and let her play as much as possible.

The flight In February Kobe was an A N G E L the entire flight. I kid you not. She slept the whole time (in the Ergo) and didn’t make a peep. I know they say you should let your baby suck on something (bottle, boob, paci) during takeoff and landing to alleviate the pressure from their ears but Kobe didn’t even need to! She slept through the whole thing. I stayed seated the whole flight and only had to nurse her once. Nursing on the plane was uncomfortable because I was seated so close to strangers. I had a nursing cover but still. Luckily the people who I was seated by (during every flight I’ve taken) were really nice, understanding and didn’t make me feel awkward.

Traveling with a baby who can crawl but can’t walk is not the easiest thing to do. In August Kobe was a bit squirmy but was still pretty good. She didn’t cry but definitely let me know she was uncomfortable by making random sounds. I know the one thing she wanted to do was crawl but there is literally no way to safely do that on an airplane! I had to stand up for the majority of the flight but as long as I fed her snacks, nursed her or had her in the Ergo she was really happy! It gets hard when your baby isn’t happy and the seatbelt sign is on. All you can really do it either rock them back and forth in the carrier or lift them up in the air and hope they enjoy it!

Overall, traveling with an infant is not that bad. I was scared both times for completely different reasons. The first time my biggest concern was.. EVERYTHING! I was worried about being alone, Kobe’s first time on an airplane, Kobe adapting to the cold weather and so much more. All of my worries were put to rest because everything went really smoothly. The second time we traveled I wasn’t worried about being by myself. My biggest concern was the flight and the fact that Kobe could crawl but not walk. It ended up being just fine in the end. I’m sure I’ll get out alive of our flight next month but here me out when I say I am actually really terrified. I’ve already mentally prepared myself for Kobe to scream, throw a tantrum and to receive tons of stink eye..I mentioned this in the beginning but toddlers are wild. Kobe loves to run around and be free which she obviously can’t do on an airplane. Stay tuned.. after our trip I’ll spill all the deets about the plane ride and how to deal with a toddler in the air.