Traveling with an Infant to Europe?

[Martha]

Oh ya, vaccines for sure!

 

I bet Ansleigh will fly so often, she will be a good little trooper!

[Christine]

we will probably only fly about twice a year but when we go we stay for two weeks at the holidays and most likely starting next summer we will stay for a month. I am hoping we move home by the time she is 3 and I get preggo again.

[NHPT]

i flew to texas (a 3 hr flight) when avery was 9 weeks and it all went really smoothly. i fed her on take off and landing and she slept the entire flight both ways. i really think it was harder on me to have to be stuck in a teeny tiny spot with an infant who at any moment may wake up and start howling. i was seriously petrified that i would have "that baby" that cries the entire flight- luckily she didnt.

also i had to bring a TON of stuff because my mom had nothing- so the carseat AND base, stroller, wipes, daipers, etc- i mean it seriously was a ton of crap.

i really didnt enjoy the whole traveling with a baby experience but like tammy said i am sure it was easiest at this age when they will sleep and you can hold them the whole time compared to when they are moving around more. and i just sort of felt bad for avery because the entire process of flying takes like 5-6 hours for a 3 hour flight and it just seems like a long time for a baby.

bottom line: if you go make sure you sit somewhere with a little more space, bring lots of bottles or breastfeed, bring toys, and last case scenario you can give them a small amount of tylenol to make them a little sleepier ( i didnt have to do it but was prepared in case i had to)

also think about once you arrive- will being there with a young baby be fun for you? how much help will you have? think about the climate- how hot will it be? will you have to be sitting inside with the baby while everyone is out site-seeing? i know personally my trip to texas was exhausting. i was staying at my moms so she helped alot but matt wasnt there to help. so it was a little rough because when everyone was outside we would be inside (babies younger than 6 months arent supposed to be outside for very long) and then i had to feed her every 3 hours and hold her and put her to sleep and bathe her- and she was totally overstimulated and out of her normal routine i was exhausted by the time we got home. but she was much younger than your child would be- ask tammy how jack did in mexico since he will be closer to the age of your kid

[KarmaB]

I was discussing this with my doctor at the last visit, as we both love to travel. She said that the best time to travel with an infant is before 9 months. Like around 6 because they are less active and don't want to move around so much. We plan on taking a family vacation next year too, most likely somewhere tropical though and we will most likely go when Hannah is 6 or 7 months.

[Martha]

Nicole, you bring up good points! I am not even sure what the weather will be like over there when it is our summer. I def. need to look at the weather!

 

We will be traveling with family and my dad is a heart, stroke, and cancer patient (he is fine now!) so we have to be careful with him and how much activity he does. I will have plenty of people to help take care of the baby.

 

Also, we may not do the whole trip. Def. go to Germany to see my sister and I REALLY want to go to Spain, so we may skip out on the Italy trip. Sounds like we will do most of our time flying!

 

 

 

Hannah?! You have a name picked out and didn't tell us?! Did I miss it? I love that name!

[KarmaB]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Just Martha Hannah?! You have a name picked out and didn't tell us?! Did I miss it? I love that name!

LOL.. I mentioned it on the thread announcing she was a "she". :-) No, middle name yet though.

[Christine]

Martha I know this might not be an option but since we are going home for two weeks we plan to buy diapers and wipes once we get there, that will be once less thing to pack, so think of anything you might be able to buy on your trip so you don't have to pack it.

Also if you are going to Europe you will want a good stroller for all the walking, not a cheapy umbrella stroller because you don't want to risk it falling apart or breaking while you are there. So consider that when you register for one. We got a baby jogger stroller as our main stroller, it folds in half (its not super light) but we can use this for heavy travel and walking, Baby Jogger: Manufacturers of the finest strollers for more than 20 years

I personally didn't want to bother with a graco type one because I would rather only get one stroller.

 

Also check on the car seat guidelines in the countries you will be going to, you never know what their laws are compared to ours. Good thing you have the summer off to plan this trip! Oh and get married too...you are a busy lady!

[Martha]

Christine, I didn't even think about car seat regulations over there. I will def. have to look in to that!

 

I don't like those cheapy strollers. I do like the Graco ones, but I will look in to the one you posted. I wanted a jogging one anyhow! Thanks for the link!

[Christine]

sure no problem, we went to this huge superstore nearby and tried out a million strollers and I likes this one over anything else

[Birdie07]

I'm not gonna step up on my soapbox But I recommend two books before you go get shots.

The first is

Don't vaccinate! Before you educate!

Amazon.com: Don't Vaccinate! Before You Educate: Mayer Eisenstein, MD: Books

That one is pretty cheap on other sites and the other was already recommended. I'ts Dr. Sears. Please please read those.

Heres the link to Dr. Sears

Amazon.com: The Vaccine Book: Making the Right Decision for Your Child (Sears Parenting Library): Robert Sears: Books