Things I can't live without # 5

I have the best friends in the world. For my baby shower they all chipped in (along with my extraordinary mum) to buy me this amazing Nappy Bag. It is expensive, in fact it is the dearest bag I have ever owned but it is too fantastic for words. It clips on easily to our stroller and I can fit everything I need as well as all my own stuff in what I have made my own personal pocket at the front. It is also completely slylish and I can take it out when not with bubs and not feel like a loser. Result. They bought is from Bebe (great store, great name).

Love, love love. Thanks ladies x

Things I can't live without # 4

uClean Pacifier

I have mentioned in my jetlag blog that we use a dummy/pacifier. It is a sleep ritual and a great travel tool for landing in planes and helping get a baby onto a different time-zone. The are not for everyone (some babies don't like them at all) but we have found they work well. I am very happy that the first one I bought was a very cheap and simple one from Baby Bunting and that is the only one Bebe likes now - I feel strangely proud that she doesn't need a fancy label and is a frugal as me.

When you are out and about and can't be boiling or sterilising this device is fantastic. You can wash the bottle teats or dummy and then pop it in this little unit (which fits easily in a nappy bag) and in 5 minutes they are sterilised. It cost about $50 I think and I got mine from Chadstone. Have a look at their site and find a stockist near you.

Dummy Clip

Talking of dummies, I find they get spat out a bit - especially when driving and you can't really reach around and find them that easily when you are in traffic and have a crying baby in the back. So you want to attach it somehow, but most of the dummy clips are pretty awful. If you go to my favourite site Etsy

you can get some really cute handmade ones. This is the one I bought:

From this store

I think, when I get home I might make some of these myself. I like a good little craft mission and am thinking you could use all sorts of things on the clip...

Things I can't live without # 3

Love Me Baby Wrap

 

I am a firm believer in a tight swaddle but with limited space in a plane or train etc and certainly as baby gets to a couple of months and wants to move her hands, this is much easier than a muslin swaddle. It is also far better than all the wrap around ones as far as I am concerned. The main bonus is the fact that it has a two-way zip so and a gap for a seatbelt at the back so you can get her in and out of a car seat (because her hands are free enough to put the belt around them) without waking her up. Genius.

My little girl loves this and as soon as she gets it on she knows it is sleeptime and starts to snuggle. Plus she looks super cute in it (even cuter than this model baby and with slightly less weird looking arms!) I got mine form the mecca of all baby stores - Baby Bunting in Australia but do a search and you will find them in the States and in Europe. 

This also features on my Equipment page - have a look there for other essential travel things

Goodnight Moon...

Goodnight nobody, goodnight mush...

Bebe loves this book. We read it every night before bed and then we say goodnight to everyone in the family. She sits there totally still, and looks at everything as I say goodnight to them and point them out. It is a firm little night routine and she goes to sleep every time straight away. We love Goodnight Moon...

Here is the book:

And here is Christopher Walken reading it on The Simpsons. Awesome and a bit scary..

Things I can't live without # 2

Thrupenny Bits

booby feeding cushion

This is far better than any other feeding cushion I have seen. Not only does it work (it ties around your waist so baby doesn't slip off like with some of the others) but it is small, light, washable, comes in lots of beautiful fabrics and can be used as a handbag when you have finished feeding - result! It is especially good for a very small baby when flying as they happily sleep on your lap safely and you can clip the special seatbelt around them easily as they sleep. You can just tie it around the top of your wheely, on-board case so you don't have to look like one of those embarrassing tourists carrying some neck pillow the size of a small car

Anyone who has traveled near a baby will know that their ears hurt when landing. The best way to get over this is to feed baby as you start to descend and this pillow made that so easy for me.

The other good thing is that these are made by a gorgeous mum Melissa in London who saw a gap in the market and started her own little business and I think that is totally ace.

If you think you would like one and think you know other who would I may consider getting a bulk load sent out to Australia so do let me know.

This is also featured on my 'Equipment' Page

iBaby

Anyone who knows me knows that I am a fan of technology and a little bit of an Apple nerd. I love my MacBook Pro, my iPhone and am seriously lusting after the iPad.. Therefore I also love a good app.

So here are some apps that I use for baby stuff:

Nursing Log

I have used this for feed times (and sides) since about day 3. It not only helps me keep track of boob sides but I can see how long she feeds for, how many times a day and the total time and average time per day. I love being able to see right from the start how the feeding has developed and especially in the middle of the night I can keep track of how long etc when I am practically sleep feeding myself. I don' t see any reason you couldn't use this if you were bottle feeding as there is a notes section you could put the amount in mls.


The Wonder Weeks

From the website of the same name - keeps track of developmental milestones.

Baby's Coming

I used this app during labour. It was great to keep track of how long and how far apart each surge was and also gave me something to focus on as they were happening. There is a button for water breaking and then you just press start and stop each time. When I got to the hospital I could show them exactly where I was at. You can even email your OB with one click! I also love that I have a record of the birth like that. I know, total nerd alert.

White Noise

For a week or so (after I dragged Bebe to the Adelaide Cabaret Festival at 6 weeks and she slept in the piano bar as 40 divas and drag queens sang show tunes and drank martinis around her) she had trouble getting to sleep unless I had 'crowd noise' playing from this app. It also has more sane ones like rainforest, washing machine, crickets and waves. I quite like it for myself sometimes when everything is giving me the shits...


iPregnancy

I used this during pregnancy. You log the due date and it keeps you up to date with your baby's development and lets you know things that you might be experiencing. It has pictures and 3D photos of sample babies and a list of names you can make a shortlist from.

Total Baby

This app is like the nursing log but more detailed. I don't actually use it anymore as I couldn't be bothered logging nappies and sleeps as well. But if you want to do that - even if you are worried for a bit about routine, it is pretty easy to use and has lots of features.



Solebon

Ok, so I play solitaire as I feed. It helps me relax and I swear the fact that my brain zones out help the let down happen quicker. It has 40 different types of solitaire. I am obsessed by Pyramid at the moment and I have won it 104 times (starting to worry about my nerd levels now...)


Baby Sign

We are keen to start baby sign with Bebe. We already do 'milk' and 'sleep' and are starting to use other ones. My husband works with a sign interpreter lots and she used it with her baby and swears by its helpfulness and use in developing communication skills. This is a pretty simple app with a few key signs.
Wheels on the Bus

My friend Charly told me about these next three. Bebe is a bit little for them but Charly's bubba (and Bebe's London friend) Flo loves them. You can record yourself singing the wheels on the bus also which is tres cute.
Peek-a-boo Barn
Old MacDonald
Smack Talk

My darling friend Craig Hill told me about this. Not so much a baby app but Bebe thinks the puppy repeating what I say in a funny voice is hilarious so it is good for a laugh or a distraction.

Strollers & advice from my friend Lara.

We love our Bugaboo Bee. Not only is it easy to use (and looks pretty) but I have figured out a way to make packing even better with it. We bought the travel case and I found that when you put the stroller in the case there are all these pockets of empty space. So I pack all Bebe's things in ziplock bags (I'm mad for them) and put them into the empty spaces. We then get away with taking more luggage as it leaves our suitcases free and you can still check in the stroller and it doesm't count towards overall weight restrictions. Result!






But my friend Lara sent me a message about a couple of things for later on:

She said that we may need some other products as baby gets to big to carry around the airport. We currently take bubs in the Baby Bjorn and check in the stroller as explained above.

She suggested two products that look totally ace:

The Easy Fold Stroller

Have a look at the video on their site - looks way cool... (Lots of my friends also swear by the McLaren when bubs gets a bit bigger)

Trunki
I have seen loads of toddlers on these being wheeled around airports and always thought 'I want to go to there...' They have a video also on their site and I am pretty sure they are available all over the place.

Nice one Lara!

x

Jetlag...

Here it is. The reason I am writing this blog - how to get through the jetlag. Most people find it hard enough getting through it themselves, let alone getting another human through it.

Personally I have decided not to believe in jetlag. My method has always been to set my watch to the time of the destination and try my best to sleep in that time zone on the plane. I then try my very best to stay awake until at least 10pm when I get in, get out in the sunshine and eat at the proper meal times as much as possible in the first few days. And blind trust in my power to fool my own brain, I never refer back to the time at the place I left no matter what...

So, how to get a tiny person through it? The EXACT same way. When Bebe was 3 weeks old I was only going to London for a week so I didn't try and mess with her too much. She was sleeping a good 5 hour stretch at night by that time and I let her sleep when she wanted and got up with her at 5 to play when she wanted that. But every other time I have stuck to my basic jetlag principles.

I have been loosely following the 'EASY' plan from The Baby Whisperer since getting back from the UK that first time. I can't handle the strictness of the Contented Baby (sounds more like a military operation to me) but the EASY plan (basically Eat, Activity, Sleep every 3 hours then every 4 after about 4 months) has worked really well for us - just enough routine but flexible for our random life.

I must also say that the better class you can travel in the easier it will be. I am sorry to say that but it is true. But that is why you save up your points - not some shitty flight to Canberra to visit your second cousin.


So here are my tips:
1. Get a bassinet seat. Call the airline yourself (our travel agent said he did but there was no note when we got the airport the first time), get there really early and BEG!

2. If you are on British Airways or some others that don't have a bassinet seat ask for the cot as soon as you get on the plane - before you even sit down as they are limited and maybe one or two cots and a weird seat thing that I had no interest in.

3. If you are breast feeding take a bottle and some emergency formula. If you get really dehydrated and you run low of milk you can then give bubs some boiled & cooled water or formula to get her through (this is a tip from my friend Natalie - I haven't had to use it but it is a great tip nonetheless). And it goes without saying that you should drink loads of water on the flight.

4. Take a muslin to hang over the bassinet to keep the light and the action out of babies eyes (Bebe has severe fear of missing out on planes and must be shrouded to sleep)

5. Take toys and books and lots of nappies & wipes.

6. Get on the right time zone from the word go. Eg, if you are on a 4 hour plan then feed every 4 hours throughout the flight making sure you play with bubs for about an hour after each feed and waking up from even the deepest of sleeps to do so. If may be difficult for you (set your alarm if you need to) but it will cut the recovery time at the other end down at least a week I promise.

7. When you get in continue to do that as long as you need and get bubs outside in the sun (not directly obviously) during the day as much as possible. In my experience it takes 2 days like this to get bubs to recognise nighttime and then a week to get everything back to normal. We needed to add in an extra feed at around 2-3am for the first 2 or so weeks after each flight and for a few days it took a little longer for her to get back to sleep (if I had to I just lay her on her playgym while I snoozed on the couch for half an hour then she went back to sleep without too much fuss). I didn't fight that - it is what it is.

I must also note here that ever since that first trip we took we have used a dummy. It is part of Bebe's sleep routine and she usually sucks on it to get to sleep and then it drops out. I have no problem with this although I will admit I was tentative at first. I plan to stop using it once we get back to Australia when she is 6 months old but for various reasons I think it is the best thing at the moment:

1) she is a really quick feeder (7 minutes tops) so when we are flying, if I start feeding on the descent she finishes before we get to the ground and her ears hurt, but sucking on the dummy helps.

2) she is starting to teethe and wants to suck everything all the time - I would rather it be a clean dummy that the edge of a seatbelt, random people's fingers or anything else she can get her hands on.

3) It makes her happy but she is not dependent on it. It soothes her and it makes travel in cars, trains & planes easier for everyone including her. Everything I have read says that dummies are fine so I don't see it as any kind of weakness - anything that makes my little girl happy is good in my book (although when she is 15 and wants to drink a bottle of tequila I may change that stance...)

Anyway - I am sure everyone is different, you may disagree and your baby might not be on that plan or sleep/feed in the same way. This is just what I did and it worked.

Feel free to add in your comments and stories - would love especially to know how other airlines deal with bubbas...

xx

Things Bebe likes (or 'Shopping for her is so much more fun than for me')

I don't know about you, but until I finish breast-feeding and can do something about the baby weight (I am not one of those "oh my God, I totally had to up my calorie intake after junior was born - I was skin and bone!" ladies) I have no interest in shopping for myself. Clothes - euk. Shoes - ouch. But shopping for baby? Best fun ever.

Here are some things that Bebe likes (I should reiterate that her favourite toy at the moment is an empty plastic bottle so we can safely assume these are more for me):

Cute moustache booties:


Indestructible Books:

Bebe has all but eaten the Mr Funny book I bought her. I have had to put it away now as I started to get worried that her first solids was going to be 12 pages of low grade 80gsm paper. This book is truly indestructible. She has drooled, chewed and pulled at this and it is still intact. (I might try and catch her in the act and post an image of the indestructability in action later):

Things I can't live without # 1

I love an efficient suitcase. Nothing is worse that dragging overweight bags through the airport, on to trains, into taxis. Not to mention getting landed with excess fees. I have been a culprit of inefficient packing (mostly because of ridiculous shoes, top hats and 80's electronic instruments - but that is a different story) but as you probably know, there is no room in a mother's suitcase for multiple pairs of ridiculous shoes. No matter how divine and unwearable they are.

Whenever we are somewhere for over a week I look up the local baby hire place and rent a car capsule that attaches to our stroller, a play gym and sometimes something fun like a, exersaucer (hilarious!) that I would never buy but fun for a week and gives baby something different to play with and to hold off the inevitable boredom.

Things I can't live without #1

Samsonite travel cot

This is the BEST travel cot I could find anywhere in the world. They don't seem to sell them anywhere other than the UK but it is worth paying the postage as it is lightweight, compact and it means bubs can feel like they are in their own bed wherever you go. You must also buy the blow-up mattress that comes with it. It still fits in the cover when it is all folded up so doesn't take up any more room really. It should all be under aus$100 or not much over as the pound is pretty crappy at the moment (yay for us!)

Here is a nice man folding one up. It is so easy even a man can do it! (sorry...)

hellobabydirect.com

Next I am going to buy this larger Bubble cot for over 6 months: (will be great on the beach also as, like the smaller one, it has a mosquito net).

This is also featured on my 'Equipment' Page

Hello

Hello, and welcome to my very first entry to my very first blog.

I like blogs. Two of my favourite blogs (The Design Files & Meet me at Mike's) keep me sane when I am traveling and when I need something with which to divert myself.

In May of this year I had my first baby. A little girl names Beatrice Pearl. When she was three and a half weeks old she did her first long haul flight to London and by the time she is 6 months old she will have changed time zones 7 times, taken 4 x 24 hour flights, 2 x transatlantic flights, a couple of all day train trips and various taxis, cars, and buses.

I must preface all my advice and shared experiences with the disclaimer that 1) we are very lucky to have a baby who sleeps and eats easily and is very chilled and happy. We may have had something to do with this but I suspect it is mostly luck. 2) I have a very supportive husband, parents and parents in law, not to mention fantastic, experienced friends all over the place. 3) I am making most of this up as I go along.

The first time I traveled with Bebe I tried to look up every website I could for advice on how to deal with jetlag and flying generally. I found quite a lot of advice for traveling with toddlers but not much for infants. I also didn't find much in the way of advice of equipment etc that was good for carting around the place. So, here goes. I'd love to hear your feedback and suggestions and make this blog a little collection of advice and stories for others (and myself) to draw upon.

Have a look at the pages (links on the right) for info on equipment, hire and other things that will continue to get updated.

Happy travels!

xx Ali