Holiday with a 9 month old baby
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Travel
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Hello everyone, I decided to post this blog after having a very nice holiday in Spain with my then 9 month old son Alexei. We were lucky to have accommodation (apartment) for the whole two weeks so we had commodities such as washing machine and a kettle. In future if I have a choice I will always rent an apartment. It is quieter and you have a luxury to come back at any time if your baby needs a nap or his clothes need to be changed.
Alexei is quite an independent baby, he likes our company but when he is sleeping he prefers his own room with as little noise and movement as possible. So having a separate room just for him was also an advantage.
Before travelling we spent a number of nights away from our own house visiting my husband’s family in order for Alexei to get used to his travel cot. We purchased a nomad tent-like travel cot as it has a fully breathable mosquito net all around with zips allowing access from above and the side (http://www.mumsnet.com/reviews/on-the-move/travel -cots/9690-nomad-travel-tent). It is very light (1.8 kg) so will not take much weight away from your baggage allowance and you can also purchase an inflatable mattress that attaches to small hooks inside, but we went with normal foam mattress that came with it and Alexei loved it. He slept through the night from the first night and we had absolutely no problem with him sleeping in it throughout our holidays.
As well as this, I made a list before going, of everything that we needed to bring. We brought enough SMA formula with us for the whole trip as they do not have this formula in Spain. As well as this enough pouches with food for the day of the trip and the next day, after that I was able to purchase fruit pouches no problem. The only thing that I found strange was they tend to put biscuit into those which is not common in Ireland and they do not have a lot of vegetable pouches so I just made my own, again a perk to having a blender in the apartment.
Another thing that they did not have was Pampers, so I bought Lidl own but didn’t really like those and the price for nappies was higher than you can find in Ireland. So if you have space I would suggest to buy enough for your trip, but if not you can buy them there just don’t expect the same brand to be there that you are used to.
The bottled water in Spain is quite cheap, so if are out and about and need water for your baby they even have a variety especially for babies with low sodium in it, just look out for baby picture on the label.
In regards to clothing, bring enough vests for the whole trip and more, especially if you do not have a washing machine. I went through all of them in no time as Alexei was sweating or sorry for tmi the nappies did not hold everything in.. As well as this do not bring the sleeping bag (gro bag) if going to hot country. We ended up putting Alexei in oneses or just his vest as it was too hot.
Do bring your monitor with you, especially if you are in apartment. It will give you a chance to relax in another room away from your baby without worrying about making too much noise and you can be sure that they are sleeping soundly.
We did a lot of things while on holidays. We went to aquarium, we explored the town, we went to the beach (lots of sun cream and attempts to eat sand), we even hiked..
For ease of travel we bought a foldable buggy that is easily placed in airplane hold and is very light so can be easily lifted there are no ramp access. For our hike (6 hours) my husband purchased a Deuter kid comfort III backpack, where Alexei was able to sit and to look all around him with a sunroof over his head and when it started raining he had a very nice rain cover that kept him nice and dry. We did not hear any complaints from him, he smiled throughout the hike and was comfortable enough to take couple of naps as well. There is a bag attached to this backpack which was handy to have all of his stuff in and it comes with a section for water pack so whoever is carrying the baby is able to drink while walking. All in all, my hubby said it was the most comfortable baby carrier and Alexei loves it which is the most important thing.
Another important thing I discovered is that babies learn very fast how to take off their hats.. So I ended up sewing strings to all of his hats and he still managed to figure out how to take them off and kept giggling every time I put it back on :P
At the beach, we had an inflatable ring that we sat Alexei in and he enjoyed warm water kicking with his feet, the most important thing was to smile at him so that he understood that it is fun to swim. At the end he was kicking his feet and laughing away. I bought couple of swimming trunks but to be honest the only thing that was needed were the swimming nappies. Unless the water is cold you do not need to spend your money on any other swimming attire. The one thing that I found to be most useful at the beach was a hooded towel for Alexei as it kept him warm after his swim. Another thing that I quickly learned was that swimming nappies do not contain pee in for a long time.. After the beach even if you did not put your baby into the water changed the swimming nappy for a normal one otherwise you will end up like me changing your baby in the middle of the street as he was completely wet.
It was a great holiday and once we got into the routine it was no different than being at home. One last thing.. In Ireland I found that it was easier to bring empty bottles through airport security and then to buy bottled water and fill them there, we had no problem bringing food in though. In Spain (Bilbao) there was absolutely no problem with bringing filled bottles through security.
I hope you will find these tips usefulJ
Alexei is quite an independent baby, he likes our company but when he is sleeping he prefers his own room with as little noise and movement as possible. So having a separate room just for him was also an advantage.
Before travelling we spent a number of nights away from our own house visiting my husband’s family in order for Alexei to get used to his travel cot. We purchased a nomad tent-like travel cot as it has a fully breathable mosquito net all around with zips allowing access from above and the side (http://www.mumsnet.com/reviews/on-the-move/travel -cots/9690-nomad-travel-tent). It is very light (1.8 kg) so will not take much weight away from your baggage allowance and you can also purchase an inflatable mattress that attaches to small hooks inside, but we went with normal foam mattress that came with it and Alexei loved it. He slept through the night from the first night and we had absolutely no problem with him sleeping in it throughout our holidays.
As well as this, I made a list before going, of everything that we needed to bring. We brought enough SMA formula with us for the whole trip as they do not have this formula in Spain. As well as this enough pouches with food for the day of the trip and the next day, after that I was able to purchase fruit pouches no problem. The only thing that I found strange was they tend to put biscuit into those which is not common in Ireland and they do not have a lot of vegetable pouches so I just made my own, again a perk to having a blender in the apartment.
Another thing that they did not have was Pampers, so I bought Lidl own but didn’t really like those and the price for nappies was higher than you can find in Ireland. So if you have space I would suggest to buy enough for your trip, but if not you can buy them there just don’t expect the same brand to be there that you are used to.
The bottled water in Spain is quite cheap, so if are out and about and need water for your baby they even have a variety especially for babies with low sodium in it, just look out for baby picture on the label.
In regards to clothing, bring enough vests for the whole trip and more, especially if you do not have a washing machine. I went through all of them in no time as Alexei was sweating or sorry for tmi the nappies did not hold everything in.. As well as this do not bring the sleeping bag (gro bag) if going to hot country. We ended up putting Alexei in oneses or just his vest as it was too hot.
Do bring your monitor with you, especially if you are in apartment. It will give you a chance to relax in another room away from your baby without worrying about making too much noise and you can be sure that they are sleeping soundly.
We did a lot of things while on holidays. We went to aquarium, we explored the town, we went to the beach (lots of sun cream and attempts to eat sand), we even hiked..
For ease of travel we bought a foldable buggy that is easily placed in airplane hold and is very light so can be easily lifted there are no ramp access. For our hike (6 hours) my husband purchased a Deuter kid comfort III backpack, where Alexei was able to sit and to look all around him with a sunroof over his head and when it started raining he had a very nice rain cover that kept him nice and dry. We did not hear any complaints from him, he smiled throughout the hike and was comfortable enough to take couple of naps as well. There is a bag attached to this backpack which was handy to have all of his stuff in and it comes with a section for water pack so whoever is carrying the baby is able to drink while walking. All in all, my hubby said it was the most comfortable baby carrier and Alexei loves it which is the most important thing.
Another important thing I discovered is that babies learn very fast how to take off their hats.. So I ended up sewing strings to all of his hats and he still managed to figure out how to take them off and kept giggling every time I put it back on :P
At the beach, we had an inflatable ring that we sat Alexei in and he enjoyed warm water kicking with his feet, the most important thing was to smile at him so that he understood that it is fun to swim. At the end he was kicking his feet and laughing away. I bought couple of swimming trunks but to be honest the only thing that was needed were the swimming nappies. Unless the water is cold you do not need to spend your money on any other swimming attire. The one thing that I found to be most useful at the beach was a hooded towel for Alexei as it kept him warm after his swim. Another thing that I quickly learned was that swimming nappies do not contain pee in for a long time.. After the beach even if you did not put your baby into the water changed the swimming nappy for a normal one otherwise you will end up like me changing your baby in the middle of the street as he was completely wet.
It was a great holiday and once we got into the routine it was no different than being at home. One last thing.. In Ireland I found that it was easier to bring empty bottles through airport security and then to buy bottled water and fill them there, we had no problem bringing food in though. In Spain (Bilbao) there was absolutely no problem with bringing filled bottles through security.
I hope you will find these tips usefulJ
