Treasure of Travel Series: Packing Lists for Mom and Young Children/Babies

At PPbyTT.blog and #WellMomBlogs, we like to give you the tools to feasibly live your best life! Sometimes that means giving our readers practical solutions to everyday quandaries! Going on vacation with a baby and/or toddler can be an exciting, yet daunting, experience! It may look like you’re moving out when packing for just one night! This blog topic was originally published 5 years ago when my first-born was only 8 months old, since then we have added another child, who is now 3 years old. So, we have learned a lot in the last 5 years and have been on 30 trips and a ton of sleepovers since, and have made some rookie mistakes! So let’s get packing!

EXTENSIVE PACKING LIST
More is sometimes more when it comes to preparing for a trip with the kiddos. You can always run to the store, but you’ll want to have several items on-hand. Here we offer our ridiculously extensive packing lists, which have helped friends with families to ease into a trip! These lists are certainly overkill, but we would rather you be prepared or choose to leave out what you deem unnecessary. The lists include packing for extreme circumstances, the needs of breastfed and formula-fed babies, toddler/potty-training and just about anything you can possibly need when packing for a trip for the whole family!

Here are links to the packing lists downloadable/printable PDFs for mom and for baby/child!

A KEY TO READING THE LISTS
Note that when the list says “*L” it denotes that those are “Last minute” packing items, which often cannot be packed until the day-of your trip. These items are again listed in the “Last Minute List” page, which is a great tool for the craziness that ensues on the day a family leaves for vacation! We update this list as the kids outgrow things and print out each trip as a checklist. I’m posting this one last time before I remove all the baby gear out of our packing list 😦 We have bigger kids now! 🙂 So luckily we are packing less these days! Yes parents, it gets a little easier!

TIPS FOR PACKING AND TRAVELING WITH TOTS:
– We learned the hard way – desperately trying to shove in our huge, non-travel sized items. There were a few travel items that I recommend purchasing to save some room:
When to Buy Travel Size:

Blowup bathtub so you don’t have to clean the tub every use.
Smaller stroller than the one that comes with the travel system (ex. Umbrella stroller or a carseat stroller).
A play yard was very helpful in a non-baby proofed environment or when you just need to put baby down for a few minutes. I recommend North States Superyard XT Play Gate. It was great for corralling babies or gating off danger zones like stairs.
Feeding chair: for babies or toddlers, dont forget a booster seat that will replace your high chair when away. (Once you make that mistake, you will remember how you spent your vacation with baby food ALL over you – but we are here to be sure you have the veteran necessities). We recommend the Boppy Feeding Chair.

Packing and living out of your luggage while away:
– For certain activities: Pack separate bags (either compartmentalized inside your suitcase, stuff in those little empty spots in your PACKed car, or leave in your car or a not so accessible location). We are referring to bags that are only needed for a certain activity, like your workout bag, bathing supplies, beach/pool bag, or anything needed for a special event or activity (see lists for details).
– Pack a diaper station bag that you setup to change diapers at your destination (this would be in addition to your on-the-go diaper bag for outings).
– Pack all feeding-related items together so you can access them quickly and place in your kitchen area when unpacking. Babies come with A TON of feeding (i.e. bottle supplies sippy cups and if you need to bring solid foods too all at once). It will get easier when they can eat out too!
– No room to pack Giant baby gear? Here’s an Idea. Rent them! Many shore towns and other family destinations have local rentals of cribs, gates strollers, high chairs, etc. Sometimes hotels or VRBO/AirBnB owners offer some larger items too, so be sure to check. And if that doesn’t work, if you really don’t have the extra space or are paying per weight, here’s a shameful, but practical idea: buy a pack-n-play or portable crib when you get to your destination and return it at the end of the trip (Wal-Mart and Target will let you return for refund).
– Buy It When You Get There: Pack the food you need for your travel x 2, and then buy whatever you’ll need at grocery store when you get there. If you are visiting someone, ask if they can pick up some things when they go grocery shopping before you get there (A great quote: “Friends don’t let friends drive with a gallon of milk” – plus who wants to try to keep milk cold for a long car ride?!?!?).
– Best to Pack It: If you use special brands, are specific about certain foods, or have food sensitivity, you should pack those items (i.e. my kids favorite kale chips, special diaper/wipes brand, I find that most vacation towns do not have a gluten-free or vegetarian section. They have a limited selection of baby products (shocked to get the right size diapers or flavor of baby food). Also, only offering a super small supply of medications and toiletries. You’d be better off finding this stuff in communist Russia than some shore points, so when it matters, pack it! 🙂
– Mail it To Yourself: Dont have time to shop, room to pack or afraid of the above limitations with buying while away? Then utilize the fruits of this brave new world of buying online! You can mail yourself large boxes of diapers/wipes, playpens, pool floats, paper products, and even boxes of food (like the 30 pouches our kids will eat in a few days!) Just make sure you have a safe mailing address, notify the hotel staff and/or arrange to be notified when delivered.

__________________________________________________

LET’S GET PACKING!
We hope these lists and tips help to make this adventure fun and stress-free! Print it out, get a glass of wine and watch a movie while you pack — now that you don’t have to think to much about what to pack. What kind of vacation would it be if you forgot to pack the only thing that makes your child fall asleep or something else imperative to tranquility? So, here they are again, the links to the packing lists downloadable/printable PDFs for mom and for baby/child!