Traveling with a baby.

I would like to think I am somewhat of a pro after having three kids and traveling with all of them as they have grown up. I thought I would throw together some of the things I take with me and pack in order to make our trips as helpful as possible, because taking a baby out of their routine is no easy task!

Depending on where you are traveling to, you will need to pack accordingly. For example, if you are going to Mexico, you probably don't need a fleece for the evenings. If you are off to California, you probably do! 

As a general rule, I take the number of days, multiple that by 1.5, and that is how many outfits I bring. If your baby is under three months, multiply the number of days by 2, babies like to poop, a lot! I also pack one pair of pajamas per night, plus one extra! 

By far the easiest thing to bring when traveling is a Snap N Go stroller. Your carseat will snap right into it and it is much easier to fold up than a regular stroller, which makes getting through airport security much easier. Along with the Snap N Go, if you are renting a car you need a car seat. We ALWAYS bring our own. You can rent car seats from the rental car companies, but I just do not trust that they have never been in a crash. You can check your carseat at the counter for free, or if you prefer to carry it in the Snap N Go, you can gate check it at the boarding gate (for free). Also, a baby chest carrier just makes like easier all around, bring one, you won't be sorry! 

Another thing we did when the kids were little, when we got to the desk at out gate, we would ask the lovely people at the counter if the flight was full. If it was not, we asked to bring out baby carrier on the plane with us so the baby has something to sleep in that is comfortable for them. More times than not, we were able to bring the carseat on the plane and use a seat for free. 

For the room, we ALWAYS bring our own Pack N Play sheets. Hotel baby sheets are weird and gross. How many other babies pooped on those? Okay, puked? We pack our own! If you call the hotel and ask for a crib, more likely than not they will bring you this metal crib which looks like it belongs in an orphanage. Most hotels have Pack N Plays, so make sure you clarify which you would prefer. We also try our best to squeeze the Pack N Plays in a quiet place, like the bathroom, so we can watch TV while we fall asleep. We use our sound machine from home in order to help them feel like they are in their own room with their own sounds. It does make going to the bathroom in the middle of the night more difficult, but we would rather go down to the lobby than wake a sleeping baby! 

For bath time, we love the sponges they sell at Babies R Us. We use them at home and bring them with us and just toss them at the hotel before coming home. These things ROCK. They keep babies in place and you don't have some smelly bath tub... I HATE baby bath tubs. We also bring travel size baby lotions and soaps in order to keep the babies from getting rashes from trying new soaps on vacation. 

Lastly, Take and Toss bowls and spoons are great for baby food. They are dishwasher safe and you don't feel bad if you leave them laying around or lose them. Plus, they are still gentle on babies little mouths! 

What else do you bring with you when you travel with baby? What have you found to be most helpful about traveling with kids?!