Travels with a baby – two years on
Two years ago, I was lying in a hospital bed feeling battered and bruised, looking at my brand new daughter and wondering how on earth I did this parenting thing. Two years on, I’m still wondering, but am mildly less battered at least.
Yes, there’s nothing like a birthday to take stock – even when it’s not my birthday.
Our travels haven’t all been easy this year, especially as Minnie seems to time her various viruses and ailments to coincide with a holiday (though not, thank god, her bout of chickenpox). But so far, not a bad tally of trips.
Two (two!) jaunts to the Caribbean, including gorgeous St Lucia and a week’s cruise after her taste of a day on board around her first birthday. Which means she’s actually paddled more in the Caribbean than any other sea so far.
And to go with our long-haul flights, a few trips to Europe – a family holiday to a villa on the Algarve in Portugal, including a visit to the very lovely family-friendly Martinhal resort, as well as our long weekends discovering parks in Paris and the child-friendly side of Copenhagen.
We’ve explored the UK too – taking the train up to Glasgow and discovering the cathedral and Christmas market at Winchester. I’ve even managed to avoid having priceless vintage wrecked by a pair of mischievous sticky paws.
There have been days out closer to home as well, discovering the gorgeous Wetlands Centre in Barnes (and its otters, twice), bluebells in Perivale Woods, Osterley House and Gunnersbury Park as part of my Take 12 Trips challenge. Proof, if you needed it, that you needn’t venture too far afield to find somewhere new to explore.
So… trains, planes, boats and buses all ticked off. I’ve even managed a trip away without Minnie for the first time – and in fact only time I’ve left her overnight apart from my 10th wedding anniversary at the Landmark hotel – to gorgeous Granada.
I’ve learned a few lessons and then promptly forgotten them (repeat after me, it is not possible to force a toddler to nap).
Some of it was very tough – thank you, evil bottom molars. Some of it was fabulous, from her squeaks of sheer glee at swimming in the sun to a day so fascinating that she barely stopped to eat/sleep in the Glasgow Science Centre.
I’ve ticked two places off my 2014 wishlist and still have plans for a few of the others before 2015 rolls around. I’ve discovered the wonders of AirBNB and compiled an essential toddler toy packing list to help survive journeys.
And during this time, Minnie has learned to walk, chatter away and developed a single-minded iron will when it comes to getting her own way. She’s also able to enjoy and remember our trips much better, fascinated by the most unexpected things and drinking everything in like a sponge.
She’s also carried on her quest to win over waiters/passers-by worldwide, causing superficially grumpy old men in Miami to break into delighted grins.
Along with making me laugh a huge amount (sometimes intentionally), frustrate me hugely (possibly intentionally) and keep surprising me almost every day.
I’ve challenged myself, I’ve challenged her and we’ve both survived, albeit with a few extra grey hairs (me) and sleepless nights (both).
So what’s next? Now Minnie is over 11kg, she’s able to take the antimalarial Malarone (the one which, in my experience, tends to have fewer side-effects) so the world is potentially opening up even more.
Who knows, I might even be able to get her to carry a bag of her own before too long… rather than me carrying her!
The downside? From now on we have to pay for her flights…
Read about surviving the first year of travels with a baby too…
Main image courtesy of Depositphotos, all others copyright MummyTravels
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Happy birthday Minnie!
Thank you! (She says)
I’ve got a 2 year old boy and found travelling between 1 and 2 the most challenging experience. As he was “sitting” on our laps he would not sit still and didnt have the attention span to keep himself entertained for long enough.
I’m wondering how you coped on a long haul flight as we’ve been dreading to book a long haul flight. The furthest we fly is to the grandparents in Spain.
Now that he has turned 2 a few months ago he has a longer time span and his own seat which comes with many benefits. Yes the extra seat cost is a pain but if you fly with a main carrier, it also means that they can accumulate miles/points on the frequent flyer programs. Yes my 2 year old has a frequent flyer account 🙂
I’d love to take my little one and see the world but given that baby number 2 is on the way, it will be a while just yet.
I definitely agree – with hindsight, it was much easier when she was little and non-moving. Hopefully it will get easier again when she has a slightly longer attention span! For the long-haul flight, nothing held her attention for very long but I made sure we had lots (some CBeebies downloaded, some apps, some stickers, some colouring, some books, some little toys) plus snacks, naps and looking at everything around her. Then repeated that over and over and over… Once you’ve survived it once, even a longish short-haul suddenly doesn’t seem too bad.
And that’s a very good point about the frequent flyer programmes. Have been cursing the fact I’ve got to pay for her now, but I hadn’t thought of the benefits! Congrats on baby 2, hopefully when they’re both just a bit older, they can also entertain each other.