Any Travel Suggesion for a 9 month old??

Question

Hi we are going on our first family trip to Halifax (Canada). My wee one will be 9 months when we go on this trip, just wondering if anyone has any suggestions for making the trip and plane ride easier? I am still sterilizing her bottles and water for her formula any suggestions for how I would do this in a hotel? (I have a sterilizer so thats not a problem, but should I take my electric kettle-or do I even need to use boiled water anymore, I asked my doc and she said to use it till she was 9 months but I m worried about the water in a different city) Also, what is the best way to bring formula, I use concentrate but is brining powder better or easier to pack? I am so clueless about everything as I am a first time mom so any suggestions to make the trip easier are really appreciated and I thank you in advance!!! :)

Answer 1

wow, you sterilize your baby's water?! i wouldn't worry about doing it on your travels to canada -- 1) their water quality is probably better than here in the states and 2) it sounds like it would be a hassle to do that in a hotel room.  Regular unsterilized tap water is the best thing for a baby so don't fret about that.  I'm not sure what brining powder is, but if your formula has a 'ready to use' variation then you can use that while you're traveling.  I'm traveling w/ my 8 month old in august to hawaii (six hour plane ride) and i'm just bringing small 8 oz cans of ready-to-use formula (Enfamil) that i can just pour in her bottle.  I will also pack formula in our luggage, but i plan to buy more when we reach our destination.  

Also, I found this link that has good tips on flying w/ babies.

http://flyingwithchildren.blogspot.com/

Answer 2

you are probably right to be concerned about how water in a different city will affect your little one (especially if you have been sterilizing the water all her life).  I would suggest changing as little in her diet on the trip as possible - her system will already be somewhat messed up because of the travel (change in bed time, change in nap time, change in surroundings etc.), changing diet will make that even worse.  If you have room for the electric kettle then I would suggest taking it, just because it would be more convenient for you to have control over when/ how much/ and how the water is sterilized - but if you don't have room in your luggage, then don't worry about it, your hotel will probably have room service (or at least a coffee pot that you can run the water through).  I have never traveled with formula myself, but it seems like the powder would be less worrisome in the luggage - but I would not suggest just suddenly giving her the new type of formula in among all the other new she will be experiencing during a vacation.  Maybe you can start to introduce it now, before you go.  Also, don't forget to have a pacifier or bottle of water or something like that for the plain trip!  (and keep some toys close to hand on the plane - I forgot that I packed all of mine in the same bag, and ended up checking the bag when I was traveling with my 6 mo. child - she was not happy with me.)  But just mostly trust your instincts, and trust your child to communicate with you if she is unhappy about something.