Who said that a couple’s vacation travel plans should be put on hold
when a baby comes into the picture? This is definitely not the case for our
family. At two and a half months old, baby Kristoff made his first land trip to
the beach and the experience was not really that hard. One of our philosophy as
parents is to “start them young”, so here’s a start of practicing that!
Some people might see this as a wild idea and say that he’s too young
to travel or that he would get sick because of the tiresome journey (and I
won’t deny that these thoughts have gone through my mind, too), but given a
good amount of preparation and precaution beforehand, I know that we will be
able to pull through. Of course, now being parents, we won’t risk our child’s
health or safety just to prove that it is possible for a baby this young to
travel. Who would, anyway?
From Iloilo City to Boracay, it took us a total of 6 hours of travel –
approximately 5 and a half hours on the road and 20 minutes on sea). On the
road, Kristoff was just asleep most of the time, only waking up for his
feedings (which is every 2 hours). The movement of the car on the road made it
convenient for us to have him fall asleep easily. On the boat ride, however, he
got quite scared because the waves were quite strong during that moment. I just
cuddled him closely to re-assure him that everything is alright.
Before the Trip
It was important to us that our pediatrician approves of Kristoff
traveling to the beach, just to take extra precautions to avoid unnecessary
events to happen. She just advised us to keep baby away from direct sunlight,
have him swim before 9am or by late afternoon, and keep Kristoff always
hydrated.
To make the whole trip as comfortable as possible for Kristoff, below
is a list of things and clothes we brought with us for a 3-day, 2-night hotel stay in
Boracay:
On the road/sea:
_Car Seat propped and
buckled at the middle-back of the car where it is most safe for baby.
_ Enough bottles pre-filled with
water throughout the trip if bottle-feeding. If the actual travel time on
land would take 4 hours, expect that the trip would take longer because of the
reduced speed of the car and frequent stop-overs for nappy changes. My greatest
fear during our road trip was that we run out of bottles (which would then make
Kristoff very hungry), so we made sure that we have all his feeding times
covered (he feeds every 2 hours) and just prepared one additional bottle, just
in case it is needed.
_Baby Milk Container pre-filled with formula milk if bottle-feeding. So that mixing milk to the
pre-filled bottle would be easier and less messy than doing it from the can.
_Enough disposable diapers.
We changed nappies every feeding, so I brought the same number of diapers as
the number of bottles with one extra diaper just in case it is needed.
_Baby Wipes
_Nappy Rash Cream
_Changing Mat
_Onesies/shirts x 2
_Blanket x 2
_Burp Pad x 2
_Pacifier
_Pacifier
_Rattle/Toy. This is great
to keep baby busy or amused.
_Sun Hat. To protect baby’s
face from the sun
_Sunscreen for babies to
protect baby’s skin. We had the one from Ocean Potion Babies & Sensitive
with SPF 50.
All of these stuff fit in one medium-sized Jansport backpack.
The only challenge that we encountered during our land trip was
changing his nappies. Inside a car, there’s really no flat surface where we can
lie Kristoff on his back (if you would notice, a car’s back seat is slanted
downwards toward the back rest) AND, sadly, changing stations in public
toilets are not a norm in the Philippines. So, we had no choice but to change
him at the back seat, with my husband supporting baby’s side to ensure that he
lies comfortably without squishing his arm.
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| During our boat ride. Kristoff got scared because of the large waves carrying our boat. |
On the Beach
_Long-sleeved Onesie which
Kristoff wore for swimming. The long sleeves would minimize his risk getting sunburn
on his arms.
_Waterproof Diapers. Since
no swimming briefs fit him yet, we used Eco-diapers instead. You can buy these
in SM’s Baby Company in department stores.
_Sunscreen which we
re-applied every 2 hours to make sure he had maximum coverage.
_Sun Hat. Kristoff had this
on even in the water to protect him from the heat.
_Blanket to keep him warm
should a cold wind pass by.
_Towels x 2. One to dry
Kristoff once he gets out of the water and one to cover him when he changes to
dry clothes.
_Dry clothes x 2. One for
changing and one extra.
_Changing Mat. So that we
can lie him on a table when changing his clothes.
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| Kristoff's first time to experience the beach! He was not wearing a long-sleeved onesie at this time because we just dipped his feet in the water. |
Others
_Bottle Sterilizer. Ours was the Dr. Brown's Bottle Sterilizer so carrying it was bulky (we put it in one small trolley bag). Next time we travel, we'll try using disposable bottles so that we won't need to bring the sterilizer around.
_Baby Sling. This was much of a help for me, especially when we needed to get to the motor boat from the dock through a plank. It kept my one hand free to grasp the bamboo handle and one hand to support baby’s neck. It was also useful in carrying baby during our long walk along the seashore.
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| Carrying Kristoff on a baby sling while he enjoys the sea breeze |
In general, Kristoff liked the beach, especially the cool, fresh air
that the seashore offered (he instantly fell asleep every time we brought him along for a walk). He also liked the water and he just bothered a little when
he felt the sand on his feet. What he did not found pleasure with though at
first, is the sound of the waves crashing to the shore. But when we sat on the
shore for a little longer (he sat on my lap), he slowly enjoyed the feel of the
waves.
We hadn't had the chance to let Kristoff swim in the pool because the water at that time is too cold for him. Perhaps, when he gets a little older and bigger!
We hadn't had the chance to let Kristoff swim in the pool because the water at that time is too cold for him. Perhaps, when he gets a little older and bigger!
