Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:10):
Welcome to the
Ordinary Doula Podcast with
Angie Rozier, hosted by BirthLearning, where we help prepare
folks for labor and birth withexpertise coming from 20 years
of experience in a busy doulapractice Helping thousands of
people prepare for labor,providing essential knowledge
(00:41):
and tools for positive andempowering birth experiences.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
Hello and welcome to
the Ordinary Doula Podcast.
This is your host, angie Rozier, and today I want to talk about
kind of a unique topic that Ihave seen Well, maybe it's not
that unique, but I've seenseveral people run into this and
have to deal with this and thatis traveling with a baby.
So some people are regulartravels, some people travel for
work or for pleasure, somepeople travel occasionally, some
(01:12):
are traveling shortly afterhaving a baby and as I've worked
with clients over the years,I've kind of seen a lot of
different scenarios andsituations.
And one particular client I hada few years ago kind of turned
me on to some pretty cool stuffwhich you may or may not know
about, but I want to kind of dosome travel tips with this
episode.
So she had a little boy, Ithink he was about two, and then
(01:34):
she had twin boys, so she hadnow three kids under two and
they traveled quite a bit.
They, you know, for family.
They had family in a differentcountry, they had property in a
different state, family in adifferent state.
They one time when I wasworking with them, they traveled
for a funeral.
They traveled for fun, theytraveled for work.
(01:54):
So she now had three littletiny people to consider and to
take things for and that, as youcan imagine, changed how they
traveled to going from one babyto three babies basically.
So I want to kind of chat aboutsome options and some cool
things that may help those whoare traveling, when they're
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traveling with especially we'retalking kind of about air travel
with their tiny travelers.
A lot of fears about this arethe stuff you need, right, like,
babies seem to need a lot ofequipment If you think about
what they sleep in, what theysleep in during the day, during
the night, what they sit in, ifyou're not holding them, how
(02:38):
they travel, whether that'spedestrian travel, walking, that
could be strollers, carriers,how they travel in a car.
Babies kind of need a lot ofstuff, and that doesn't make
travel light.
It doesn't make it super easy.
One of the things people areworried about is under packing
or over packing.
Am I going to have everything Ineed?
Am I going to forget?
And then also the time fortravel.
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We can have like nap disastersor diaper disasters.
That can happen at veryinconvenient times as you think
about getting through securityat an airport with extra little
people who aren't alwayscompliant, or extra equipment,
you know, for getting somethingthat you absolutely need.
And then there's also thecomponent of breastfeeding,
(03:21):
right when to feed the baby, howto store and carry milk and
stuff like that.
So kind of talk about all ofthat.
So it's not easy to travel withlittle ones, but it is
definitely possible, it'sdefinitely manageable and kind
of one of the a key is toremember that you don't need to
bring everything Kind of pareback to the essentials, like
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what pieces of equipment candouble for things you know.
So we might not have a pack andplate and a bassinet and a swing
or a bouncer seat Like what canwe kind of, you know,
consolidate into one thing?
It might be just a bouncer seator a baby carrier of some kind
or a stroller that can double asa couple of things.
(04:02):
So, and also a sense of humor,right, just go into this with a
sense of humor and hopefullyyour fellow travelers will have
one as well, as they observe andsupport you in whatever you're
doing.
I love it when I see travelershelping each other.
I think that's pretty awesome.
That's not always the case.
When you walk in with a baby,people kind of like oh boy,
right, hopefully you don't sitby me or keep that kiddo quiet,
(04:25):
whatever it might be, butthere's also a lot of great
people out there that can helpwith that.
All right, so what to pack andwhat to leave behind You're
oftentimes your carry-on like adiaper bag does not count as a
carry-on, so that's kind of niceto know.
That can be an extra bag thatyou can be taking.
So essentials to have on aplane.
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You don't need everything inyour diaper bag, right, but it's
like, what might I need in thenext few hours, what could
happen in the next few hours?
So some basics, obviouslydiapers, wipes, change of
clothes for the baby, snack ifthe baby's old enough for snacks
bottles, toys, pacifier, littlecomfort items, but basic.
(05:06):
Keep the needs pretty basicright here.
Um, and as far as checkedluggage, there's laundry in most
places, so don't overpack.
A lot of times you know we takeall kinds of things for for
babies and we take six blanketsand um extra hats and stuff and
kind of consider space and andsimplicity and how that can be
helpful.
What also to skip sometimes?
So obviously maybe you don'ttake your baby bath, right.
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There's some things that we candefinitely skip to that.
Are might be luxury items inour home, but we can do without
for a few days.
And I want to bring up kind ofa magical and maybe you know a
lot of you are familiar withthis, but I think it's such a
great idea.
But there are baby gear rentalplaces so you can rent almost
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anything you would need for ababy and there's companies out
there that meet you at yourdestination so you don't have to
haul all the extra stuff right.
Meet you at your destination,so you don't have to haul all
the extra stuff right.
So a lot of times this orderingis done online and then the
gear, whatever it is you needand select, can be delivered to
your airport.
Say, you need a car seat rightaway, um, they can deliver
things to your hotel.
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Say you need a bassinet or apack and play or a swing or
something, um, but the it can.
It's the pickup and return ispretty easy, which is awesome.
Some popular things people rentis cribs, bassinets, strollers,
high chairs, car seats, evenbaby toys.
Like you can rent baby toys,baby monitors.
You can even do sound machines.
(06:32):
You know white noise machines.
You can do beach gear,depending on where it is that
you're going.
You can do like baby backpacks.
You know if you're backpackingor something.
So keep that in mind that youcan still travel and have a lot
of your amenities you could, butyou rent them.
So some awesome companies tocheck out are Baby Quip.
They do some awesome rentaleasy pickup, drop off, whatever
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it is that you need.
Another company is TravelingBaby Company.
They work airports, hotels.
They know this system and it'sout there.
Another one is Rent BabyEquipment and then in a lot of
especially popular tourist areasthere's local mom-owned rental
services in popular touristcities.
So kind of, keep that in mind.
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It's a good little hack to usewhile you're traveling.
So some cool things about usingthese rental companies is
there's less stuff for you tohaul around, right?
There's high quality gearoption.
You can rent a SNU if you wantto.
Maybe you love a SNU, work witha SNU, maybe you don't, but you
could rent a SNU.
You can rent some some highgear, high quality options for
baby gear and equipment.
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You'll have more spaceavailable in headspace and also
travel space for things that youreally do need.
That includes things foryourself or a partner or
whoever's traveling with you,and then also, when you rent
from people, you get some kindof cool local insights on what
you really need for yourlocation, whether it's um, you
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know if they have joggerstrollers because there's a
beach or something, or or youknow they have beach gear.
Maybe you're in the mountains.
Wherever you're going, theywill be familiar with where
you're going and we'll be ableto make recommendations for what
babies will work well withbabies in your area.
So some some drawbacks to thisis it's a cost.
Right, like this comes at acost.
(08:18):
If you're using this service,of course, you do need to plan
ahead.
So some forward thinking likeall right, what are we going to
need?
Um doing some online orderingand things.
Um, you may have variableavailability depending on the
area that you're going to.
Some low tourist areas mightnot have as much gear.
Um, as far as variety orquantity available, um, and some
(08:39):
people have a hard time justusing stuff that other people
have used.
Right, that could be a drawback, like is this clean?
Who else has other babies pukedon this, or whatever.
But reputable companies aregoing to give good service that
way.
So, yeah, check out some babygear rental places.
That can save you a lot ofheadaches as you're traveling.
So you can kind of travel withwhat you're used to, but just
(09:01):
get it when you get there.
Also, like diapers, wipes, liketake, take what you need for
the flight and then most placesthere's gonna be stores.
Don't take, you know, 80diapers, just take six until you
get there and then you know youcan purchase things once you
arrive, those bulky things thatare easily found in stores.
Also something just quick tipsfor the airport right, like
(09:27):
booking flights, if you have theflexibility and the capability
to book them around.
Baby's nap schedules right, youknow your baby's nap schedule.
Maybe it's best for you totravel late at night, early in
the morning.
Kind of consider your baby,their demeanor and stuff Wearing
your baby, if you are a babywearer, if you have a sling or a
baby carrier of some kind, thatfrees up hand space at the
(09:48):
airport, right, so that freehands is often reduces stress
quite a bit.
Request early boarding you knowa lot of airports will board
those with children first and beable to, you know, just ask for
help.
Airport personnel is there tohelp.
You Know that kids adjust firstto anything new and different.
It's kind of hard, you know,but kids will adjust to the
(10:10):
travel schedules and things andthen just keep expectations
flexible, you know, maybe lowand flexible.
As you travel with kiddos Alsoa couple you can use the car,
depending on the size of yourchild.
You can use a car seat on theplane if you have a seat for
them, right, if you purchase aseat for that kiddo.
Um, the strollers.
(10:30):
Strollers are also allowedthrough security and usually
checked at the gate for free.
Um, you do oftentimes need tosend it through the scanner and
things like that.
These things, items will be,usually will be examined, you
know, either through the scanneror by hand.
If you have a stroller bag or acar seat bag, you know, just a
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bag that encompasses the wholething can kind of protect it.
If you have that, baby carrierswhether it's a soft one or a
wrap or a baby carrier sometimesyou can wear your baby through
security.
Sometimes TSA workers,depending on the airport and the
situation, might want to screenthe baby separately.
Little further screening thatvaries by the airport.
And diaper bags also, you know,can go through security.
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Like we said, they don't countagainst your carry on limit.
And I want to chat about breastmilk.
Baby food and formula are allexempt.
A lot of people may you knowthis.
I've heard a lot of questionsabout this over the years, I
guess.
But that are these things are.
Baby food is exempt, so thatwould be liquid or not from the
(11:36):
three ounce rule.
You may need to declare theitems at a security checkpoint
and they may undergo additionalscreening, but you don't have to
like open them.
Like, if you have some sealedcontainers of breast milk,
whether it's in bags or bottles,um, you should not really be
forced to open those containersUm.
So so understand that if, likeI, have a lot of clients that
(11:56):
might travel for work and theypump while they're gone, um,
some of them choose not to gothrough the hassle of bringing
that milk home, freezing it, youknow, keeping track of it,
labeling it, um, keeping it coldor frozen as they travel.
But you can.
I want you to know that it'sabsolutely something you can do.
Other people, you know, want tojust pump and dump, but
(12:17):
sometimes you have some extrathat's hard one breast milk you
don't want to throw away.
Other quick tips are to labelyour stuff right Label your car
seat, label that stroller,anything going through.
Go early gate, check early, askfor help and kind of be your
own advocate, right, like as wedo in birth work, sometimes we
(12:38):
need to be our advocate with ourfamilies forever and travel
included.
So hopefully those are somequick tips that will help you as
you're traveling.
I know we have a family tripcome up in a little while, and
why don't?
We don't have little tiny kidsanymore.
It is you know, as you, themore people you travel with, the
more components there are toconsider.
So hopefully knowing about gearand baby equipment rentals will
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be a game changer for you Ifyou're traveling.
I love that service.
And then, keeping it simpleright, just keep it simple.
It's going to be good becauseyou can still live a really
awesome full life and continueyour lifestyle even after babies
and kids, of course, just likemy mom with three kids under two
became quite the experttraveler that way, and she's
expecting a fourth at this pointtoo, so she'll continue to live
(13:24):
her awesome life.
Hopefully you have a great one.
Thanks for being with us heretoday.
Go have, go have some funtravel with your baby and your
kiddos and, as always, make sureyou make a human connection
today.
Reach out to someone in person,online, um, through text,
however that might be, reach out, make a human connection.
Today, I know you will bebetter for it, and so will they
have a great day and we will seeyou next time.
Speaker 1 (13:58):
Thank you for
listening to the Ordinary Doula
podcast with Angie Rozier,hosted by Birth Learning.
Episode credits will be in theshow notes Tune in next time as
we continue to explore the manyaspects of giving birth.