by Carly Black | Jun 12, 2017 | Mom Solutions
From September of 2012 to July 2013 I was traveling the world on a mission trip that took me to 11 countries in 11 months. With all of that traveling experience under my belt, I still was not prepared to travel with my children in tow. Schlepping a 55-pound hiking pack and a ten-pound backpack is nothing compared to the gear you have to haul around to accommodate your children. I’m not talking about unnecessary items either. You’ve got a stroller, car seats, diaper bag, and on one of our trips I needed a breast pump. All that after you have checked any baggage. I can remember the first time we traveled one hour to my parents’ house, the minivan was packed to the gills. We have since learned our lesson or kept duplicates at their house.
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Last summer we flew to Colorado and California (from Ohio) with a two-month-old and a one-year-old. Then this past spring break we flew to Myrtle Beach. Here are some of the things I learned when flying with children.
Airline Policies
(Note: You should, of course, double-check with your specific airline, if we’ve learned anything recently it’s that there is fine print attached to your plane ticket.) All of the airlines we flew allowed us to bring car seats and strollers aboard without being charged. I highly recommend a bag to stash the unused car seat. You might also fit a pack of diapers or two inside. We purchased this car seat travel bag with shoulder strap from Amazon in orange so it would be easy to see and easy to carry. Be sure your car seat says approved by the FAA, we almost had an issue. Of course, that’s only if you care for your child to sit in it on the plane, otherwise, check it at the gate.
Another thing I learned that you may not be aware of is bringing food through security. Any snacks or drinks that are intended for the children are legal to bring through security. That includes breast milk. You may have seen the tragic story about the woman who was made to dump her milk, cringe! There are regulations for traveling with it. I printed the policy and had it on hand just in case there was an issue! They also allow you to carry on your breast pump, without considering it a carry on item.
One policy we did not account for was not being able to sit together with both children as lap children. There wouldn’t be enough oxygen masks if we all sat in the same row. Fortunately, two incredibly nice women sit next to me and offered their help when I needed to feed or change the baby.
Flying Tips
One of the best things I brought with me on the plane was My Brest Friend Inflatable Travel Nursing Pillow that I purchased from Amazon. I didn’t use it on the first flight and my arms were so tired by the end. The flight attendant said it wasn’t safe for me to wear the baby. So on the next flight, I inflated the pillow and she was able to comfortably rest while my arms did as well.
On our flight to Myrtle Beach, the kids didn’t handle landing very well, even with pacifiers and bottles. The flight attendant suggested Dum Dum suckers. It sounded crazy, but it worked fabulously on the way home and even saved another toddler across the aisle from losing it.
Packing Tips
If you haven’t been introduced to packing cubes let me tell you how great they can be. I ordered three different colors, one for me, one for my husband and one for the kids. Check out these travel packing cubes, from Amazon, they come in a number of different colors. This allowed us to pack in one suitcase, but keep everything organized. If you separate by clothing type it makes it very easy to find what you need while keeping all the other items neat.
There are tons of great videos on the internet that will show you how to save space when packing. Yes, rolling your clothes saves space. It goes without saying an extra clothing option for the kids is always good in the diaper bag. My preference is a romper or footed pajamas so I’m only adding one article. Parents may want to toss an extra t-shirt for themselves in the bag as well. Try to find something both mom and dad could wear in case of an emergency.
Next time you book a vacation try using this website for the best travel sites. These are just a few of the things I’ve learned in the last two years traveling with our children. Share some of your great traveling tips in the comments below.
by Carly Black | Jun 12, 2017 | Meal Planning, Mom Solutions
Before my husband and I married he was very clear that his cooking skills were non-existent. As he put it, “I heat, I don’t cook.” This was fine with me, I was perfectly happy to take the lead on all things food. Since this post is not about his previous eating habits and overcoming his limited palette I’ll refrain from elaborating on those hurdles. For me, the greatest hurdle was cooking for two. Then shortly after, 14 months to be exact, cooking for a family of four. This may sound crazy to many of you, but in my single days, I had more of a Carrie Bradshaw relationship with my oven. It didn’t actually contain my sweaters, but it certainly could have in those days. Meal planning was not something I felt deserved ink on my to-do list. Let me also say, as a disclaimer, there are certain areas of my life, mostly teaching, where I am very planned and prepared; however, there are other areas that are extremely messy. Because I can fully understand the value of a planned lesson I quickly realized that this type of organization could also help at home.
Some of the links found in this post are affiliates. This means if you make a purchase after clicking through we will receive a small compensation at no extra cost to you. Thank you in advance for your support and please know that we only endorse products we use and love.
My planning process
Decorating a planner using flair pens and stickers seemed like such a waste of time until I started to actually do it. Now I love to sit down, choose a color scheme and find the perfect stickers to represent my week ahead. A friend introduced me to the Happy Planner. I have loved the layout they provide. There are also accessories like grocery list notepad inserts to make it extra easy. This system has greatly helped me stay organized at home. Sitting down on Sunday afternoon to plan has now become my habit.
I like to start by writing in all the week’s events. These events can have an effect on what’s for dinner. When I have more time in a day I like to try new recipes and collect them on my Pinterest board, Carly’s Kitchen. I reserve the bottom square of each day in my planner for dinner menus. I write the title of the meal and then each side. This makes generating a grocery list for the week easier. Add the usual breakfast and lunch items, plus a few snacks if the drawer is low, and I’m ready to head off to Kroger.
I’ve always been the kind of cook who has no problem following a simple recipe. As long as it has normal ingredients and cooking methods I can follow directions. Soon I discovered that choosing recipes, even from Pinterest, was not very fun and it was extremely time-consuming. That’s when a friend asked me about hosting a Tastefully Simple party. Now, this is not a post or blog about me being a direct sales consultant, but this is how I made my life a little easier so I’m going to share my story.
Prepare meals in advance
When I joined Tastefully Simple they advertised making it easier to get dinner on the table during the school year at a decent time. All without feeling too exhausted to enjoy the meal. I love their concept of the Freezer Meal Workshop. The kit of products comes with 10 recipe cards, a pre-made grocery list with options for sides, and even a few leftover ideas. I would send out a message to my friends asking who needs 10 meals in their freezer? The ones who responded YES would gather their groceries and join me in my kitchen on a set day and time. About two hours is usually enough time to put all the meals together. Having someone to talk with while preparing the meals is much more fun. Sometimes we even poured a little wine.
There are so many positive outcomes from this kind of meal prep:
1. In the end, I have meals ready to go.
2. I’ve spent time catching up with friends.
3. The meals are going to save me time after work from needing to prep.
4. I’ve only spent money on the groceries I actually needed.
5. We are going to eat home-cooked meals for two weeks.
For the times that I’m not able to find a friend or two who can join me I still use the recipes, I just follow the “cook tonight” directions. It does require more prep time after a full day at school, but it’s usually only 30 minutes or less.
I know there are systems that will also send you the groceries, but I actually enjoy grocery shopping. Not everyone does. For me it’s relaxing, and it has that nostalgic feeling to be pushing my daughter in the cart like my mother used to do for us. I have always been impressed with my mother’s grocery shopping skills. The woman can write her lists in order of the aisles! I prefer someone else make the list for me.
That feeling of checking things off the list! Add using coupons and then putting it all away knowing you have a stocked kitchen makes me feel ready to tackle the week. I’ve also started to use this time on Sunday to set my goals for the week. For keeping track of my goals I’ve been using Lara Casey’s Powersheets.
Are you an Instant Pot user? Be sure to sign up for our newsletter and download your FREE monthly meal plan of pressure cooker dinners. Share your secrets for planning meals. What works best for your family? What tips or tricks have you discovered? I’m a sucker for a good app!
