First time holiday packing for myself and mini me was surprisingly simple, I seemed to think there would be an endless list of things I’d need to pack for peanut and that’s exactly what it was, but the thought of it was more overwhelming than the packing itself.
Before mum life I don’t think there’s one holiday I’ve packed accordingly for. Totally convinced I needed to pack two to three outfits for each day. “I’ll wear this to breakfast, this during the day and this to dinner” is what I’d say to myself while packing. Funnily enough, It’s usually the morning after arrival, whilst searching for something to put over my bikini, of course, only gone and forgot the bloody kimono haven’t I; packed five dresses and shit loads of make-up but no kimono, typical. Luckily there’s a quick fix, wear nothing.
Unfortunately for our sweet beloved baby/s, not everything we might forget for them has a quick fix. Especially when other parts of the world don’t supply particular, important and irreplaceable (to them) items; which is why packing for them can be quite trying, I mean fun, definitely fun.
What really helped me have a stress free packing experience was building a list of must have items.
10 MUST HAVE BABY HOLIDAY ITEMS:
- Calpol/Thermometer – I gave Myla Calpol before the flight for any unforeseen pain or discomfort
- Teething Gel – Myla’s teething periods are somewhat unpredictable so better to be in this case ‘prepared’ than sorry
- Sun protection/after sun’ lotion – I used two sun protections on her: Nivea, Child’s Farm, and Weleda face weather protection. For after sun lotion I used Child’s farm as it is one of the only brands that offer a child’s after sun lotion
- Water Nappies – You could potentially buy these when you arrive, but do you want to go shopping or jump straight into the pool?
- Sudo-cream – we don’t want nappy rash on holiday so prevention is best
- Nappies/Nappy bags – this might seem obvious, but it’s best to pack half your suitcase with nappies for two reasons. Firstly, buying a pack at the airport is awkward to add to your already juggling hands. Secondly, your holiday location may not sell the nappies you are used to and nappies may just be nappies but I like to stick to what I know when it comes to baby items
- Baby Wipes – how many packs you’ll need depends on how long your going for. I went to Spain for a week and put one packet of wipes in my suitcase and one packet in a small zip bag with three nappies for the journey itself in my back pack
- Milk powder and bottle – I gave Myla a bottle once we got on the plane both ways, on our way to Spain she drank half and on our way back she finished it and slept right after for the whole flight
- New toys – New toys are always a good distraction for the plane journey baby’s aren’t so used to
- Water bottle/Favourite snacks – food always seems to do the trick and keeps them quiet for a while
The rest was pretty straight forward:
- Swimsuits
- Shorts/tops
- dresses
- pyjamas
- shoes/socks
- Towel/beach towel
- Hair bands/hair brush
- arm bands
- Milk powder
- Muslins/bibs
- Body wash – I packed a small bottle of Elemis body wash
Whilst I felt quite like the efficient mother once I packed and throughout our holiday. Our last day unfortunately ended with peanut falling and splitting her eyebrow which I was highly unprepared for. Items needed for minor accidents abroad are:
- antiseptic wipes – to clean the wound
- Anicare cream – to prevent bruising
- Vaseline – to be rubbed on the actual wound to stop bacteria accessing the wound
- Ice cubes – you can ask the hotel for this, wrap a few cubes in a clean cloth/muslin and apply pressure on the wound to prevent swelling
- Antibacterial gel – to clean your hands before and after cleaning the wound
Now this is what you call efficient baby packing.
Love,
L.V.
THE CONSCIOUS MUM 