Favourite Overnight Travel Products
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Traveling with a baby or a toddler is no easy task. Between my in-laws who live out of town, the cabin or just random overnight trips, I feel like I am packing for a year when I’m getting Mason’s stuff together. Anyone else? There are so many amazing “what to pack” checklists on Pinterest to use when you’re going away, along with the basic necessities, but today I wanted to share with you a few of my favourite travel products that have helped me from the newborn phase up until now.
1. Portable Blackout Shades
Mason sleeps in a room that is pitch black. I’m talking “can’t see my hand in front of my face” black. We have always had him in a dark room because it truly does help your little one fall asleep faster, and stay asleep longer for both naps and bedtime. Especially in those first few months when your newborn doesn’t understand the difference between night and day, having a consistently dark room to signal “bedtime” can be very helpful. If your child is anything like mine, he or she will look around the room and try to take it all in, getting distracted from being tired which can make falling asleep a little challenging. This can be hard to replicate when you are away from home. We bought these Portable Blackout Curtains from Amazon when Mason was two months old and they come with us anywhere we go. They have suctions on them so they stick to the window, and they’re quite long to hang down over bigger windows.
2. Portable Sound Machine
Another must have for us as part of Mason’s bedtime routine is white noise. Since he was a newborn, we played white noise to a) signal to him that it’s bedtime and b) help drown out any noise that might be happening outside his room. We have a Marpac sound machine in his room, and bought a separate portable sound machine one that we take with us when we travel. This one has a USB port and actually holds a charge really well. It’s very lightweight and clips right onto the pack n play.
3. Portable Baby Monitor
I have always been pretty obsessive with our baby monitor. It’s something that I really didn’t want to settle on. I knew I needed something with video so I could see my sweet boy, and I personally preferred something that wasn’t WiFi enabled. I didn’t want to have to depend on a WiFi connection to safely watch Mason. This was a personal preference. When we are away from home, I watch that monitor like a hawk. I am very much aware that he is in a strange place, and might wake up scared. Having a reliable and convenient monitor to bring with us anywhere we go has always been important. We have a Motorola Baby Monitor and it’s been great at home or on the go.
4. Pack n Play
Oh the convenience of a pack n play! Mason sleeps in one at daycare, and one goes with us to the cabin for him to sleep in. When he was a newborn before we moved him into his own room, he slept in a bassinet which was placed in the pack n play, so he has always been familiar with them. They’re so easy to put together and take down, and it gives them their own space to sleep. You can find basic ones without all the bells and whistles which work just fine like the…., or you can go all out and look for something more complex like the SlumberPod which has everything you need in one place!
5. A lovey
If you’ve been following for awhile, you know Mason has a giraffe lovey that he is obsessed with. He sucks on his face and we have to wash it a couple of times a week to keep it from being completely disgusting. Kayla’s oldest daughter Nora has one of Kayla’s old t-shirts that she has carried around and sleeps with which gives her comfort. Having these familiar items on the road can provide a sense of home and help your babe feel a little less scared. If they don’t have a lovey, consider bringing a stuffed animal or blanket that smells like home and that can help ease some of their anxiety.
Travelling with littles can be stressful, but hopefully some of these recommendations can help ease some of the pain so you can get back to enjoying making memories with your kids!
