Travel Must Haves for the family

A few weeks ago we went to see my family in Connecticut as well as visit New York city with the boys and family. Let me start off by saying boy am I glad we went then and not during this arctic freeze they are about to get slammed with!

But as we were traveling I got tons of messages from you guys wanting me to share my tips and travel must haves for the family. I know traveling with kids can be intimidating, but I think when you’re prepared and have the right things, traveling can be fun! The boys love to travel, and I love how excited they get.

Thankfully all three boys were angels on the flight. Heck, I even questioned if they were mine, because they sat more still on the plane then they do at home. We had a great time with family, visiting the Christmas lights in NYC and we, of course, got to see snow a few times!

When it was time to go through security Jordan, and I divided and conquered. I would take Liam and the stroller/car seat and Jordan would handle the carry on bags and older boys. Here’s something to note with toddlers, they love to help and thrive on doing so! When there is an opportunity to help, let them help.

Let’s move on to the travel must haves and a few tips I have.

-Give yourself plenty of time. But not too much. Ideally, you want to arrive at your gate 30 minutes before boarding. That will give you time to let everyone go to the bathroom and to grab a snack. If you get there too early, you’ll get restless kids, and that’s no good.

-When it comes to packing, minimize as much as you can ( I have a few tips when it comes to packing here). For example, for Liam, instead of packing tons of clothes, I packed only warm and fleece pajamas. That way I didn’t need to worry about a top and bottom or matching.

-For little ones, have diapers and wipes shipped to where you are staying. It saves tons of space in the luggage!

-Pack your neutrals. To avoid overpacking, I packed all my neutral clothing items. This way I knew I would always match and look cute, but I didn’t need to bring tons of different options or overload the suitcase with clothes I didn’t need.

-If you have to travel with car seats, buy car seat covers. We found these a few years back, and I swear by them! It keeps the car seats clean, and it also acts as a backup suitcase if you need to add any heavy items inside.

-Get a multipurpose stroller. And when I say multipurpose I mean a stroller that gives you different riding options. I love our baby jogger, and it was such a lifesaver to have in NYC.

-Bring that baby carrier! Wearing the baby will free up your hands for whatever you may need them for.

-Bring the right bags. Bring a diaper bag that will do its job. I love my Skiphop diaper bag. It has plenty of space for everything I need, and it doubled up as my bag. Bonus points for it not looking like a diaper bag so the hubby could wear it too.

Our Lipault suitcases were also fantastic to have; they were big enough (but not heavy) for me to pack for all five of us in two bags. AND might I add I had 5lbs to spear in each bag, now that is a miracle! The four wheel spinner system also made it super easy to push around the airport with kids.

-Bring the electronics! I have tried bringing coloring books, and toys for the plane, but to be honest, that only makes things more difficult and more things to worry about. My advice is to charge your phone (or Ipads) and install kid-friendly games/movies to keep them busy.

-Last but not least, relax. Kids feed off our energy. If you are uptight and nervous, chances are so will they. Have as much fun as you can and enjoy your trip! And if all else fails, bribery tends always do the trick! Haha, just kidding. Sorta.

Thank you so much for stopping by! What are some of your travel must haves for the family? Share below, I would love to hear them. Have a great day!

xoxo,