5 Travel Essentials For Kids

We all have travel essentials that we include in our suitcases and travel bags, when we decide to leave the comfort of our own homes.

These are the things that we take with us and make sure to include in our packing list so that our trips are enjoyable.

BUT traveling with kids is not easy.

That doesn’t mean it needs to be hard, either.

I am lucky that I’m in a position where I have “built in” help with my older kids, because they are a bit older than Gelli, so it’s like having built in baby sitters when we don’t have a yaya (nanny) around.

Like take for instance this last trip that Gia, Gelli, and I just took to Malibu for the Best Buddies International Celebrity Fundraiser.

We planned well.

We packed efficiently. (I did not over pack!)

And we had plenty of space to bring items home for Nino and the boys.

Admittedly, I expected Gelli to be a little difficult on the long flight from Manila to Los Angeles. Gia and I prepared different coloring books, stickers, and new crayons and markers to keep her busy on the plane in a very quiet way. We bought all new gear and a new pencil case to keep everything nice and neat.

I packed pajamas, and an extra set of clothes all individually wrapped in plastic zipper bags. I have always packed the kids clothes like this, so that if we have an accident (think poo or pee or vomit) then you can dress the kids in their new clean clothes, and use the zipper bag to seal up the smelly clothes, without worrying about contamination.

I brought little finger puppets. Gia charged her ipad and brought her headphones to use, only as a last resort to entertaining her. 

Guess what?

We didn’t need any of it.

She didn’t get sick.
She didn’t have an accident.
She didn’t even play with her toys.
She put on her pajamas and fell asleep after watching SING.

For the ENTIRE plane ride.

She didn’t even wake up to eat!

This girl just completely amazed me. She is by far the easiest of my kids to travel with!

Ok. So I’m not gonna say I’m an expert at anything. But, I will say there are a few things that I like to travel with (with kids of all ages) just to make my life a little easier. 

These are the things Gia and I brought on our most recent trip:

1. Mifold Travelling Car Seat

There is nothing more important than safety when traveling. And when we are traveling to a place where car seats and boosters are required BY LAW, we make sure to travel properly. I was seriously dreading carrying Gelli’s big old booster that (used to be Diego’s) takes up so much space. 

Just to move around with Gelli means that I have to have her stroller, her car seat (if we use Uber or Lyft these are required) and of course her baby bag. ( I won’t say diaper bag, because we are finally out of diapers!!! HOORAY!!!)

 

Today I was given the opportunity to share a little bit about what I do with #ExpoMom. @manilamommy @betty_loves_wisdom and I gave a short talk about @bestbuddiesphl @dsapi1 and @ccfunique. We shared a Philippine psa about hurtful language through one of our sister orgs, @endtheword, and hopefully, we created an awareness that people will take home with them. ????: @mommymundo #teammom #bestbuddiesph #dsapi #unique #mommymundo

A post shared by ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Michelle Aventajado (@mommanmanila) on May 6, 2017 at 5:26am PDT

So it was perfect timing for me to see Paola at Expo Mom in Glorietta just a day before we were scheduled to leave. I was zipping through the aisles to take one last look at everything in case something caught my eye for our trip and VOILA!!! We saw Mifold and picked one up IMMEDIATELY.

 

And you know what is even more amazing about this portable car seat that fits in your bag while you are traveling?

Gelli is one of the five kiddie ambassadors who are promoting safety and awareness for their new #BuckleUpKidsPH campaign. Hooray for Gelli’s first gig as an ambassador!

 

Travel essentials with #Gellibean. Portable Bidet. Snack box. Pocket sized wipes. All natural hand sanitizer. Quiet toys. Healthy snacks.

A post shared by ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Michelle Aventajado (@mommanmanila) on May 16, 2017 at 11:48am PDT

2. Sanicare Portable Bidet and toilet seat covers

NEWSFLASH GELLI IS FINALLY POTTY TRAINED!!!

Woohoo! We are totally diaper free and this makes me really happy. She hasn’t had an accident in quite a while (and the last one was when she was sleeping) so this means that we always have to be ready when Gelli says she has to go. She is getting better with her timing now, so we don’t have to run to the toilet and that’s a good thing too.

The portable bidet is super easy to use. I remember seeing those little soap papers somewhere. I think that would go perfect with the toilet seat covers and the bidet. This would be the trifecta of cleanliness for Gellibean after using the toilet.

3. All Natural Hand Sanitizer

I love the Messy Bessy line for three reasons. 

1. It’s a local brand.
2. It’s all natural.
3. It’s a socially responsible.

I don’t think I need to expound on the fact that we love local, all natural, and socially responsible businesses. Do I?

4. Yumbox

Traveling to the states meant that we were all jet lagging. This also means that Gelli wasn’t exactly hungry when it should have been time to eat a meal. As with so many other things in my parenting with Gelli, I let her lead me when it came time to eat. I have learned not to try and force her to do too much of anything. (Um. Probably because she wouldn’t have it anyway?)

 

First day of school for The Bean and Miguel! Snack today for Gelli: Pork Tocino and Rice. Cheese Puff from @contis_ph. Yellow Kiwi (that I really hope she will eat). And a #Homemade Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookie. I love this new #yumbox for Gelli that I bought at the end of the last school year through @bentomommas. Gelli’s box before only had four compartments and this one has five. This was she has lotsa little bites to try during snack time and won’t get bored. • • • • #yumbox #lunchbox #lunchboxideas #lunchforkids #baon #baonforkids #bento #bentobox

A post shared by ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Michelle Aventajado (@mommanmanila) on Jun 20, 2017 at 3:49pm PDT

So what does that mean when you are traveling? It means that you pack snacks wherever you go. And because berries were in season. I always snuck berries into her snack box, even though she always told me to take them out.

Toddler Tip: When introducing new foods to your little one, keep in mind that it takes at least seven times for your kiddo to actually want to try the food. JUST KEEP GIVING IT TO THEM. 

My only problem is, now that we are home, berries are so much more expensive. While we were in California, I had berries to give Gelli everyday, in the hopes that she would finally enjoy them the way her Momma does. Hopefully, she understands one day, that the frozen berries in her shakes are the berries that she shunned when we were in California. 

5. Quiet toys

Ahhh. Quiet Toys. These are very important when riding the plane and eating in a restaurant. They could be action figures, dolls, coloring sets, books, or HEADPHONES. 

When I know we are riding on a plane, I always try to buy a new coloring book and crayons or markers that are appropriate. GELLI LOVES THIS. As in. LOVES. You can see how much she loved this coloring set from my friend Cheryl over @brightbrands.ph. You can purchase this same coloring set by clicking here.

These are just a few of the things that I make sure to travel with when I have littles in tow. They are my most precious cargo, and if they have what they need while we are traveling as a family, then the whole trip just goes so much smoother. 

I’m sure you have some tips and tricks to traveling with little ones too! 

What works for you?

Remember, sharing is caring 🙂

Mifold Philippines
https://www.facebook.com/mifoldPH/
https://www.instagram.com/mifoldphilippines/

Yumbox and Tiger Tribe Coloring Set
https://www.facebook.com/BrightBrands.ph/
https://www.instagram.com/brightbrands.ph/
 
Sanicare Travel Bidet
https://www.instagram.com/sanicare_bidet/

Messy Bessy
http://www.messybessy.com/
https://www.facebook.com/messybessycleaners/