First Vacation

Time flies when you're having fun!

At least that's the saying. In my opinion, time flies even when you are not having fun... but that's another story.

Cyrus is 4 months old now and we just went on our first real vacation last weekend. We took a 2.5 hour plane trip to Florida and stayed for 4 days. It was the perfect vacation, and in spite of my worries the travel went pretty smoothly. Here are things that really helped for my first plane trip with a baby and my recommendations for other new moms:

1. Carry your baby in a sling. You don't have to take him/her out when you go through security and it makes things easier to have your hands free. Plus, if you have one that you can nurse discretely in, it makes feeding your baby a whole lot easier.

2. Bring a jogging stroller. Ok, this worked for us because we are really active. I have the bob and it has a car seat adapter which made hauling everything to the gate a whole lot easier. Plus, once we arrived we could take walks/runs easily along the boardwalk.

3. Nurse during the plane ride. My baby is content as long as he is fed, I was able to use the sling and nurse throughout the plane ride to placate him. I also hear that it prevents their little ears from popping. People on the plane were surprised at how quite our baby was!

4. Know TSA and plane regulations for infants. You CAN bring bottles or liquid baby food over 3oz. in your carry on, most airlines allow you to check your car seat and stroller at the gate free of charge, you don't have to go through the full body scan with your baby, if you can't fit your stroller through the X-ray they can hand inspect it. Know the rules will help you be prepared and save time and trouble.

5. Invest in a pop-up bed/sun tent. I bought one by peapod and it was perfect to take on the beach or to use in the hotel as a makeshift crib, and at only 4lbs it didn't add much extra weight to my luggage.

6. Buy diapers at your destination. No sense in lugging around more than you need when most vacation destinations have grocery stores nearby where you can stock up.

Our trip was great we had tons of fun and Cyrus loved meeting the rest of my family and playing on the beach.

This was also a good trial run because we plan on going to Europe this fall to visit my husband's family. The plane ride will be 3 times as long so I am super nervous.

As for Cyrus' development, he has started rolling over. He tries to crawl but ends up inching along like an inch worm. He is also laughing and smiling more, which is great.

Yesterday we put together his walker and although he is still a little wobbly he can sort of stand up and play.

Being a mom is definitely feeling more comfortable as time goes on I look forward to the new adventures just ahead.