Traveling light with a Toddler

In preparation for our three week vacation abroad I did a google search of “traveling with toddlers” and “air travel and toddlers” to get an idea of how best to choose our flights, tackle the jet lag, as well as keep our nearly three year old entertained. This was very helpful in choosing our flight type such as multiple connections with breaks vs. fewer connections and type of flying accommodations. After much thought we selected a flight with a more expensive airline (currently on strike) based on the shortest flight duration and the least amount of connections. We were well prepared with several small toys that were “surprises” in intervals as well as a coloring book, writing tablet and sticker book. We also purchased an extra battery for the portable DVD player and brought along his favorite movies – which incidentally he had no interest in whatsoever on any of our flights. Our longest flight leg was first: Phoenix to London (delayed) at about nine hours then London to Munich (after two delays – this airline rarely is on time). Our initial flight was an over night flight which worked in our favor. We did as so many websites recommended and prepared our son for “bed” by "bathing" him prior to boarding, putting his pajamas on and having his evening time “movie” on as soon as we got on the plane (for some reason our son had no interest in his usual bed-time-book-read-a-thon like we do at home). Our little guy fell asleep 1 ½ hours into the flight and although he did not sleep his usual ten to eleven hours he did sleep very comfortably in his carseat for five hours.

Speaking of the carseat… the question was to bring it or not? We decided to bring the carseat on the plane for safety reasons as well as comfort. After all, we have a hard time sleeping in airplane seats therefore how much more uncomfortable can it be for a baby who has to be strapped in perhaps due to turbulence-- which happened frequently? Turbulence actually became my friend, for when there was turbulence my son would have me rub his tummy and he would close his eyes…and go to sleep. To make traveling with the carseat, stroller and carry-ons easier we purchased the Traveling Toddler Carseat Travel Accessory. It is a little strap that allowed us to attach the carseat to one of the rolling carry-ons and either pull just the carseat or the carseat with our son in it!

Speaking of carry-ons – how many suitcases does one family really need? For our family of three we were allowed three carry-ons and three checked bags, but did we really need that much. When we traveled in the past we always ended up packing too much and with each consecutive trip we’d say “we will not pack as much”…and we don’t, but still end up with more than we needed. I had read somewhere a wise person said “lay everything out you think you will need on your trip then take half of it away.” I tried that and still took too much. We took two large suitcases (with a hiking backpack inside), two carry-ons, but checked one, and the stroller. Our son never played with any of the toys we brought except the small “surprises” given along the way. As for all of the books we brought? Well, as I mentioned earlier he had no interest in reading so those books just ended up being extra weight. I packed very few clothes for myself – eight shirts (more than I needed) two jeans, one skirt, two dresses, two sweaters, running shoes, one pair of sandals, and my converse. Yet, it was still more than necessary (for the record my husband decided to pack really light and he ran out of clothes ;). As for the baby? Of course I packed to cover two changes of clothing each day – again, more than necessary, since we ended up needing to find a self-service laundry mat due to a major bladder leak incident in the stroller while in Italy. Which only made me realize that doing the laundry on vacation was not really as intrusive as hauling around too much luggage. On our Italy leg of our vacation we traveled very light with the large backpack (husband wore), laptop bag (I wore), baby-bag (in stroller basket), carry-on (husband pulled) and stroller (I pushed), however by the end of our Italy adventure we realized two large backpacks would have worked better than the carry-on (sidewalks in Italy were not made for rolling suitcases just Roman soldiers).

Overall the traveling portion of our vacation was not that bad. Our son survived all flights reasonably well. Sadly our flight back was not as smooth as our flights to Europe. Unfortunately, due to the aforementioned strike we were stuck with no flights back to our city, departure time rescheduled two days later, three connections in one day, one missed flight, three delays, and a total of 21 hours of traveling. As a side note during our ordeal I heard a man on our flight say that back in his day there was a saying “if you have time to spare go by air, if you really have to get there… take a car.” I wish we would have taken the car.

Florence... Not for Toddlers (or husbands who can't stand noise)

During my research on Italy I had read somewhere that "Florence is not for children." This statement was made by a Florentine woman who urged traveler's not to bring their children there. Unfortunately, we ignored that advice. Florence is beautiful, but the sidewalks are not made for strollers (they were made for Roman soldiers), our BumbleRide barely fit, and we often had to get off the sidewalk because the mopeds and cars were partially on the sidewalks (I felt really bad for the guy pusing the double stroller). In addition to small sidewalks it was incredibly noisy. I believe there must be more cars in Florence than there are in all of Italy. Unfortunately, both husband and child are very averse to noise so suffice to say both were miserable in the city. Fortunately on our 2nd day we found a playground across the Arno on Via della Fonderia just west of the Piazza Taddeo Gaddi which was bordered by the river and thus a little quieter.

I can honestly say if you are planning a trip make sure you and your spouse are on the same page when it comes to expectations. I knew it was going to be chaotic in the city, but did not expect anyone in my family to be miserable. And they were. Can you imagine walking on streets hundreds and hundreds of years old, seeing history in buildings and sculptures, not to mention all the shopping...and seeing it with two completely unhappy and unfazed people (well what could I expect from a three year old)? So there it was...we had to leave Florence and fast.

Prior to leaving the hotter-than-hell-state-of-Arizona we discussed how we would get around Europe especially getting to Florence, Italy. We decided train would be the best way to travel since our toddler despised being in his carseat for any length of time and traveling by train would be fun for him as well as interactive. However, after figuring out that Florence was pretty freaking far from Regensburg, Germany, as in 12-hours-on-a-train-far, and the same cost as flying we decided to fly to Florence and take the train thereafter. So, there we were in Florence, toddler unhappy and husband (sometimes like a toddler) unhappy as well needing a fast train out of 'Dodge.' We decided to head for a medieval-like town, Lucca, with preserved ramparts (walls) surrounding it. I had read about it on the Internet while searching for places to visit and it sounded like a lovely place to stay since cars were limited within the walls and walking was the highest rated activity.