A Trial Trip to Los Angeles - Part II

Continue from previous post: A Trial Trip to Los Angeles - Part I

4. Travel gear - The first thing we have to deal with is the Drake's mobility. Currently we have a Uppababy Vista stroller, Ergo Baby carrier, and Baby Buddha sling. The stroller is too bulky. The sling or the carrier is compact, but a 20lb baby can be hard on the back after awhile.

I started researching light weight travel strollers for when we are tired of back carrying Drake. Aside from the typical stuff, I found this interesting car seat stroller combo. The Lilly Gold Sit n' Stroll is a stroller that converts into a car seat. I thought this will be so great when we rent a car to get around in Uluru however the car seat is only safety rated in the USA.

Our friend who has travelled with his baby extensively highly recommended the Kelty baby backpack.
It is a much more appropriate back carrier for our trip. I didn't think we needed another one until I found Kelty also made a backpack that converts into a stroller. Unfortunately, they have discontinued it so I turned to the good old Craigslist and found one that was really good condition for only 100 bucks.


We were pretty excited to try it out.

Pros:

• It was super light weight at only over 9 lbs. It also suppose to be able to hold up to 50 lbs.
• It was comfortable on the back with a good support.  Hubby took Drake out for a morning stroll everyday. 
• Its overall shape is upright instead of diagonally which meant it took up less space when in or moving through crowds.
• It acted as a high chair very well. Perfect height and didn't have to take Drake in and out in restaurants.
• Good under carriage space. We were able to store water, neck pillow and both of our jackets.

Cons:

• It didn't fold as well as traditional travel stroller. Only the handle part was foldable. It took up half of the space in our car trunk. But we didn't have any issue checking it at the gate of our flight.
• It didn't turn very well. It was great going in a straight line. But if I wanted to be agile and make quick and sharp turns, it was nearly impossible.  It took a bit to get use to.
• The stroller was only recommended for babies who could sit upright on their own which explains the lack of back support. I used a neck pillow to solve this issue. Drake was able to catch some Z's in it but didn't look all that comfortable to me. Then again I am not a baby.

Speaking of which, the second thing is Drake's sleeping arrangement. The three popular choices seem to be Kidco Peapod, Baby Bjorn and Phil&;Teds. The Peapod was recalled in November due a case of tragic infant suffocation death.  Although I believe it was a freak accident, I decided not to go with Peapod because it folds into a circle which is an awkward shape to fit into a backpack, suitcase or a overhead compartment.  Baby Bjorn has the same issue.  It folds into a shape of a large suit case.  It also had no side access.

Phil&Teds recently upgraded the crib from 9 lbs to only 7 lbs.  It hasn't gone on sale and unknown when they will go on sale.  With our travel date approaching fast, we decided to just get the Traveller II.

Pros:

• It is the most light weight and compact travel crib on the market.  It folded into a small tub shape that can fit into anything easily.  
• Once set up, it is almost as big as a regular crib.
• The side opening was really good to have if I wanted to lay down next to Drake before he falls asleep.
• It kept the light out relatively well (although the new design takes away this feature with all mesh sides).
• I just love the chic design

Cons:

• It took awhile (10 minutes) to put it together and take it apart and pack.

Before this trial trip, we asked for advice from friends about traveling with kids. They all gave us good ideas and suggestions.  However every child is different, your friends' experience isn't necessarily going to be the same as yours.  That is why we needed to do a trial trip.  We really didn't end up doing too much sightseeing.  We didn't have to deal with jet lag.  But we are still so glad we did it. We got to know our son much better.  Hopefully it will come in handy when it is time for our big China and Australia trip.

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Location:Vancouver

A Trial Trip to Los Angeles - Part I

We are planning a 5 week long trip to China and Australia with our son Drake but in the past 6 months one thing I have learn is that babies can be a bit unpredictable. They are in a constant state of change (and that is also why they are so amazing!). Hubby and I decided to do a trial trip to Los Angeles over the long weekend to help us and Drake better prepare for the big one.

Here is what we learn during the trip.

1. Airport - Learning the airport routine was the major reason for us taking this trial trip.  I feel much more relaxed now I know:

• I have to take Drake out of stroller and hold him through the metal detector while his stroller is being examined.  
• There is a security line up especially for families.
• Traveling with a baby means pre-broading. This may seems trivia but I didn't expect how much of a stress defuser it was! You don't have to fight for overhead cabin space and tons of time to get settled.
• Do diaper change before boarding. The lavatory on the plane was small and had no changing table. Of course for our long flight the lavatory will not be avoidable, but at least we will minimized the time in there.
• Wait to feed until on board, well, during take off.  This will help with the ear thing. 

2. Sleeping with noise - A few weeks before the trip, we started played music while Drake napped. My favourite is the World Beat channel on one of the cable channels.  We stayed in Venice Beach which was very noise with cars going by and people singing and yelling during the day, Drake had very little trouble napping through all that.

We downloaded an App called White Noise that played airplane noise and we would play the App while Drake fell asleep every night. Both of flights we took were night flights.  Drake had a little trouble falling asleep going to LA, but still managed to get some sleep.  It was his first flight after all!  Coming back he was an angel, slept the whole time including taking off and landing.  The ironic thing was he woke up only once and it was due to the guy sitting behind me clearing his throat really loudly every 5 or 10 minutes.

3. Packing - We brought 4 outfits, 2 pjs, and 5 bibs for the 3 day weekend.  Drake only went through 3 outfits, 1 pjs and 4 bibs.  Of course it is always good to have extras.  I brought a rubber bib (to put on top of the cloth bib) for feeding time which was great in saving Drake's outfits.

We only packed one toy for Drake. There were already a lot of new things and people for Drake to look at that we didn't need tons of toys to keep him amused.  One thing we were really glad we did is keep the toy on a string.  The string simply kept the toy from dropping on the ground.  It was especially helpful on the plane!  No more smushing my face against the food tray while fishing around blindly on the oh-so-clean airplane carpet looking for the toy that Drake wants to place in his mouth constantly.

We also made sure we packed Drake's sleeping blanket. Whenever I cover Drake with his blue fluffy doggy blanket he knows it is sleepy time.  On route to LA he was being a Mr. Screaming Pants but as soon as we put the blanket on him he calmed down and fell asleep. One or two items of comfort and familiarity was a must for Drake.

To be continued...