Parenting – Lifestyle by Jenny

Indoor Toddler Activities Part 2

Hey hey hey! I have gotten several requests for M O R E indoor activites to do with toddlers, so ask and you shall receive! This is a follow up to a previous post, so check that out for more ideas.

Make smoothies together – Emmeline LOVES being in the kitchen. Something we’ve been making a lot of recently is smoothies and smoothie popsicles. We got some popsicle molds as a gift, but they’re available on amazon. We have broken one of them because you have to be extra gentle when taking the popsicle out. What we use to make our smoothie pops varies based on what we have on hand, but we usually use frozen strawberries, spinach, yogurt (usually strawberry flavored), and whatever type of milk we have on hand (usually cashew or oat milk). Sometimes we use orange juice instead of we have it. Smoothies are easy for kids to make, because they can throw it all in the blender and start it almost completely independently.

Rainbow Rhythms – I learned this one at a play therapy training recently and have tried it out with Emmeline. You need a big piece of paper, or cardboard, and some markers. Have your little sit in the middle, and then make arcs around their body, back and forth, using as many colors as they want. Crossing your arms over your heart is naturally rhythmic and calming, so there’s a secondary gain from doing this one.

Sensory Bins – There are a million different ways to do a sensory bin, which is perfect because it’s easy to switch it up. I like using cloud dough, because Emmeline can help make it, and then throwing in a random assortment of toys to play with. I usually set her up next to the kitchen to play while I either clean or cook dinner. If I use cloud dough, the toys usually need to be rinsed after, so Emmeline gives them a bath afterwards! Check out my sensory bin pinterest board for more ideas.

Scavenger Hunt – Draw or write things for your kiddo to find around the house! If they are a little older and you trust them with your phone or a tablet, they can take pictures of what they find. Otherwise, a good old fashioned checkbox works well too!

Paper Tube Monsters – Since we all are apparently stocking up on toilet paper and paper towel because of the corona virus (too soon??), save those tubes to make monsters! You can paint them or staple construction paper onto them, and then use googley eyes, feathers, pipe cleaners, whatever else you have in an arts and crafts bin, and make little monsters! Toddlers love exploring how to use a glue stick, so let them create and explore!

Let me know what activities your littles liked!

Our Not So Relaxing Vacation

We just got home from weekend trip to Minneapolis. Several times during the weekend, my husband and I commented to each other how much more pleasant this trip was compared to our last trip. Our three year old was very well-behaved and we were actually able to relax, more than once if you can believe it.

Several months ago, we took a week-long trip to Portland, Oregon. Once we got back, I posted a poll on my stories asking if people wanted to hear about our not so relaxing vacation, and it was a 100% yes. I had started to write it, but found it kind of a bummer to write. Then work got busy, the holidays came and before I knew it, it was time for another trip.

With this last trip to Minneapolis going so well, I want to start this blog post by saying things do change and get better. And maybe next time we will have more difficulties, but those difficulties will look different than our trip to Portland. So, don’t feel discouraged by my experience or your own experiences. Things will improve!

While we were in Portland, there were two main issues: the time change (two hours behind) and sleep. They are kind of the same issue, but ultimately the time change messed up our sleep schedule, and for some reason, we were never able to remedy this situation. Whenever we travel, we stick to our normal routine as best as we can, meaning we try to stick to normal meal times, quiet time and bedtime routines. We did that, and it did not seem to matter. Emmeline would fight bedtime, usually finally falling asleep around 9pm, which would be 11pm our time, and waking up every. single. morning. at 5am. Then, because she woke up so early, she needed a nap by 9am or 10am. We tried doing naps at the airbnb, but it just wasn’t working. I think she was too distracted by the new environment. We resorted to car naps, and she’d usually sleep for about an hour in the morning. We then usually had an activity planned, and she would need another nap in the afternoon. The cycle would continue; the afternoon nap would throw off her bedtime routine, she’d then be up early and our day would start over. Three days into our vacation we were totally exhausted. Not only was she up early, but she also would be up one or two times every night. It was the most broken sleep we’ve gotten since she was a baby. We decided to take a day trip to Seattle, which is a three hour drive. This is what finally helped fix our sleep issue somewhat. She slept most of the way to Seattle, and then slept most of the way back. Despite having so much sleep during the day, she easily went down for bedtime. I also think she slept until a glorious 6am the next morning. After that, our sleep was overall much better, which helped reduce meltdowns during the day.

Speaking of meltdowns, that was the other thing that made our trip difficult. I feel like we went on vacation during the perfect storm; she was 3 years and 3 months at the time, and behaviorally, she was very challenging. She wanted to do everything by herself, she did not want to listen to rules, she pushed boundaries and just… was a 3 year old. In hindsight, we would not have done such a big trip at this stage. I think it was just too much. Also, we realized we forgot to pack her tablet on the way to the airport, with no time to turn around and grab it. She doesn’t get a ton of tablet time, but it would have been nice to use it as a reward during this trip.

The high of the trip: Going to Oaks Amusement Park and having virtually the place to ourselves; hardly having to wait in lines. Emmeline rode a TON of rides and we all had a blast.

The low of the trip: Emmeline crying and screaming at the top of her lungs in the middle because she had a bad dream (that’s what we pieced together, anyway) and nothing my husband and I did calmed her down, which led to me crying as well.

How we survived: We bribed with WAY more treats and toys than we would have normally (live and learn). We also tried our best to run her down every day so she’d sleep at night. We took her to the park before we went to any restarant. My husband and I took turns watching her so the other could get at least a few quiet moments.

Have you had a bad trip when traveling with kids? Let me know your experience in the comments!

This Working Momma Needed a Staycation

I’m wrapping up two weeks off of work. This is the second year in a row I have taken two weeks off. I’m lucky that I have the availability to do this. Last year, we went to Austin, Texas for a portion of the two weeks. So, this is my first ever two week staycation. The idea of a staycation mostly came from wanting to save money, but it turned out to be the best idea ever.

We decided to keep our daughter on her regular daycare schedule, so for three days each week she was at daycare. This gave me several days to do what I wanted, which is something I don’t think I’ve experienced since having her. To be able to lay on the couch and watch The Office was a dream. I took baths in the middle of the day. I made soup. I went out for day dates with my husband. I went to the gym. I read. I bought new books. I worked on my blog. I started a bullet journal. I was able to actually, fully, relax, which I would not have been able to do if we traveled. In fact, we took a weekend trip to Minneapolis and while we had a blast and Emmeline did great, it was the most stressful time of my staycation. I think it was just navigating a city I’m not familiar with and natural travel stress.

The best part my staycation, hands down, was getting to be a mom. I got to take my girl to gymnastics and to dance class. I did daycare drop offs. I took her to her dentist appointment. We ran errands together and did the grocery shopping. All of these things probably sound boring, or exhausting if you’re a stay at home mom, but they are things I rarely get to do because of my work schedule. My daughter is young but growing so fast. I loved getting to do regular mom things more than anything. These small things together ended up being the time I wanted to freeze the most, and the reason why I think more staycations are in my future.

Thanks for reading! I hope it encourages you to find ways to relax, too.

5 Elf on the Shelf Ideas for Toddlers

It’s that time of year again! Yep, the time where every night you’re ready to go to bed and then remember, oh yeah… that elf. If you’re anything like me, you have all of these great thoughts and ideas, but are too busy to actually plan for them. It basically leaves me scrambling to be creative before bedtime. Well, I have 5 simple elf ideas to help you for those nights you’re in a pinch.

Playing with toys – this is my go to whenever I can’t think of anything. I just dig around her toys and put a scene together. Simple and doesn’t require any planning – a win win for me.

Roasting marshmallows – I don’t know why, since we never really eat marshmallows, but I seem to always have a few in a bag in the back of the pantry. You could also use cotton balls!

Tangled up in dental floss – who doesn’t have floss from the dentist laying around? Now you can finally put it to use!

Cooking breakfast – If you still have some Halloween candy, throw some in either your play kitchen set or I’ve seen elves on the actual stove.

Climbing the curtains – super easy and still looks like your elf was up to something!

Ultimately, your kid won’t even know if you don’t have the most creative and intricate elf on the shelf idea ever. They’re likely going to be excited no matter what your elf does! I also think if you’re excited about the elf and whatever the elf is doing, your kid is likely to feed off of your energy and be excited to!

Good luck with those elves!

Diverse Toys for Toddlers

When I was in undergrad, I minored in African American studies. I got into this minor for two reasons. First, I love African American literature, especially Toni Morrison. Also, due to not being able to get into a core class for my major for a year (I swear this has to be a conspiracy so you spend more money), I had basically a whole year to fill. So I picked up this minor and in one of classes, my professor talked about how important it is to fill children’s toy boxes with a diverse toy selection, so that when they engage in imaginative play, their world is diverse. And since imaginative play is a part of our development as children, it makes sense that introducing this early helps raise tolerant and, to be fully 2019, woke little humans.

This is something I try to do with Emmeline, who is 3. And I have to admit, if I’m not paying attention, we suddenly have 10 white Barbies and 1 African American Barbie. With the holidays coming up, I thought I’d put together some different options for diversifying your play room! Also, I realized while writing this that I am not as familiar with traditionally “boy” toys or shows, and a lot of what I included is based off of my daughter’s likes. I tried doing some research, but it seems like there is less diversity amongst action figures and other traditional “boy” toys. With that being said, playing with dolls is important for all genders, so please don’t shy away from this list! I would also love to hear your feedback on other multicultural toys, as this is not an all-inclusive list.

Barbies

I know a lot of people have thoughts on Barbies, but my daughter LOVES them, and I loved playing with them when I was young too. What’s important to me now as a parent is gathering as much diversity as I can for my daughter’s collection. Thankfully Barbie is working on being more diverse, so it’s a little easier than in the 90s. Below are three links to different options. I chose career-based Barbies because as a mom to a young girl, I want her to see women in different careers.

Pediatrician Barbie

Nurse Barbie

Robotics Engineer Barbie

Dolls

Looking for some dolls for your child’s doll house? Hape makes different family sets, plus they have cute doll houses if you’re looking for one of those, too!

Hape Wooden Doll Family

If you’re thinking about picking up a baby doll, consider buying one of a different ethnicity. There are far too many blonde Caucasian baby dolls out there, but there typically are other options available. At Target, for instance, I’ve been able to find African American baby dolls easily. On Amazon, I found a baby doll you can purchase in four different ethnicities. Find it here.

TV and Movie Charactions

As TV continues to become more diverse, you can find more toys that remind kids of their favorite shows and continue to let it sink into their subconscious that we live in a multicultural world. Here are some Amazon links for some favorite characters:

Nella the Princess Knight

Miss Elaina

Elena of Avalor

Pru from Spirit Riding Free

Go Diego Go

Dora the Explorer

Doc McStuffins

Books

Books are another way to educate kids without explicity saying things. Having picture books with diverse characters is just as important as having a variety of toys. I found a great list of picture books on Imagination Soup.

Hopefully this list is helpful! Toys are such an easy way to introduce diversity to young kids. Happy shopping!

Let’s Stop Saying “Sleep Through The Night”

When my husband and I were preparing for the birth of our daughter, something we both understood is that we would be sleep deprived for a little while. Looking back, I realize how naive we were that our daughter would eventually start sleeping through the night, and then that would be that. So, when she was about two and half months and suddenly started sleeping through the night, every night, I was relieved. I thought, wow.. we made it! That wasn’t so bad.

I was so unbelievably wrong.

Around four months, Emmeline started waking up every half hour to an hour. This lasted for five entire months. It started to improve around nine months and has slowly gotten better ever since. She’s almost three, and while there have been bouts of regressions and bad nights, she usually only wakes once per night. On the rare occasion, and I can count them on one hand in the past year, she will actually sleep through the night.

Being a full-time working mom, this sleep schedule has been rough on me. During months four through nine, I was asked almost constantly by family, friends, coworkers that famous question: “Is she sleeping through the night yet?” Sometimes, I would just straight out lie, because the second I said no and that we were co-sleeping, I got unsolicited advice that we needed to stop co-sleeping and sleep train.

(Now if sleep training is for you, that’s fine, but it never seemed like a good fit for our family. I also don’t feel convinced that it helps with secure attachment, so we didn’t do it. My husband and I, to this day, despite still not getting 8 hours a night, believe this was the right decision for us.)

During that blurry first year of motherhood, I realized how annoying the question “is she sleeping through the night yet?” is. I felt constantly like I was doing something wrong. I would read about how most babies sleep through the night between six and nine months (usually in the middle of the night while tending to Emmeline) and, again, this would just make me feel like I was doing something wrong. Every time someone would ask me about her sleeping, it was like a constant reminder that she wasn’t sleeping through the night, and, probably because I have anxiety, would trigger thoughts like I wasn’t doing a good job or there was something wrong.

Eventually, though, I just started to feel like it was no one’s business how she sleeps. And the more I thought about it, the more I realized that to expect a small infant to sleep through the night, when I don’t always sleep through the night, is crazy. Once I stopped being fixated on if she was sleeping through the night or not and instead focused on meeting whatever need she was asking for at 3 AM (usually milk), I stopped being so frustrated with myself. I think sleeping through the night is something that is talked about a lot regarding babies, and I really think we need to stop worrying about it. Your child will have good nights and bad nights. That is what makes us all human.

Emmeline will be three in May, and right now, she’s doing pretty good on her sleep. I try to enjoy the nights that go well. I also try to remember on the bad nights that all of this will eventually pass. There will come a time she doesn’t need me in the night, or is too old to co-sleep, and I’ll miss those 3 AM snuggles.

From one sleepy family to another, we see you, and we will all get some sleep soon (right?! right).

xoxo,

Jenny

Our Favorite Indoor Activities

Winter in Wisconsin has not been our friend this year. I’ll be honest, it’s never my friend, but this year has been brutal. There have been several snowed in days, snow days from work/daycare, and cold AF days (thanks, polar vortex). I’m writing this on what seems like the 100th day this winter we’ve been stuck inside.

Keeping a toddler occupied in itself is quite a task. Mix in days where you don’t leave the house and it can turn into a three ringed circus. My husband and I are often sad we didn’t stock up on more wine after long days of being stuck indoors.

I follow a few instragram accounts geared at ideas for toddlers, as well as a lot of other moms. I’ve tried out a few activities from their accounts, articles online, and my own imagination. Here are some of Emmeline’s favorites:

Pom pom soup: This is by far Emmeline’s favorite activity. Sometimes she’ll spend 45 minutes to an hour by herself (!!!!) doing this activity. It’s overall really simple to put together and requires little effort on my part, which is perfect for me. Idea is from @busytoddlers on instagram: https://www.instagram.com/busytoddler/

Box decorating: This is a simple one, but Emmeline loves coloring old cardboard boxes! Kids… haha. We will put out a variety of different markers, stickers and maybe glue and feathers, googly eyes, glitter, and whatever else I have extra of (only if I’m doing this with her, otherwise it’s just stickers and markers). I like to get the big boxes and stick her inside of it. She will decorate it while I clean the kitchen, so it’s a win-win!
Bowling: We saved a bunch of bottles and put a little rice in the bottom to weigh them down. Emmeline loves trying to knock them down with a ball (which usually turns into her just knocking them down and picking them back up, again and again). This is another one of her favorites and it is, again, cheap and simple.
Help out around the house: There comes a point in the day where I try to get things done, and it is so difficult with a little one who wants all your attention. I like to give her special chores or ask her to help me. She helps mix things in the kitchen and (sometimes) I let her chop veggies with a kid-safe knife we got from amazon (buy it here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002Q5YH9C/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o09__o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1). That way I can get our meal prep done and clean the kitchen. When I’m folding the laundry, I ask her to help me sort or match socks (she’ll be three in May and seems to be at the PERFECT age for matching socks right now). I’ll just throw everyone’s socks in a pile and she’ll match them for me. Sometimes she’ll put them away too; other times she destroys all the piles I’ve created. I take what I can get sometimes.
Forts: My husband is the king of forts and loves creating them. Emmeline helps and then loves to hide and play in them. He breaks down pants hangers and uses the clips to clip the blankets together or clip the blankets to tables/other furniture. (We also use them as chip clips!)
Cloud dough: There are a lot of recipes for this on the internet. I use 2 cups flour and 1/4 vegetable oil. You can add a little more oil if you want more structure to the dough. Emmeline uses her play kitchen cups and we build towers. It doubles as a sensory activity, so bonus!
Painting: Emmeline loves being creative and especially loves painting. It’s a little bit of work to set up and clean up, but if she’s in a good mood she’ll paint for a while. I also try to mix it up between free paint or doing an activity I found online. Sometimes I like to find all different things for her to use instead of paintbrushes (cut up sponges, cotton balls, toilet paper tubes.. whatever I have around!) and let her go crazy.
Tablet: I think electronics get such a bad rap. Obviously kids should not spend all day on them, but technology is going to be a part of her future, and I believe to keep up with the changes, she needs to regularly use it. I get that some people will disagree, but that is what my husband and I are comfortable with. I think every parent should do what they think is best, so don’t take my two cents too seriously. We try to limit her tablet time to 30-60 minutes a day, and I usually use it when I need to get something done and she’s not having it. It’s also really handy when I need to shower. PBS kids has a great app and it’s free. There are a ton of games for each show. Emmeline loves the Daniel Tiger games on there.
Toy rotation: Most of Emmeline’s toys are stored in our play room. But we do have a train set that was gifted to us and it’s quite extensive (it’s two big totes full and a smaller tote full!!). There just isn’t room to store the set in our play room, so it’s in the basement. Since it’s down there, she doesn’t play with it that often. I’ll put it out and set up a huge train track on snow days/long days and it’ll keep her occupied. I also have tried pulling out toys she doesn’t play with that often to refresh her play.
Change it up: This is similar to rotating the toys, but on long days I’ll take her in her room with some toys to play instead of the play room, or we’ll take a bath in the middle of the day instead of before bedtime. Switching up the routine helps our day from feeling so monotonous.
Shaving cream bath: Speaking of bath time, Emmeline likes when she gets to paint in the bath with shaving cream. I just add a few drops of food coloring and let her go crazy. It is one of her favorites for sure. Busy Toddler on instagram also has some great ideas for bath time: https://www.instagram.com/busytoddler/
Snow play: I believe I saw this one first on The Lean Green Bean’s insta, but I know I’ve seen it all over. Instead of going outside in the snow, I’ll bring in a few containers full and let her play with in. I’ll toss a bunch of random stuff in the snow, like little figurines or legos, or shovels, or even a few kitchen utensils, like measuring cups, spoons, plastic cups. https://www.instagram.com/theleangreenbean/
Play doh: A classic toy, I know, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t work. We keep our play doh hidden and we only play with it at the kitchen island, so I love to pull it out while I’m working on something or cooking. I also have a ton of cookie cutters that I’ll give her to use with her play doh.

For a lot of these activities, we use an old duvet cover that we spread out on the floor for her to use. I call it her activity mat and will say, “let’s get out your activity mat!” And she then goes running through the house shouting “activity mat! activity mat! activity mat!” It helps her get excited and makes what we’re doing a little more special.

Of course, there is also always playing with toys, hide and seek, chasing each other around the house, putting on concerts and lots of tea parties at our house.

I hope this list helps! And may your coffee be strong (and if you’re lucky, hot) on the days we’re stuck inside.

xoxo,

Jenny

Mommy & Me Photo Session

My friend Samantha, owner of Samantha Ramsdell Photography, took some pictures of my daughter and I… and I am SO in love with them! We tried to schedule this a few different weekends, but the weather was not cooperating (thanks, polar vortex 2019). We finally got a sunny Saturday, but it was still pretty cold. I think it was around 8 degrees that morning. My husband came with us and kept the car warm and running for us to take breaks and warm up. He also acted as official smile-getter, blanket-carrier and hair fixer… what a guy.

Funny story, we had family pictures taken about 10 months ago, right before Emmeline turned 2. My friend, Leah, took those photos (some of them are on my blog!). While we were taking a break in the warm car, Emmeline kept asking where Leah went. I was confused why she was calling Samantha Leah, but then I remembered Leah was the last person to take our photos. I’m not saying my baby is a genius, but that’s exactly what I’m saying.

Outfit details:

-My jacket: Northface

-My hat: Blue Elephant Boutique

-Emmeline’s jacket: Oshkosh B’gosh

-Emmeline’s hat: Lila & Beth

-Emmeline’s boots: Target

Check out Samantha’s website: http://www.samantharamsdellphotography.com

Thank you, Sam!

My Favorite Therapy Resources

I am a full-time working momma, and while I definitely think of parenting my daughter as my #1 job, I absolutely love what I do for a career. I am a trauma therapist, working with anyone from little kiddos up to the elderly. My absolute favorite population to work with, though, are children and adolescents. What I have found, however, is that therapy for children looks a lot different from therapy for adults. Additionally, there seems to be fewer resources for working with children than adults. In grad school, there was only one class that focused on working with children and adolescents, and it was not a required course. All of my other classes focused on adults. So when I started working with kids, I realized that I needed a lot of support and ideas in order for me to be effective.

My home office. Almost everything is from Target or Home Goods.

I have done a lot of research and compiled a list of my favorite sites/books/resources I use when I’m looking for ideas for therapy. Pro-tip: I believe a lot of therapeutic interventions are also great parenting strategies, so don’t be afraid to use some of these ideas with your kids!

Creativity in Therapy: Carolyn’s blog is mostly art-therapy focused, but there are so many great ideas I’ve used on here again and again. One of my all time favorites is the castle activity; I seriously use it all the time. Also, I’m not a very artsy person, so I really like the guidance. http://creativityintherapy.com
Paper Dolls and Paper Airplanes: Therapeutic Exercises for Sexually Tramatized Children book by Geraldine Crisci, Marilynn Lay and Liana Lowenstein: This book is one of my go to’s when looking for activities to address sexual abuse and sexual trauma. It has activities for every phase of therapy which I find really helpful. I got mine off of amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Paper-Dolls-Airplanes-Therapeutic-Traumatized/dp/1558641297

Picture from my instastories: jenniferlynn.1029

Liana Lowenstein: Liana has a website with tons of information and resources, including a 60 page free e-book with a lot of activities. It is broken down into the different stages of therapy and includes activities for individual, family and group therapy sessions. I have used the lighthouse activity more times than I can count and it is so insightful and helpful! https://www.lianalowenstein.com
Creative Counseling 101: This website has a few free e-books and talks about play therapy, sand tray therapy, and art therapy. https://www.creativecounseling101.com/
Listening to my Body by Gabi Garcia. This is one of my favorite books to use in therapy with kids. I’ve used it with a variety of ages (7-14) and most kids find it engaging and interactive. It has short activities included so kids can try out the skill the book is talking about. I got mine off of amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Listening-Body-understand-connection-sensations/dp/099895800X

Listening to my Body book. Also included is An Adventure Into the Mind, which I use a lot for brainspotting. Picture is from my instastories: jenniferlynn.1029

Positive Psychology Program: This websites gives a good description of what therapy for children looks like and how it helps, along with ideas for activities and handouts! I love using Bubble Breaths and the Slow Motion Game (great for kids with little or no self-control!) https://positivepsychologyprogram.com/child-therapy/
Art Therapy Spot: Sara has a lot of great ideas for art therapy on her site. I love the Resist(ance) and Watercolor activity and kids think it’s really neat! https://arttherapyspot.com

Picture of Resist(ance) and Watercolor activity. Picture from my instastories: jenniferlynn.1029

Pintrest: check out my pintrest board for more ideas: https://www.pinterest.com/littlecitylivinglifestyle/therapy-ideas/

I am hoping to eventually post some of the creative ideas I’ve come up with in therapy, so stay tuned!

xoxo,
Jenny

Traveling with a Toddler

My husband and I recently took our 2 and a half year old daughter on vacation to Austin, Texas. It was not our first family vacation (we’ve done a HUGE road trip and a lot of smaller road trips), BUT it was our first time flying with her.

I researched a lot and prepped for this trip hoping it would make everything easier for us. Overall, our trip went great! Things went smooth and we were able to enjoy ourselves. I thought I would post my tips for traveling with a toddler.

Planning out the travel days: When we started looking at tickets, it was a little overwhelming to try and chose what would work best for traveling. We didn’t know if we should schedule a flight for when she’s normally napping, or if that would cause chaos if she didn’t nap. We also wanted to have enough time in between flights, but not so much that she’d get bored. We ultimately flew out early (7 AM flight) with 2.5 hours between flights. This worked out so well! I feel like she was more compliant in the morning due to being tired, and the business and newness of the airport kept her busy so when we took off, she fell asleep 5 minutes into the flight. We couldn’t have asked for better luck. I realize some kids might not do well in the mornings, but it overall worked really well for us on the way there and on the way back.

Being prepared for the flight: My husband and I bought our daughter a few new, small toys. They included: a new coloring book, an old school doodle board, My Little Pony figurines, a toy airplane, and a magic marker activity book. We packed her backpack full and didn’t open it until we were on the plane. Our first flight was about 2.5 hours and she slept for the first hour and a half, so during the last hour we kept her busy by pulling out new toys and activities. We didn’t even make it through the backpack by the end of the first flight! We also brought our tablet that we had downloaded a new movie onto. We decided to wait until the last minute for the tablet, and ended up not even needing it during the flights to Austin. We did use it on the way back. We also had a back of (mostly) healthy snacks and tried to get things we don’t normally buy for the house (we had goldfish crackers, Paw Patrol graham crackers, Lara Bars, applesauce, beef sticks, and yogurt).

Airbnb: We stayed at an Airbnb and got an entire two bedroom house to ourselves. I think this is what helped us feel the most relaxed as opposed to being cramped in a hotel room. It also saved us some money, as we cooked at least one meal a day at the house as opposed to eating out.

Kid-friendly activities: This probably sounds obvious, but we packed our days with things for our daughter: trips to the park, the zoo, the aquarium, trampoline parks… I googled around and found fun things to do for our girl each day. Also, she was young enough for car naps, so we packed our days full and let her nap in our rental car as we drove around and explored. BONUS: Austin had a lot of restaurants with a playground/backyard area. We sipped some drinks at Docs Backyard in the afternoon at while our daughter played. It was perfect!

Pep talks: I gave myself a lot of pep talks before we ventured out for the day or if I noticed I was getting frustrated when she wasn’t listening or having a temper tantrum. I tried to remind myself that she’s experiencing so many new things AND trying to flex her independence. Reminding myself she was out of her element and taking a deep breath helped so much. When I am calm, she seems able to calm down sooner. PS: I use this technique in my daily parenting too!

I’m certainly no expert, just one momma doing her best to enjoy some parts of the vacation! Minimal stress was our goal and I think we achieved that!

What are some of your travel tips when traveling with a young kiddo?

xoxo

Jenny