Can other Mnetters help me persuade my DH re holidays

[knot]

We would really like to have an overseas holiday but now we have Ds are worried especially about the following and i wonder what everyone else does wehn they go abroad because at this rate we are nwever going to go abroad again which is making me very very sad and i know thta i will end up resenting ds.
i really want to go to portuagal so not that far.

1. How do you sterilize bottles and make up formula
2. do you take loads of nappies withh you or assume you can get some there
3. how do you eat out or is it self catering only
4. do you take your blender for purees or take jars>

thanks for your help

when dd was 18months old we took her to spain on a thomson's superfamily holiday.

They provided a microwave so sterlizing was easy - also prebookable fridges are availble if not self catering.

You could prebook nappys so they we're in your room/apartment on arrival - so we took so many for the first few days.

Spainish supermarkets we're pretty much like english ones and sold everything - jars / nappys wipes etc so any else that was needed was brough there.

what age is ds?

How old is your ds ?
I take enough nappies for a couple of days and then buy them there.
Depending on how old your ds is eating out is easy when they can handle finger food. I bought some jars / bananas / yoghurts locally last year in France for ds2 who was 8 months in case we got stuck, but chips / bread / omellettes / veg / lumps of meat etc are all easy for them, and its good to get them to try stuff they wouldn't have at home.

How young is your sony? Never been with a baby but...

1. Lots of countries don't have a sterilisation obsession like the UK anyway. If your baby is over 6 months wouldn't bother. Otherwise just boil up a pan of water and put things in for 5 mins.

2. You can get nappies abroad

3. Both? Imagine the Portugese love kids so can't imagine a problem to eat out.

4. Take a hand blender with an adapter plug?

Sorry about "Sony"

Ds is currently 6months and picky with food,

We had sterilising bags for bottles, spoons etc. Tommee Tippee and mothercare sued to do them. You add water to the bag (pre-measured tablets are already in there) and then just submerge the clean items. The solution lasts for 24 hours then you throw it away and start again. You can suspend it from shower or bath taps to keep it out of the way. Otherwise if you ahve access to a microwave you can get Lindam bags to which you add water and the bottles and do for a few minutes as and when you need to - they are good for about 20 times each.

We've never had a problem getting nappies although if you want a particular brand their availabiltity and size of pack does vary. (sometimes have brought more back than we took !) Take enough to tied you over for a few days while you get orientated .

Take a buggy/ carrier and either eat early if you want ds to join in, assuming he is on solids, or feed him as usual at room/apartment and take a walk out for a later leisurely meal. Some hotels would cater for younger guest with an early sitting and plainer food and some tour operators allow you to preorder baby packs of food, nappies etc and hire strollers and so on .

Depends on what stage of weaning you have reached. As long as food is not oversalted you could just mash up some of your meal but some countries don't serve vegetables with every main course which may mean jars or cooking in your accommodation would be better and just allow him to snack on some of your meal as finger food where appropriate.

hth

By the time you go away the baby will be older and hopefully less picky. I wouldn't worry too much about the nappy situation, but I would take jars, enough for one a day if you are worried. You can also take cartons of milk too. However as long as you can get a keetle you should be fine.

oooh the bags for sterilizing sound a good idea i will have to find out more

I'm sooooo happy following these response am getting a bit teary - cant wait to see dh tonight

Remember too that you will only be away for a week or 2 - and it doesn't hurt them for their routine to be disrupted for a short time! We took our dd to the US at 11 months. All she would eat / drink for 2 weeks were chips, pickled cucumber, ice cream and apple juice - and she was fine! (She reverted back to her normal diet as soon as we got home)

When I first had dd I had to sterilise in a hotel room. I had an icecream carton and tablets. As long as the tub has a lid and everything can fit submerged you will be fine (don't even need to buy bags) You can also use Evian water to make up bottles, no need to boil a kettle if you don't have one.

Unless you are thinking of camping in a field in teh middle of a bog I can't see why your dh has an issue. A good buggy and a bit of organisation and you'll be fine. What sort of holiday in Portugal do you want? A big UK company will supply you almost everything you need, get all teh 'family' brochures and shove them under his nose.

My husband has turned into MR CAUTIOUS so its what if

theres no supermarket
ds gets ill
the luggage doesnt get there
ds gets surnburnt
ds screams and ruins other peoples holidyas
the plane crashes
the list is endless
BTW - its only since ds has come along that this side of his personaity has appeareed

How does he ever get out of the house with your son?!
Unless you're in the middle of nowhere then there will always be shops - where do the locals shop?
I think if my dh came up with things like that I'd tell him to stay at home and go with ds.

OK

1. Supermarket - obviously you will ensure that there is a supermarket, if you are in a town there will be one, and even if you are in a little greek village there will be a shop that sells nappies.
2. Dr's exisit in foreign countrys too. Take Calpol, Piriton, Plasters and the like (rehydration tabs too if you are worried). Make sure you are insured and have an E111 if in europe 3)Make sure hand luggage has essentials for at least 24 - 48 hrs. a couple of bottle, a couple of jars of food, formula, nappies and clothes. After this you will get money to buy essentials if necessary
3. Slap on LOADS if suncream, total block, also have a beach parasol so he can be in teh shade to sleep. Have Siestas with hinm from 12 - 3.
4. Go self catering if you are worried about disturbing others, walls are thicker and you have more space to make noise (BTW children cry - don't know if anyone told your DH. They didn't tell my MIL who has just made our holiday hell for this reason!!)
5. Can't help on this one, except valium!! Seriously all parents think this and at least you'll go together is my reply! 6)All of these worries are normal, dh is still worried about flying especially since 9/11 so we won't be going to America for a while! It is important to be prepared and personally I would try to choose a holiday that is aimed at parents, this way everything will be geared up to help.

KNOT - I am sorry that your DH is not being as optimistic as you are over the idea of a holiday abroad. Does he border on a level of anxiety over your DS? I hope I'm not out of order asking. I just ask because that sort of anxiety and cautiousness is related to PND and it is now acknowledged that men can get PND as well.

Anyway, as for advise.... We took DD to France when she was 8 months old. We took the car, travelled by ferry and stayed in a self catering house.

1. How do you sterilize bottles and make up formula

The house had a microwave so we took the microwave steriliser. We made up 3/4 bottles for the ferry journey and kept them in a cool bag along with her lunch. I was half breastfeeding at this point anyway but DD chose this holiday to stop - my boobs deflated and I no longer filled-out my bikinis But that's another story....

2. do you take loads of nappies withh you or assume you can get some there

We took enough for a few days and then bought a pack at a supermarket. There's ALWAYS a supermarket somewhere unless you go to a very remote resort.

3. how do you eat out or is it self catering only

We did a mixture of both. DD ate a lot of french bread during this trip You can always buy bananas and yoghurts and jars of baby food locally.

4. do you take your blender for purees or take jars Definitely jars but if you were self catering you could cook up your own vegetables and mash them for your DS. By the time you go he'll be a few months older and probably be fine with mashed up food.

I hope you get the chance to go away. It can be a challenge but a fun one and you get a great sense of achievement when you have to use your initiative and you cope.

Sht I keep doing this advice* not advise.

Okay Knot - probably repeating EVERYONE here...
We took ds to Portugal at 3 months (in the blistering August 2 years ago..) have also taken him to Turkey twice...

1. • sterilising - ice cream tub/tupperware mark the 4 pint line on it and use cold water tablets. Making up formula - bottled water (make sure low in sodium...)
2. If its Europe you'll get nappies...just take sufficient for the travelling...
3. You'll find something you can feed them - and you eat out the same as you would here! Actually if its Europe you'll find a lot of places are really friendly and take babes in their stride...my best meal was in Portugal with ds - the owner got her son (a guy in his 20's) to take ds and he danced around the place to a reggae beet to calm ds down, whilst I ate dinner!
4. Couple of jars for travelling/emergancies -

Take sunblock, calpol and all that and enjoy!

I might be wrong but I think they have babies in Portugal too. You'll be fine - supermarkets, babyfood, nappies, doctors are not a problem. We've had several illnesses abroad and it's never been a big deal. After our first experience of illness abroad though we started to take a book with us that had a list of symptoms and illnesses and when to call a doc, when to just look after them yourself, when to rush them to hospital etc. Sunburn - you just keep them out of the sun.

thank youeveryone am feeling much more upbeat to chat to Dh tonight am getting ready to go out get brochures now from travel agents.

one thing about eating out - we went to France when dd was 3 months and eating out was so much easier than here - because we were outside. We would give her her bedtime feed at the hotel, then wonder down to the seafront to find a restaurant. We always ate outside and DD would sit in her buggy watching the world go by - totally happy and would usuallly nod off. We were relaxed coz we knew that if she started to grizzle we could could whisk her off for a quick walk - and there were loads of kids about - running around etc - it's nothing like being in a quiet English restaurant. And I think that our being relaxed probably had something to do with the fact she never actually did grizzle. I think southern Europe is generally a whole load more relaxed about kids and babies.

i've not read all the replies so sorry if I repreat but here's what we did with our DD. We took her camping in France at 6 months old.........

1. How do you sterilize bottles and make up formula

You can buy sterilising bags from boots. you fill the bag with normal tap water and bung in anything you want sterilised. joib done, really is a s simple as that. All you need is the bag and access to some water.

2. do you take loads of nappies withh you or assume you can get some there
   Take a few to get you through the first day and you will definat;ley be able to buy nappies while you are away.

3. how do you eat out or is it self catering only

It's easy peasy. Breakfast at hotel/tent/appt - take you own cereal with you if you feel better. Fruit etc and toast you can buy there
Lunch - you can pick up bits of fruit and vegies or whatever you want for them out and about and same with dinner.
You can always pick up a jar of food at a local supermarket.

4. do you take your blender for purees or take jars> I didn't take a blender. Lottie had always had fresh food but if I didn't think I'd got enough down her that day i'd use a jar of food, it's only for a week and she coped just brilliant;ly.

Other tips -

take a swim seat as they love it and you can swim around holding onto the seat and gives you both freedom to enjoy the water.

A UV sun tent is a good idea if you're going somewhere hot.

We have a plug in mini travel steriliser that does 2 bottles at a time. I'll have a look at the make when I get home tonight if you are interested. We bought it from John Lewis. It's small and portable.

Nappies are just not a problem.

Wouldn't take a blender put then my baby has consistently refused to eat pureed food and has been on soft finger foods even pre-teeth. We tend to stay in hotels rather than self catering so would stuff baby ds (9 months) to the gills at breakfast (there will usually be yogurt, fruit, toast etc available) and then feed him on things like chips (unsalted), omelette (usually on most menus) or pasta (I would order a suitable pasta mean and give him some of mine).

I do have some sympathy with your dh though. I don't really like taking my small kids abroad (2.6 and 9 months) and will only do short haul trips. It's because I like to be near a UK doctor - I know my way around medical services here...and my kids are ill frequently! (or so it seems) with baby ds having recently been hospitalised with dehydration following gastroenteritis.

Depending on what you decide....our hotel in Portugal had a balcony (and a fridge) so for lunch we'd stock up on bread/cheese/wine...sling ds on the bed in the air con (was aboput 40+...!) and sit outside chillin'

We took the sluglet on her first overseas jaunt aged 3 months to Barcelona. Since then she has been to France, New Zealand, Australia (on separate trips) and Slovenia. Travelling with children is surprisingly easy. Just take a light foldable buggy and a carrier like baby bjorn. Dh discovered in Barcelona that he could empty a supermarket of checkout girls simply by turning up with the sluglet strapped to his chest. The experience of being surrounded by a mob of gorgeous Spanish girls all cooing at his offspring has definitly whetted his apetite for travel.

I am convinced that much of the sluglet's attitude to food (she'll try anything once) is a result of her exposure to a variety of cuisine. I have very fond memories of a dinner in Slovenia where she was whisked off by the staff and entertained while we ate. We found her sitting in the kitchen, happy as a pig in muck, being fed all sorts of tidbits.