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

Taken a 6m old and a 4m old abroad, self catering

Sterilising I boiled water in a pan and added sterilsing tabs, put the bottles in there with a cover on until i needed one.

Nappies, i just took a few days worth, never had any trouble buying them

Food, we used to scan the menu and find something that could mash up, or was smooth enough to have as was, don't think we ever got stuck, but there was baby food available to buy in the shops.

We went to the Greek Islands, and to Menorca, but have also not long returned fron thailand, and there would have been no problem with any of the above either

Knot - if it makes DH feel any better, phone up the helplines on the manufacturers of nappies, formula etc. and they will be able to tell you if their product is avaiulable in Portugal.

We took our DD2 to Italy when she was 5 months (appreciate that it's probably much easier with child no.2). She was fine. We went self catering and I took an ice bag with me with some pureed mush to see me through the 1st 24 hours, then found a supermarket and did a mix of jars and my own.

Doing bottles was fine too. At 6 months, I assume DS isn't crawling which is easier as they tend to stay where you put them - i.e. in the shade! Good luck.

We never sterilized anything

And DS was born at 27 weeks and was in intensive care for 3 months very ill.

When he came home we were told by the microbiologists at the hospital that there was no point in sterilizing

What we were told to do was wash everything in hot soapy water and leave to dry in the air.

We did this and he never had stomach upsets

Well my theory is that if we were told not to sterilize

Am sure your baby will be ok.

what I mean is that if we were told not to sterilize and DS was so ill

Then babies who are healthy should be fine

My Sedish friend had never heard of sterilising - apparently they just don't do it there.

Swedish...... I am the typo queen.

Knot
I travel the world with my kids and have had no problems whatsoever even in very out of the way places.
Ds is just 7 months and has already been to Turkey twice (where I live now) France twice and Dubai once.
I breastfeed which undoubtedly eliminates the bottles/formula dilemma but foodwise there is no problem. If we're out (and we have lunch out every day) I don't bother to take anything with me, bar a banana or some apple puree occasionally.
He just has a bit of what we're having.
Foe example, today at a restaurant, I soaked some bread in some lentil soup and added a bit of yoghurt. He loved it. Then he had a bit of my chicken kebab chopped up with some yoghurt.
I use reusable nappies, but buy disposables to use if we're on the move around Turkey which happens a lot.
Don't worry! You'll be fine. My sisters and I were brought up on a tiny Pacific island. The nearest hospital was a 2 hour palne trip away, poisonous snakes and scorpions abounded and malaria was rife.
We were fine!!

knot - if your son is over 6 months when you go then sterilising won't be that urgent, and as RTKM says a good wash in hot soapy water would be enough.
I stopped sterilising anything at 6 months but I know lots of people don't, so the bags sound a good compromise.

Knot - did you convince him?

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
now i just have to find somewhere we like and can afford have decided on spain - costa del sol - good weather i hope, am going to post office today to send off for ds passport.
am soo excited - a huger THANK YOU to you all who responded .

I am seriously looking at Torrox, Costa del Sol - see my other thread in travel.