travel with a baby

[tweeni]

we are going to spain for a wedding when my baby will only be about 3 weeks old. we are staying in an apartment and i was wondering do you think i need to take a baby monitor or not?

actualy i will sheepishly admit i can't swim!just like to dangle my feet in the water!

could you not give your mum all your love and best wishes and go and see them a bit later on when you have both had time to get over the birth?

I hate to potentially put you off too, but if this is your first baby I would try as hard as you can to imagine doing this with a three week old baby. If you are overdue then it is even harder still.

I'd do it I think but then I have been criticised for overdoing things after the birth of my children. All I am saying is bear in mind that it will be a whirlwind time enough and three weeks isn't that long to have got used to having a new baby.

PND wise it can also be a mistake to overface yourself so early on.

Now, don't think I am saying it will be a disaster - you will probably be fine and have a great time, etc. etc. but don't underestimate the situation and then feel you can't back out because you've booked the flights and said you'll be there.

Have fun whatever!

Hi Tweeni,

Only you will know what's best for you and your baby and if you feel up to a holiday then go for it. You're much younger and fitter than me, so perhaps you will bounce back and be back to normal in a few days after the birth.

Personally the thought of flying within a few weeks of giving birth would scare the hell out of me. It took me ages before I could even leave the house with DD - so many things to take - spare clothes, nappies, wipes, muslins, hats, sling. I was sore and sleep deprived and it was cold and I wanted my DD to stay in the protective cocoon of home.

I would have hated to put her on a plane with all those germs and would have been petrified of not having enough stuff with me - my DD could wear 8 or 9 outfits in a day due to nappy leaks/possetting. I would have worried about the sun, the foreign germs, if they sold the only nappies that suited DD, if the detergent would bring her out in a rash, if she got a cold or needed the HV.

If I'd had to pack a suitcase and try to take into account all eventualities I would have just not been able to manage.

It all seems ridiculous now, but those first few weeks after birth are so hormonal and tiring and it can all seem very overwhelming.

It's very easy to get fixated on the birth, but afterwards was much more of a shock.

I do hope you manage to go and enjoy it, especially if you have some help. It will be a huge relief not to have a bump (PS you will still have a pg-like jelly belly, so don't pack a bikini!)

On thing that I found is however scared I was of doing something with the baby, if I made myself just go ahead and do it anyway, it wasn't half as bad as I imagined, and meant I learnt how to do it for next time. Just make sure everyone else is primed to do everything for you and my schedule was feed every 3hrs starting at 7am which is a lot easier than the other one on here, tho I know most people don't like routines

Tweeni, good luck. have you checked that your baby doesn't get a baggage allowance, I know dd does when we're flying to France with BA in July, she'll be 14mths then but still shares my seat. I waited until dd had had her 6 week check before taking her swimming, but she enjoyed it. If you're happy that your baby is healthy and the water is clean and warm enough I would take it in, not for too long though as they get cold very quickly.
Even if you are small though babies can be late, my mum is 5ft1, with size 2 feet, very petite and I was born 12 days late and she was induced, so you never know - although I was convinced dd would follow the trend and be late and she was a week early.
I say just see how you feel. we were having day trips out when dd was less than a week old, although we didn't fly anywhere.
Hope it works out for you.

sorry what does PND mean
i have checked and they don't get a baggage allowance but there is a washing machine there and weather permitting the clothes should dry fast. there is a pharmacy where we are staying that sells both huggies and pampers nappies and all other essentails like wipes, cotton wool etc if we don't want to take what we need for the whole 2 weeks.
the only thing we get to take free is the pushchair and car seat and travel cot (but we aren't taking one of those as toby can sleep in his carry cot)

oh and as for the baby coming early cos i was small i meant the midwife has said as i am small if the baby is getting too big that i may find it difficult to deliver - and there could be complications so they may induce me early - not that it would just come on its own cos i am small. this happened with my mum cos they thought the babies would get in distress if she was having difficulty and getting too tired. obviously much too early to tell though at the moment.

post-natal depression

We took DS on a mini-holiday when he was only 2 weeks, and it was great. DP carried him in the sling, we sat on the beach, I swam, he slept in a carry cot in our room and in his car seat when we went out for dinner.

It might be absolutely fine, Tweeni - wait and see, and if all is ok, go and enjoy showing off your baby, and if it is late or you haven't got the energy, you will have to enjoy the photos and ho out a bit later and show off the baby to newly wedded couple.

i've been told you can't swim cos i will still be bleeding for 4 - 6 weeks. is this not true or were you just fortunate?

how 'small' are you? i weighed 50 kgs and had the hips of a snake when i fell preggers. (put on another 20kg during pregnancy and am no longer snake-like but thats beside the point). i gave birth to a hefty 8lb 4oz-er in 5 hours. Oh, and she was 8 days overdue. You really cant plan these things, but if you didnt at least try then you'd be stuck at home anyway, so knock yourself out i say. Within 24 hours you'll feel like youve gone 10 round with mike tyson anyway. May as well feel like sh*t in spain as anywhere else.

Tweeni, I think most women bleed for at least 4 weeks afterwards- I know I did and then had random bleeding for another couple of weeks- kept thinking it had stopped but would start again

i know it will be a real shame to miss this wedding, as you say its your parents, but i think you are in for a bit of a shock when it comes to childbirth and newborns imho.

if after the birth, you have any doubts about going, don't go. if you do go, good luck and please let us know how you get on

pnd is postnatal depression. Many women suffer from "the blues" after birth as the hormones rage around the system and physical tiredness both from the birth and random sleep sets in. However for some women this becomes a more significant and longer term issue and they can struggle to cope with everyday care and organisation.

Yes you will bleed for several weeks afterwards, however you deliver, and b'feeding or not. Up to a week or so heavily and then period-like, gradually tapering off. Exertion can cause it to get heavier temporarily but as long as there is no odour or clots it is perfectly normal. Don't count on wearing a skimpy swimsuit or swimming as tampons are not recommended.

Will you have a chance to attend any antenatal classes as hoepfully they would give you the opportunity to ask such questions and find out more about how you might feel both before and afterwards.

hth

You might be absolutely fine. Took my dd on a long train journey (5 hours) when she was 3 weeks old. She slept, breastfed and slept again. Only pain was changing nappies in a confined space!
I would ditch the buggy and just bring a sling... they are so light at that age and love being close to you. Also don't bother with a travelcot, a moses basket is a lot lighter.
I take on board totally what people are saying about newborn hell, but in some ways it doesn't matter where you are it's gonna be hell anyway!

You will need a car seat too unless you are getting a bus or train from the airport

Oh and my dd screamed blue murder when she had her first bath, absolutely hated it so don't bank on a baby who enjoys water enough to go in a pool
(will stop posting now and get on with some work)

gosh you put on 3 stone 1969 thats a lot!maybe that's why you were able to deliver?i on the other hand have put on a mere 3 lbs so far!! i was worried the baby wasn't growing but apparently he's fine?!

tweeni - I don't think it's very tactful really to say to another woman that she put on a lot of weight in pregnancy!

Remind me to never tell you how much I put on in my pregnancies...

oops i wasn't thinking!sorry 1969

Tweeni, just to add another comment....
What you are suggesting is very unusual and most new mothers don't want to do anything quite so adventurous as early as that, but that's no reason not to have a go!
I took my baby camping at 6 weeks, which a lot of people thought was crazy, but it worked really well - we thought much the same as you, ie, we're going to be doing childcare anyway so we might as well be doing it somewhere nice!
Obviously it will all depend on you feeling well enough and feeling up for it, and it's important for you to feel you can change your mind when the time comes. However, don't believe the people who tell you that you will be feeling emotional and too tired to do anything - not everyone gets the baby blues. Getting stressed about taking the baby out isn't compulsory either - all she really needs at that age are nappies, some clean clothes and you - it doesn't matter if you end up cleaning her up with tissues cos you've forgotten the wipes, or whatever.
I am wondering about a few things though. Is your husband/partner up for this? Is he the kind of person you can depend on to take charge of all the domestic stuff and all the arrangements so you only have to worry about the baby? If so, it stands a lot more chance of working - I can't imagine anyone having the energy to pack, make travel arrangements etc, a fortnight after having a baby, but if all you have to do is to sit back and go with the flow while you concentrate on the baby, it seems more possible. If you're married he can go on his own to register the birth - you don't need to go with him.
Are you planning to breastfeed? That will make life easier as well as you won't have to worry about carrying bottles, sterilising equipment, formula etc (not that it's that heavy, especially if you use steriliser bags or a microwave steriliser).
In terms of equipment, when we flew last summer (when she was about 4 mo.) we found a little portable fan was really useful, to cool her down on the plane when we were waiting for ages before takeoff. Very tiny babies mostly prefer being carried around in slings to pushchairs. (I also discovered the hard way that if you are going to breastfeed on the plane you need to put her in position for breastfeeding before you put the seatbelt on!!)
I'd love to know how you get on - do keep us posted!

UPDATE based on 2Happy's recent thread - you cannot get a same-day passport for a baby (or indeed any new passport holder).

\link{http://www.mumsnet.com/Talk?topicid=3&threadid=151561\Bundle's horror story on this subject here}.

thanks for the link tribpot!!as it happens when i said i could get a same day passport i had already looked into not being able to have same day passports for first timers, but they said if i went down on the 1 day i would get it within 24 hours so could stay overnight and get it the next day.or if the baby comes on time it only takes 2 weeks anyway or you can get a 1 week fast track service so down to my organisation before the baby comes its all covered thankfully. no doubt id forget if i left it til after the baby was born!!