<\/p>\n
When I first shared I was pregnant, apart from so much love and congratulations, came a sea of \u2018just wait until\u2019s. <\/p>\n
Just wait until you take them somewhere amazing and they don\u2019t care. Just wait until they have a blowout in the car on the way to somewhere important. Just wait until they\u2019re screaming on the flight. Just wait, just wait, just wait. <\/p>\n
It\u2019s the best thing ever to hear as a pregnant person. Not.<\/em> <\/p>\nI\u2019ve traveled for over a decade sans-baby. Most of those years I traveled alone. I\u2019ve been to over 60 countries, about 50 of them solo. I could be as selfish as I wanted. I could completely rely on serendipity. Would a child ruin that? <\/p>\n
These are all the ways that traveling with a baby has been different, so far. <\/p>\n
10. The Days Are Packed with Different Things<\/h2>\n\n
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nBefore Felix, I would often set the alarm to be up before sunrise so that I could drive to a destination I had picked specifically for photography. I was often up with the stars and out well past sunset, hiking down from a trail by myself with a headlamp. I suppose I could do that with a baby, but then I think about how I\u2019ve tripped over things in the dark and my mom anxiety can\u2019t handle it. <\/p>\n
I\u2019m sure we will still have nights out gazing at the stars and I am sure we will still get up for the sunrise from time to time, but on our most recent trip to Vermont we were much more likely to sleep in as late as we possibly could, which was often until 10 AM since Felix was still on Pacific time, and that was delightful. Did I get the kind of photos that I normally would? Absolutely not, but now I take a new kind of photo \u2013 one of my adorable little guy. <\/p>\n
9. There\u2019s Less Serendipity<\/h2>\nI stayed on this beach for weeks<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nWhen I traveled by myself, especially in the early days when I was rich in time but cash poor, I would meet people in the dorms, hang out on beaches with them for weeks, and would wake up one morning and decide to leave at that instant. It didn\u2019t matter that I traveled this way because it didn\u2019t impact anyone else. I loved living la vie boheme<\/em>.<\/p>\nBut you know what? It also got old. I had my freedom, but I also started to wonder when I would meet someone, start a family, and let that be the new chapter. I am so glad that I got a chance to be completely selfish in my 20s, but I also knew that it wouldn\u2019t be novel forever. Now I am traveling in a new way, with more plans and more people to consider, and that\u2019s a change I wanted and asked for. <\/p>\n
8. Everything Takes Longer<\/h2>\n\n
I\u2019m just glad we made it at all<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nGetting through TSA, feeding the little guy, just getting ready to go in the morning with all of the extra stuff that he needs means that it takes hours to get going when before it would often just take me a few minutes. Although I knew this would be the case, I was unprepared for how much longer it would all take and how much extra time we would need to budget. <\/p>\n
I learned that the hard way when a friend\u2019s wedding was delayed because they were waiting for us \u2013 so sorry, Nell! We hadn\u2019t budgeted the extra 45 minutes we\u2019d need for the extra stops along the 3-hour drive. Now I know better. <\/p>\n
7. There\u2019s More Stuff<\/h2>\n\n
We sure didn\u2019t have a stroller before!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nYou guys, there is so much more stuff when you are traveling with a baby! I think we are pretty good about traveling light even considering his things, but it\u2019s still a good 30% to 50% more than I ever traveled with before.<\/p>\n
It becomes so easy to forget things as well. When you\u2019re low on sleep and have hard-core mom brain, things get left behind, which become mini-crises that need immediate attention. Though travel has always been that way, now it\u2019s that way with a lot more things<\/em>.<\/p>\n6. Inconveniences Come Up<\/h2>\n\n
The pump life chose me<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nWhile in Vermont, despite it taking so long for us to get ready to get out the door and me being so<\/em> sure that I had everything we needed, I somehow left my pumps behind. I wish I could just easily breast-feed my son, but that\u2019s not part of our story, so I need my pumps at the ready. <\/p>\nWe had to take extra time to find a Walmart so that I could get a hand pump, which caused us to barely make the last gondola ride. This wouldn\u2019t have been a big deal, but you can\u2019t get out at the last gondola ride, so we just had to make peace with going up and back. It\u2019s not a huge deal, but I could fill this post with similar stories. <\/p>\n
5. It\u2019s More Expensive<\/h2>\n\n
I don\u2019t even want to talk about how much these were. (but they\u2019re so worth it!)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nObviously adding more people is going to mean paying more for everything. We are still at the stage where Felix is free for most things, but I was surprised to find that even as a lap infant, many airlines charge an extra fee for international flights. I thought we would at least have a couple of years before that happened! <\/p>\n
This is one of the things that we have to seriously consider with regards to expanding our family or not. How much do we want to travel? For us, the answer is still, \u2018as much as possible!\u2019 <\/p>\n
4. More Research is Required<\/h2>\n\n
Garrett and I have been talking about bringing Felix to Thailand as one of our first big international trips. But then I wondered, will we be able to find diapers easily on little remote islands? What happens when he gets low on formula, or will I have to use bottled water every time to wash bottles and pump parts? By then he will be eating some solids, too. What do Thai 6-month-olds eat? <\/p>\n
Am I just going to strap him to me in a Songthaew or tuk tuk and forget all about how ultra careful we are about his carseat when driving at home? Probably. <\/em><\/p>\nAll of it adds to the adventure, but these weren\u2019t things I ever had to think or worry about before.<\/p>\n
3. People are Lovelier<\/h2>\n\n
People were so kind on this trail<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nI worried that people might be nasty towards us for bringing a baby on a plane, into a quiet restaurant, or that we might be thrown shady glances if he were to cry. I knew well before traveling with a baby that when others had crying kids, there\u2019s very little anyone can do about it and judgment doesn\u2019t help, but that doesn\u2019t mean that everyone understands that. <\/p>\n
But I was happy to see that nobody acted that way towards us. On the contrary, when I took him hiking so many people commented on how wonderful it was to see a baby on the trail that I restored my faith in humanity a bit. People even seemed happy to see him on the planes and in the airport. I received more than a dozen comments from people about how beautiful he was. They didn\u2019t need to say that \u2013 they wanted to.<\/p>\n
I guess we forget how many people have had children themselves and miss these moments that they once shared with their little ones. It\u2019s a magical time and I\u2019m glad that we haven\u2019t been made to feel bad about traveling with our little dude.<\/p>\n
2. I Watch His Discoveries <\/h2>\n\n
He LOVED these leaves!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nNow that Felix is three months old, he notices so much more about the world around him. I loved taking him on his first hike and watching as he marveled at the leaves. He was in complete awe, and it was adorable. <\/p>\n
This is one of the things I was looking forward to most traveling with a child. Everything is new to them. They are so in the moment and unconcerned with how they might appear to anyone else. They just express themselves however they are. The honesty is refreshing and I have always loved this about children, both the good and the difficult aspects of it. <\/p>\n
I can\u2019t wait to watch as he discovers more things for the first time. There is so much that we take for granted that children become enamored with, and I\u2019m excited to see what inspires him.<\/p>\n
1. I Unlock a New Level of Travel and Life<\/h2>\nI recently told a pregnant friend that I\u2019m getting to know a whole new person within myself. I never would have met this strong, compassionate, loving version of me without becoming a mother. I don\u2019t think everyone should have children, and I fully support everyone who decides not to. But for me and my journey, it\u2019s been more personal growth than I\u2019ve ever experienced before, and he was the necessary ingredient. <\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t know I could feel this way about someone. I didn\u2019t know how much I could sacrifice without resenting it, and I didn\u2019t know how empowered I could feel by creating life. I know people do it every day. It\u2019s one of the most common experiences there is, and yet it feels like this secret new level of life has been unlocked especially for me. It\u2019s like the Universe bestowed this special gift upon me that\u2019s entirely mine. <\/p>\n
And it is beautiful. <\/p>\n
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