I've talked a lot about airline travel just because we have so much experience with it and tend to travel that way a lot, but car trips with a baby can be equally stressful!
When Baby was between 4 to 8 months old, I traveled about 3 hours one way by car by myself and it was definitely stressful since I couldn't really check on Baby unless I stopped the car and if she was upset, I had to stop wherever I was to console her or feed her. Luckily, I knew the route I was traveling like the back of my hand so I knew of good and safe places to stop. However, a few times, I was caught unaware with a hungry baby who was rejecting her bottle and I had to pull over on shoulders to breastfeed. One time, I pulled in the parking lot of an abandoned and dilapidated restaurant and another time, it was just a 'park area' in a wood area. Scary. I sat in the back of the car with Baby hoping for a fast feed so I could get the heck out of dodge!
My biggest tips to breastfeeding moms whose babies won't take a bottle during the drive is to carefully study the route ahead of time (if you don't already know it well) and pick out good places to stop along the way. Always try for a populated area but as my experience has shown, it's not always possible! Ask friends/family for recommendations and perhaps check out the route on Google maps to identify large population areas where there could be a convenient area to pull off.
I don't have any experience, by the way, of pumping while in the car (I'm assuming the pumping is not happening while driving!), so if anyone has any thoughts to share on the subject, please do so!
When Baby was between 4 to 8 months old, I traveled about 3 hours one way by car by myself and it was definitely stressful since I couldn't really check on Baby unless I stopped the car and if she was upset, I had to stop wherever I was to console her or feed her. Luckily, I knew the route I was traveling like the back of my hand so I knew of good and safe places to stop. However, a few times, I was caught unaware with a hungry baby who was rejecting her bottle and I had to pull over on shoulders to breastfeed. One time, I pulled in the parking lot of an abandoned and dilapidated restaurant and another time, it was just a 'park area' in a wood area. Scary. I sat in the back of the car with Baby hoping for a fast feed so I could get the heck out of dodge!
My biggest tips to breastfeeding moms whose babies won't take a bottle during the drive is to carefully study the route ahead of time (if you don't already know it well) and pick out good places to stop along the way. Always try for a populated area but as my experience has shown, it's not always possible! Ask friends/family for recommendations and perhaps check out the route on Google maps to identify large population areas where there could be a convenient area to pull off.
I don't have any experience, by the way, of pumping while in the car (I'm assuming the pumping is not happening while driving!), so if anyone has any thoughts to share on the subject, please do so!
Hi, I came to know your blog from the baby center as am a FTM expecting my newborn in September. I have a question for you as am completely unexperienced with traveling with babies. What would you do if you yourself need to use the restroom while traveling alone with your baby by airoplane and am more interested to know what to do if it was a road trip.
ReplyDeleteThanks and best of luck,
Safaa
Hi Safaa,
DeleteThanks for your question. I actually did travel alone with baby one and had to use the bathroom. I ended up asking a friendly flight attendant to help me out. Of course, that meant waiting until after meal/beverage service was so over, but it was the best option in that situation. Otherwise, I'd look for a friendly passenger near your seat who would be willing to help out. As a last resort, I've heard of moms taking baby to the bathroom with them and sitting with baby on their lap. Not easy, but definitely doable! Good luck on travels with your September baby!