Babby Talk 04.18.24
An austere soup for fake spring, forgetting our earliest memories but remembering our childhood friends, newborn sleeplessness and Meryl Streep. And baby races! Which is exactly what it sounds like.
This week, one of us (Grace) is going to visit the other one (Court) in Spain! With kids! We know the prospect of travel with kids can make parents all kinds of nervous whether it's your first time or your 10th.
Here are some travel words of encouragement: travel with kids is at minimum a series of logistical challenges, at maximum a firestorm of tantrums and itinerary items left undone. It can also be so full of joy and delight you'll hardly believe you created such neat humans. So just let all of your plans go, and do what you can, and enjoy what you can do.
And here are some quick flight tips with babes at a few different stages.
New Baby —
Baby in carrier through the airport / onto the plane
Boob or bottle on take off and landing
Be prepared to change the worst diaper you've ever seen in an airplane bathroom (to pump you up just in case it happens!!)
Bigger Baby —
Walks in the aisle
Plastic cups, safety information cards, and air sickness bags all make excellent toys
Toddler —
Load up that iPad with pre-downloaded shows/apps/whatevs, and charge it, and bring a spare charger + headphones
Small toy they’ve never seen for maximum excitement and distraction
Blank memo pad and pen
You —
Take the aisle so that you can get up with your babe as needed without disturbing anyone
Breathe deep and remember you will never see most of these people ever again in your entire life.
6 things at least somewhat related to life with kids
Cook:
had us at “austere” and “intensely vegetal” and “cheap produce.” Make a soup that’s perfect for fake spring.Read: This is an interesting read if you’re curious why humans don’t typically retain any memories from before age 7. The hippocampus works in mysterious ways.
Shop: Now that you know there’s simply no way to remember our earliest years, here’s an extremely cute way to keep track of childhood friendships.
Listen: Gearing up to give birth? Be prepared to feel unprepared no matter what you do! But, having an awesome playlist in your back pocket (er, phone-device-thing) is always a good idea. This one was created alongside an OB-GYN to scientifically support you throughout the birth process. It’s only 2 hours long though, so you can either be optimistic or put it on a loop ;-)
Laugh: Meditate with us for a moment on newborn sleep. It’s funny as long as it’s not you, right now. If it is you right now, head over here.
Something that made us pop our collar:
A few more for the road:
A nail biter of a baby race.
Enjoy your own delightful little DIY craft moment.
Car seats have expiration dates for reals. But you can trade in your old seat for a discount on a new one.
Thanks for reading. Please email all constructive feedback with the subject line “I hate you I wish you weren’t my mom.” See you very soon.
Court + Grace
Travel tip: Always carry emergency lollipops for any child that is old enough. Trader Joes and Yum Earth Pops are good options. This is saved me during a untimely major-meltdown and has even helped a crying 3 yr old pop her ears.