Traveling with a Baby: Our Trip to Idaho Springs

We were finally packed and on the road.

As we get on our way to the little mountain cabin I couldn't help but wonder what we forgot. I was so nervous about not only taking the road trip (which was dramatic because it was only about 2 hours away) but being away from the comforts of home with our little 5 month old. I didn't know how the altitude would effect him or even driving in the car with super windy roads up the mountains. Jack was doing well asleep in his carseat so it allowed me to ease up.

We arrived at the little cabin and immediately were in awe of the incredible view from the windows overlooking the Arapahoe National Forest. We had tons of acres to ourselves-- as far as the eye could see! Eager to get the adventure really going we began to unpack.



Pack and play--check.
Bottles and wamer-- check.
Warm clothes for everyone -- check.
Diapers and wipes-- che--wait a second. This couldn't be all that we brought, I thought to myself.

But I was wrong.

How could I forget to pack loads and loads of wipes and diapers?! Thankfully the mountain town we were in had a Safeway so I knew we would be fine... or so I thought.

The precious cabin was located down a VERY steep driveway and yes it was very snowy and icy. We drove a 15 passenger van because our cars weren't big enough for all of our stuff. We planned to get up the next day and go into town for lunch. So that's what we did. We got in the van and began up the hill. Then we just stopped. Chad put the van in reverse and attempted up the way again. Nothing. There was absolutely no way we could get out. We were stranded.

Thinking through all of the possible scenarios we finally decided there was no other option than to dig out a way for the van... the whole way up. Poor Chad spent the whole next day with an ice pick and shovel trying to get a path for us to get out. But needless to say he did it! The next day we finally were able to get to the main road. Whew!!

Our adventure in Idaho Springs consisted of a lot of things including a fun snowshoeing adventure and exploring the tiny town.

So what exactly is a must have for taking a little getaway with your little one?

PACK AND PLAY! Oh my word this saved our life. It has a changing table attached and is also a bassinet. It was also super helpful that it had wheels so we could bring it to the living room for naps along with the bedroom for night time.

LOTS OF DIAPERS AND WIPES! It's so much better to be safe than sorry. We were only gone for a few days and I felt like we went through a million. Nothing is worse than having any type of stress damper your trip.

TOYS TOYS TOYS! When I first had Jack I had no idea what people meant when they told me to "play" with him. He couldn't even hold his head up what did they even mean?! (Blog post to come ;) ) Well now being 5 months we have found that he is obsessed with flashing light toys and music. Thank goodness for his Vtech "Happy Bear" because the car ride home would have been miserable had that little bear not entertained him. Even at the expense of Chad and I's sanity. That song was stuck in my head for days! "I am a bear a happy bear, a sleepy bear and hungry bear..." YIKES!

TYLENOL! I know a lot of mom's choose to not give their kids medicine but we were almost positive that Jack was in pain from either his ears or something. We would give him a little tylenol and made him able to enjoy the trip with us.

WARM CLOTHES, HATS and FRONT PACK! We loved being able to strap Jack to the front of Chad and adventure around. We had an amazing snow suit that Chad had from when he was little that worked great for keeping him extra warm. If you're planning on doing any adventuring, especially in the cold, this is a must!

I know a lot of these things seem super obvious but definitely make a list, even if you think you'll for sure remember. From experience, I will not go on any type of overnight without doing this! Also, remember that you are taking a small infant on vacation and although you are away from home that the world still revolves around them. Don't make a strict schedule because you won't have any idea how they will react out of their element. Strict schedules only cause stress because more likely than not you won't be able to fit all of the activities in that you want because your little chicken nugget will need a nap or maybe they will decide they just aren't in the mood ;)

I would love to hear any tips that you have for vacationing with your baby! Leave your ideas in the comments below :)