Shelly Rivoli's Blog, page 2

Packing List for Cruise Vacations: Baby Essentials to Bring On Board

If you’ll be cruising for a week or more with a baby, it is not unreasonable to expect you will need an entire suitcase devoted to baby essentials. Really. As a general rule, cruise lines do not stock baby food, formula, diapers, or wipes on board, except in very rare cases. Here are two exceptions:

For a fee, Holland America Line will arrange for you to have commercial baby food, diapers, and a mini refrigerator in your cabin by advance request through the ship’s services department—you can...

Five Tips for Installing Car Seats on Airplanes

Car seats on airplanes…

… words that still cause my palms sweat and bring on an uncontrollable urge to pop a prophylactic antacid tablet or two.

Yet the idea needn’t spawn nightmares for weeks leading up to your journey. Not if you can go in with a game plan.

To help, here are my five tips to help ease your way if you’ll be installing a car seat on an airplane.

Adapted from Travels with Baby: The Ultimate Guide for Planning Travel with Your Baby, Toddler, and Preschooler.

 

1. Clear the wa...

Pack This! Review of the BubbleBum Inflatable Safety Booster for Travel

Pack it flat or roll it into its own travel sack, then travel light with the cushy Bubble Bum.

Review of the BubbleBum Inflatable Safety Booster (Updated!) –  After using the BubbleBum with all three of my children–and several of their car-pooling friends, I thought it would be great to update this post and share with those of you who may be wondering about it now–or for a trip in your future. It’s been a great solution for us many times, and we’ve even loaned ours to friends for their travel...

Four Reasons You Should Know About Family Travel 411

Find Tips for your Day Trip to Dry Tortugas National Park among other helpful features at Family Travel 411.

If you haven’t yet stopped by or subscribed to Family Travel 411–my site for independent travelers with kids of all ages–I think you’ll find there are some compelling reasons to do so. Especially if you like to travel. With kids. And are making any plans to do so any time now through their college years.

Five Favorite Travel Toys for Babies, Toddlers, & Tots Under Five Years

Looking for some helpful new travel toys to keep your little ones busy as you travel over the river and through the woods this season? Here are some of my hand-picked recommendations of travel toys for babies, toddlers, and children under 5 years–which just so happen to also make great gifts. Happy holidays! Your click-throughs help support this site–thank you!

 

1. Lamaze Freddie The Firefly

Freddie the Firefly links easily to car seat strap and handle or stroller bumper bar, and is ready t...

Roundup: Holiday Travel Tips for Parents

Next week begins the busy holiday travel season–are you ready? I’ve put together a list of links to my holiday travel tips, reminders, and checklists to help as you gear up for your family’s travels wherever you may roam now… through New Year’s Day. Wishing all my U.S. readers a very happy Thanksgiving next week and safe travels to you all.

1. Use the Ultimate Holiday Travel with Kids Checklist as you count down to travel!

 

2. Read Three tips for happier Thanksgiving (and holiday) vacation...

Pack This! The flat, easy-packing travel night light

Shower caps, hair conditioner, ironing board–towels for more than two people? You never know what might be missing from your next hotel room. But chances are pretty good there will not be a night light waiting for you. When you travel with children and babies, this little convenience can make a big difference in your ability to get safely around a portacrib in unfamiliar (and crowded) territory, check on your infant or nurse in the night, and in anyone’s ability to get to the bathroom in the...

Five Tips for Travel During Potty Training

There are some very lucky parents out there whose young children look forward with much anticipation to visiting new restrooms. For them, discovering the uncharted territory of facilities at the aquarium, zoo, or back storage area of the supermarket are opportunities not to be missed. And a Turkish or pit toilet may provide a solid hour’s worth of entertainment for—and questions from—some eager children. But for most of us, potty training can become even more challenging when restroom availab...

At Least They’ll Speak “English”: A Parent’s Guide to Babytalk Abroad

When choosing a destination abroad, your little family may find it somewhat comforting to choose one that frees you from carrying a traveler’s phrase book in your already crowded diaper bag. But that would be too easy, and hardly worthy of the stamp in your passport.

So as your little Ambassador of Goodwill launches you into conversations with the Queen’s locals or other members of the ex-Commonwealth, you may find it helpful to commit to memory a little of the baby-speak. If it begins to sou...

Pack This! Travel-Friendly Suction Cup Hooks

Portable, damage-free, suction cup hooks–I’ll take five, thank you.

Confession: Every once in a while, I have a forehead-slapping moment where I, one who has blogged family travel for a decade now, realize another simple family travel hack I can’t believe I didn’t think of years ago. This is one of those.

Years ago –> I picked up a couple of clear plastic suction cup hooks just like these to use at home–one for each of my daughters’ wash cloths so we could hang them to dry in  between uses ov...