Little known fact about me & Lewis: with the exception of going on tour with his band or going to Nashville for his uncle's wedding, we have never been on a real trip together. We didn't ever get to go on a honeymoon or anything! So now here we are with Isis and we have decided that we are going to take our first family vacation this summer!!! We are very excited!! Lewis has a week of vacation left at work and I will definitely be ready to go somewhere before starting student teaching in August! So we have decided to go to...
LAS VEGAS!!!!!Sounds weird for the first trip with a new baby, doesn't it? But the truth is, one of my dear friends, Emily & her husband Nate, live in Vegas where Nate is a youth minister at a church called The Crossing. We kept telling them that we wanted to come visit and we thought this would be a great opportunity!! And maybe they'd even babysit one night?? (I haven't asked her this yet. haha I'm just hoping!) I know it's going to be SUPER hot and we are going to be taking lots of measures to keep Isis cool & comfortable! But I found several things we can do with her inside the hotels on the strip! There are lions at MGM Grand, a garden and dolphin habitat at the Mirage, the fountains at the Bellagio, etc. We will find lots of things to do with her! And I'd love to go shopping!! Plus she'll probably just love the lights at night! And overall, it'll be a fun way to just go relax and get away for a week. I think it will be well deserved as brand new parents & a brand new family!!
But I have some questions for you parents out there...
#1 - How do you think the plane trip will go? She will be 5-7 months old when we go - haven't planned the exact date yet. We are trying to find the best deal! But we have decided to hold her rather than get her a ticket. Any tips for that??
#2 - What do you think about the time difference? It's only 3 hours which is just one feeding cycle really. I was thinking I would start with the transition a few days before we leave and then work it back to normal the week we come back. But any specific ideas? I know my friend Natalie who just had her son Parker a couple of days after Isis is working out the same thing for their trip to Ireland this year - 5 hour difference! So any tips would be welcomed!!
#3 - Anyone else have any other suggestions for activities around there for us to do with Isis? EXCEPT for the Grand Canyon or Hoover Dam. My phobia will not allow those 2 activities. I'd prefer to not hyperventilate while on vacation. Plus we will probably try to keep her inside as much as possible. She's taken after mom & dad with that pale skin & I'd like to keep it safe!
Comments
My tips are:
1. Feed when you take off (the motion will help her ears to 'pop' gently as altitude changes).
2. Keep your regular schedule as much as possible. Minor tweaks shouldn't throw her off too much. For instance, her US bedtime was 8pm but in Minsk, she was up until midnight most nights but slept until 11 a.m. (4 a.m. US time). It took us a couple of days for her to get used to sleeping on a more regular time but the truth is that with time change EVERYONE is messed up so even if she doesn't adjust you'll probably be in the same boat and awake at the same times!
3. Get a POGY: http://www.amazon.com/Pogy-Bed-Infant-Travel/dp/B000GUE6H2
4. Get the front row on the plane with extra space, exit (or with bassinets) if you have the pogy, you can put in on the floor in that extra space. NO need for a seat for an infant. Check with your airline to see before your fly date if they have bassinets and when you load the plane see if they can seat you first.
Good luck!