It’s been 5 long days of non-stop information overload and learning at the Dan Kennedy Information Summit.  A room full of 900+ information marketers.  We learned a ton but now to really try to find the time to do something with it.

I continue to struggle to be a good mom, wife and entrepreneur… times like these (that is, incredible learning and networking opportunities) I realize how hard it really is to balance it all and do them all well.

Thankfully, my ever social husband, handled all of the networking for us.  Being pregnant did not really allow me much energy for socializing after the events ended each night around 8/9 pm.  And, Stella needed a little mommy time (and mommy needed a little Stella time) each night.

Granddad and Stella

We were blessed to have Justin’s Dad here to help us out.  His girlfriend Teresa also came for a few days and helped spoil Stella rotten.  They made her fresh hand squeezed orange juice each day…need I say more.

I have been to St. Louis several times when I worked for Senator Bond from Missouri but this time I actually got to see the Arch, it was beautiful and we were lucky to have gorgeous and warm weather the day we checked it out.  The downtown area continues to be a ghost town which is quite sad considering that it seems to hold a lot of potential.

The St. Louis Arch

The travel is beginning to wear on us a bit but we were lucky and had a suite for the week here in St. Louis – which is one of my baby travel tips I’ll share with all you families out there.  When you check into your hotel, ALWAYS ask if they have a bigger room.  Quite often you will get a free upgrade.  We actually didn’t even ask in England and got a bigger room as they said we’d be more comfortable with the crib if we had a bigger room.  It never hurts to ask.

If I’ve learned one thing while traveling, overall, you get a lot of free upgrades, pass the line, etc. when you have a baby.  It’s a nice perk given how exhausting travel can be sometimes, especially with children.

Another tip is during cold weather months, is to be sure to bring a large carry-on bag to put all your coats in.  On our flight over from England, the bag I had only had room enough for Justin’s light coat and Stella’s so I just put mine in the overhead.  Well, 8 hours later and exhausted, I left mine on the plane…never to be seen again.  And it was new…nothing special but a bit chilly without it.  I’d actually recommend tucking a lightweight collapsible bag inside of your carry on that you can pull out after you get through security, etc. to store all the coats.

We are off to Pittsburgh in the morning to visit Seth and Jen Holst and their 2 little boys as well as Chris and Stacy Dee and their 2 boys.  We haven’t seen them in ages and we are looking forward to our visit!

Looking Cool at Dinner

Finally settling in and doing some sightseeing, having some meals out (we are already tired of Greek food actually and going to likely brave it and try the one Chinese restaurant…) and enjoying our villa pool.

Enjoying the Villa Pool

We drove by to see the villa we were supposed to have had yesterday.  Fantastic view, nice garden.  Didn’t get inside though but it looked really nice and was in an area where we could have walked to a few things (shops, restaurants, beach).  So it was  a bit disappointing.  However, our villa is more private so we are looking on the bright side.

Old Town Rhodes

Since Nanna has been here we have done quite a bit of sightseeing.  We got to visit the Old Town of Rhodes and hit the weekly farmer’s market on Saturday in Rhodes Town (always a highlight of any trip I go on being a “foodie”).  I think we were the only non-Greeks at the market which was a lot of fun.  The Old Town is absolutely amazing and definitely something to see.  We hear that it is a lot like the old walled city of Dubrovnick so we are looking forward to that.

Justin and I were even able to go out for a few drinks in Lindos (a World Heritage site and very pretty) after we put Stella down to bed.  Nanna kept an eye on Stella which was nice.  It was great to take some time for just the two of us.  As parents I think it’s really important to nurture your marriage once children arrive.  Happy parents make for happy children.

Nanna and Stella driving the boat

We rounded out the sightseeing by renting a boat and after we dropped Nanna at the airport on Tuesday we circumnavigated the island and visited some more

Kamiros Ruins

ruins and Embona (the wine producing region).  The drive on the west coast was very nice and very different in topography (mountains and a lot of pine trees).

Lindos Acropolis

Justin and I are getting caught up on work which is nice but still enjoying ourselves.

Now, since this is a baby travel tips blog I must share some more insights.

Here are a few of my packing tips for traveling to the beach with baby (you will find others throughout the blog):

1.  Tons of sunblock.  I try to get organic/all natural as possible as babies are so small and all the chemicals in other sunblocks are quite harsh.  Of course, you can always pick up more sunblock at your destination no matter how remote, in most cases.

2.  Sunhats, swimmers (non-disposable), sunshirt:  Anything to protect baby from the sun.  I also have a great muslin blanket that is great for keeping the sun off of a sleeping baby.  I am not a fan of the disposable siwmmers as they are just another pile in the landfills.  I have now found that the reuseable swimmers you can find at Target and just about anwyhere else these days are fine.  They keep “everything in” and you can reuse them (saving precious packing space and the environment).  A word of caution here though is that I have heard that some resorts REQUIRE disposable swimmers and a swimsuit over top.  Enquire with the place you are staying first if you are concerned with this.

3.  Beach toys, umbrella, raft, life jacket, etc.:  If you are flying you can likely pick all of these things up when you get there and pretty inexpensively (again though, if you have it, bring it I guess so as not to increase the plastic waste buy buying new…you can always hit a second hand store for these sort of things at your destinations, some are easier to find than others.  I actually bought a table cloth at a charity shop in Marlow to use as a play blanket for Stella on the trip).  And if you are lucky your resort, condo or house may already have them.  Ask before you go.

4.  All natural bug spray if you are going to a climate with nasty bugs and where you will not speak the language (harder to find mild sprays in another language).  I also try not to put this directly on Stella but rather we wear it (I don’t even like wearing the harsh stuff on myself or Justin as it always rubs off on Stella) and put it on her stroller, etc.  I have also heard that some people place a lady bug pen on the baby’s stroller which is suppossed to keep bugs away.  We are having a terrible time with “buzzy bees” at our villa and are desperate for any recommendations on how to keep them away.

5.  Baby toiletries:  most you can buy at your destination but if your baby has sensitive skin bring some from home.  I also sometimes use Stella’s toiletries myself as they are great for dry skin and saves me transporting a lot of toiletries.  Baby sunblock is all you need as well.  No real need to buy adult and child unless you plan to do a lot of water sports then you’ll want something that is waterproof for yourself.

I figured there was no better time than the present to finally start a blog…

Tomorrow we embark on yet another adventure, but this time with baby!

This will be my fourth “adventure;”

“mini-retirement” as the internet world likes to dream about;

or, as I like to say “skedaddle”***.

My first “skedaddle” was right after graduating from the University of Virginia (1996) and finding myself with no job and realizing my degree in “Foreign Affairs” really didn’t mean that much.  So I decided to go put my degree to a test and experience some “foreign affairs” in Europe.   Went alone…had very little cash…sold everything and worked 3 jobs to get there.  Had the most amazing educational and mind broadening experience of my life (at the time, 22 years…).

The second “skedaddle” was after Justin (my husband), was laid off from the telecomm industry in 2001.  I quit a high profile lobbying job – living the “dream” life in Washington, DC – to join him on a round the world trip throughout SE Asia.  Words can’t even explain how amazing that trip was. Enlightening and liberating.  It was truly the biggest “skedaddle” I ever did.  We did not really talk to anyone back home for nearly 4 months.

The third and most recent “skedaddle” was when we drove cross country for 2 months after fleeing the crazy world of DC to join the laid back life of Vancouver (2005).

So, what to do when your life includes an adventure every 2-3 years and then along comes baby (2007). Of course, first thing I thought was…no more “skedaddling.”

One year later and here we go, off on another “skedaddle…”

Stella's First Birthday

Can’t say this has been the easiest one to plan but that brings me to the subject of the blog.

How do you travel with a baby?  How can you make it as simple as possible?

Well stay tuned because I’m going to share with you all the preparation and even take you step-by-step as we travel for the next 6 months.

Tomorrow we leave on a direct flight from Vancouver to Atlanta.  First stop, Atlanta.  We will be attending a conference on Internet marketing.

So what about baby (Stella)?  I’ve packed her one small wheeled bag and I’m carrying on a few items.  The only other thing we are taking for her is her stroller (the luxury item because it’s a 3 wheeled Mountain Buggy).  The best stroller for off-roading and just about anything else…I log more miles on my stroller than I do my car. (More recs to come)…

Believe me…you can travel lightly with a baby if you try!

***I must lend a reference to my use of the word “skedaddle.”  Recently I read a book about a crazy family from West Virginia who were “always on the run” and their father used to say it’s time to “skedaddle…”  The Glass Castle: A Memoir by Jeannette Walls.

While her memoir chronicles the adventures (and misadventures) of a very disturbing family, I like to think my “skedaddles” are a bit more enlightening and I’m better for it afterwards…I hope some day Stella will agree.