If you follow me on Facebook or Instagram, you know that I recently spent two weeks in Ireland with my 17-month-old son and husband. We had an amazing trip — the weather was perfect, the Irish landscape is serene and breathtaking, and we interacted with lots of history and had some awe-inspiring adventures.  Our first time traveling with a baby internationally was a success!

This was my son’s first time flying, but it wasn’t our first time traveling with him. When he was six months old, we went to Destin, Florida for a week, which is about eight hours by car from our home (longer when you factor in the flat tire we got on the way there, on top of the usual necessary stops). He’s also taken several overnight, weekend, and long weekend trips to places like Nashville, Tennessee; Beaufort, South Carolina; Wilmington, North Carolina; central Virginia; and south central Pennsylvania. Each of these trips occurred at different stages in his growth and development, so the preparations and strategies were a little different for each one. They all went relatively smoothly, though, or at least the difficult parts don’t stand out in my memory. Read more