The Joys Of Traveling With Your Baby, According To Patti Grandidge-Herrera

Some say it's better to not travel with babies if you want a peaceful and more relaxed vacation. But why leave your precious bundle of joy if it's possible to  enjoy and have twice the fun with them?

Patti Grandidge-Herrera’s first baby boy, Neo, just turned 10 months, and they’re already having so much fun traveling around and outside the Philippines. We can’t help but be curious about how the new mom is doing it! So we visited Patti’s beautiful home through Metro Channel’s Metro Moms show, and asked her what being a new mom is like and how she’s making travel easy and fun with Neo by her side.

 

 

READ: Inside #MetroMom Georgia Del Rosario’s Bright, Tropical Home

 

 

At home everywhere

Patti grew up traveling the world with her parents and brother Chris.

“When I was single, you know, you have your own time, you have your own schedule, you have your own space, I did a few girls trips. It was fun. When [Jon and I] got married, we also traveled a lot. We had our honeymoon in Italy,” Patti shares. Travel has always been a big part of her life, and it was something she wanted to impart to her baby Neo.

“Me and my husband, we really want to travel with Neo. We just want to expose him to different food, different cultures—exactly what our parents did to us. I don’t think we’re going to be traveling and living in as many countries growing up, but we’re going to do the same thing visiting different countries,” says Patti.

And so far, at 10 months, Neo has already been on two out-of-country trips: the first time in Hong Kong and the second time in London. According to Patti, they are planning to go to the US very soon.

 

Neo's first flight to Hong Kong

 

Neo with his parents in London (Photo by @sweet.escape)

 

 

Travel with company

One of the biggest tips that Patti can give to new moms is to never be ashamed to ask for help.

Patti says, “Don’t be afraid to ask for help if you need an extra hand. I’m sure there are family friends, caregivers, people are willing to support you in raising a child. It really does take a village.” Whether it’s for the most mundane things about motherhood, or when you’re going out to travel, it helps to have a support group and your family around.

 

Neo with his grandparents, Patti's mom and dad

 

 

 

Pack ahead

We tend to forget essentials when we're rushing and procrastinating. This is why one of the biggest tips from Patti is to “plan and pack ahead of time! I open up Neo’s suitcase a week before leaving for London [and] I would put items inside as I remembered them; it wasn’t so overwhelming that way. You can then make a check list based on what you brought for future trips. A few days before our departure, I feel like we could have been ready to leave if we had to!”

This way, Patti was able to keep adding the stuff she would have forgotten the first time she made the list and started packing. And to make everything just a bit more organized, she said she used packing cubes to sort and pack efficiently.

 

 

 

Travel light

Traveling light is already a challenge when you’re traveling by yourself, so imagine how to pull it off if you’re traveling with your baby? But according to Patti, it’s actually possible! You just have to know what kind of accommodation will best suit your family and the things you can actually just rent out at your destination.

When they went to London, Patti and her husband Jon opted for an apartment instead of a hotel. By doing this, she had enough space and provisions for Neo to be fed, cleaned, and put to sleep easily. And instead of bringing everything with you, there are rental services like Airtots, which provides baby kits and essentials from strollers and scooters to high chairs and baby toys. 

 

  (Photo by @sweet.escape)

 

An easier way to carry your baby

When you’re going outdoors or exploring, you may have a hard time lugging a stroller around. Walking around is so much easier with a baby carrier, and it keeps your baby so close to you, too!

 

 

READ: Metro.Style #HipAndHappeningMoms 2019: Patti Grandidge Herrera

 

 

Stay calm and enjoy the trip

Patti shares, “The hardest part about traveling with Neo right now is that we never know what to expect! He was a different baby at 4 months traveling to Hong Kong than at 7 months flying to London.” And this is true for all babies. You can never expect what will happen, when they’ll throw a tantrum, or sleep like a log. And you can view this uncertainty with anxiety, or choose to deal with problems one at a time with a calm and composed point of view.

“Being a new mom is like riding a roller coaster. The baby will take you on some high highs and low lows. You just gotta ride with the waves. It’s confusing, it’s exhausting, it’s tiring.” Patti says. But above all, “I wanna be a loving mom, a kind mom, an understanding mom, a happy mom, a calm mom—and these are things that neo will pick up on.”

  (Photo by @sweet.escape)

Join us as we visit the warmest homes and hear stories from the happiest and inspiring moms on Metro Moms, airing Sundays, 12:30 p.m., only on Metro Channel, channel 52 on Sky Cable and channel 174 on HD. Watch Patti’s episodes through replays throughout the week or on demand via iWant.

 

Photos from Metro Channel, @sweet.escape and @pattigrand on Instagram