Finally, I have been able to visit a new place after a long hiatus and get to write about it in my travelogue series š I have added a new flavor to these for the travels I get to do with my baby/daughter, because I think it is both challenging and amazing to get to travel with your child.
It was a long weekend here at UK, and luckily, none of us were ill, so we decided to drive down to a nearby sandy beach called Southold, at Suffolk. We left home at a leisurely pace at 3 in the afternoon and it was a very comfortable and beautiful one hour drive to our destination. I loved watching the green flat lands and the green trees throughout the road trip- such a stark difference from the roads/drives back in India..hehe. Once we reached there, we unpacked and headed straight to the beach, found a spot and set ourselves up there. My daughter played a lot with the sand, ate a lot of the sand and tried to grind her soon to come teeth on some pebbles, and also went into the ice cold water and didn’t want to come out of there! My water baby…heheh
We sat at the beach for a while, and then headed off to dry ourselves at one of the grassy spots near the pier. My daughter had so much fun that she found her appetite back and gorged on all the snacks we were carrying for her. We had some solvay and fries and soft serve ice cream cones before leaving, and it was so much fun!! We left around 6 pm and my daughter was so tired, she napped all the way back home in the car:) It was such a different experience for me- I mentioned to my husband, as we passed an old Church in the town, that had it been our earlier days of travel, before we became parents, we would have probably spent an entire day at this place, walking, cycling, exploring the beach, the village and its old churches. But now that we’re parents, the way we travel has changed significantly- it has become more leisurely and more about experiencing the little joys of being at one place, than the joys and thrills of exploring. I’m sure we’ll get back to that as my daughter grows up, but until then, I don’t mind experiencing this way of travel too! š
So here are my top 4 tips for if you’re planning to visit a nearby beach with your little baby/toddler:
- I read in another travel blog about the 2 hour rule they have when traveling with their kids- for me, its the 4-5 hour rule. My daughter will be happy or engaged being outdoors or doing some activity or traveling or socializing for a stretch of 4-5 hours tops. She doesn’t sleep very well in her stroller/buggy or just anywhere in general, unless she is very tired. So, we try and plan our day trips within 5 hours and longer getaways with stopovers generally. See what suits best for your child, and plan accordingly. You will have a better trip if your baby is happy and rested š
- Pack snacks for your baby – I can’t cook, so I just tried to pick up all sorts of sugary snacks from the store- cakes, raisins, cookies, crackers, rice cakes- it really helped us when she suddenly was ravenous. I did also pack some peanut butter jam sandwich for her- sugar again..lol!
- Don’t forget to carry juice and water- for yourself and your baby
- If visiting a beach- pack accordingly. Your baby is going to get wet and dirty in the sand, and you’ll want to get dirty with him/her- Its a lot of fun actually! Lol..so pack extra clothes, wet wipes, towels, beach towels, beach toys, hats, sunscreen- you know drill š
Finally, just relax and enjoy the sand and the breeze š So until the next trip..how was everyone else’s weekend? Any tips on similar blogs that you would recommend to me, to help me plan places we can visit with my little one in UK?
Starry Eyed Enigma 