Traveling and terrified of sleeping being thrown off! Tips, please.

[jmhappy100]

Our LO is 20 mths old and has been sleeping through the night since we discovered the BW at 13 months.  Life before that was a nightmare!!  We hold our DS sleep as something sacred if you know what I mean.  So, for the first time since we did sleep training we are going on a trip which includes a 5 and a half hour plane ride and then we will be staying with my grandparents.  We picked a flight that left shortly after his nap time hoping that the sound of the plane engines would help him overcome the excitement of being on a plane during nap.  There will be an hour time difference when we arrive.

But honestly I'm terrified of his sleep schedule being thrown off.  I already told my family that he has a regular nap and bedtime and that we will participate in activities that don't interfere with his sleep schedule.  They are already giving me trouble about it not being a big deal if he misses a nap or is late for bedtime while we are on vacation.  I think that with all the new people and surroundings keeping his schedule is even more important.  Am I right???

We plan on taking things from his crib to help him feel more comfortable sleeping in a new place.  I just don't know what else to do to help him stay on track while we are gone.  Any advice or encouraging words would be very welcome. 

thanks,
jill

[Lissybits]

Hi Jill,

DS and I are regular travellers to England from Greece (since he was 4 mo), although it's only 3.5 hr flight.

I would tend to agree with you in keeping everything as close to your routine at home. We always do when we go. England is 2 hrs behind us here and we don't even adjust BT - we keep it at out usual 8.00 (which would be Greek time 6pm) and that works perfectly to combat any OT that may have accumulated during travelling as we always have an evening flight that lands at 11pm.

As we too had sleep problems with DS, I am very strict with nap and BTs and will generally only arrange to do things after his nap!!  I also have comments from my family - but I am the one who will have to deal with NWs and EWs if he gets OT!!!!

You could gently try to explain this to them - but if they still don't get it - I wouldn't worry!!

I'm sure he'll adjust better than you expect! Enjoy your hols!!

Lis
xx

[lilmonkey]

I agree with Lis.  Try to stick as close to the routine as possible but don't stress out if there's problems like nws or short naps.  You can always get him back on track once you're home.  We have done numerous trips and after the initial few attempts at getting our relatives and friends to understand how important it is for me to have their naps and bedtime the same, I just gave up trying to explain and just excused myself from some activities.  Our routine still got disrupted b/c of new places and new people so I just go with the flow at those times.

Bringing items from home is a great idea.  I even pack a thick black piece of fabric to cover the windows.  Infact, I have dh to that as soon as we are shown to our rooms. 

And remember it is a holiday so try to relax and have some fun.  He might surprised you and not have any troubles at all.
Have fun on your holidays!

[Gooberz]

Hi
My lo is 17 months and we have travelled a lot and also done 4, 12 hour flights with him.  I found the most important thing is to try and keep things as close to his normal routine as possible and also to be flexible if need be.  Its only normal to have family want you to do things their way, believe me, I know, but compromise with them and you could enjoy your holiday, if you fight them then your holiday will just be stressful and you will wish you were home, again I speak from experience.
I also take my lo's teddy and he uses a muslin to help him sleep.  He also uses a grobag which helps him feel like he is at home.  I use the same routine, dinner, bath, bottle, story then bed.  He is usually a bit unsettled for the first few nights but I keep him really active - and on holiday that's easy - and he sleeps like a baby!!  When you get home he will probably be unsettled again and I recently posted a message for help with my lo waking all night after our last holiday.  It is important to really keep the routine going when you back as we got into the bad habit of letting our lo sleep late after a bad night.
I will be honest its not easy but try and relax and use the fact that you have babysitters to enjoy time with your partner.

[jmhappy100]

Thanks so much for all the support and tips!  We will try to relax and have a good time.