First time travelling with a Toddler

It's almost time.... Not sure if that's a good or bad thing.. 

We will be travelling with our toddler on July 10th, which just so happens to be his 2nd birthday. If you have ever been a parent of a toddler, or have ever had contact with these little primates you know when they reach 2, they go wild.  So wild infact it's termed the "Terrible Twos" 

In my case it's been going on much longer... Much much longer.. You see we were blessed with a very strong willed advanced primate, don't be fooled by all the cuteness up above there.. No, no, no that would be your first mistake!.. He crawled early and walked by 9 months...he has a special knack of picking things up quickly.. It's no surprise then that the terrible 2's hit around 18 months..and have showed no signs of leaving.... Ever so it seems.  He took control of my iPad not long after and who am I kidding, he runs this house okay!!  We are also smack dab in the middle of potty training.. Any experienced mom knows that once you start, you have to go with it. To stop or stray from the program can cause major set backs. Jax has been doing wonderfully well, but he is only 23 months and does have accidents sometimes which is another reason why I'm not sure how this holiday will go.

We are going to the Iberostar Ensenachos in Cayo Santa Maria Cuba. My husband is the best man in our friends wedding and we will be travelling with our terrible two, potty training, strong willed child... Not sure if that's a good or bad thing but we are about to find out.

I think I will be forced to spend a lot of time on this ship... I may end up walking the plank! 

T- 12 Days until Dday Bday... Some cute clothes I ordered from TCP have arrived and I was finally able to get the stroller I wanted and it's being driven down as they aren't sold in Canada... But more about that later... This weekend it's Canada day long weekend and I'm hoping to get things together and start organizing as I absolutely hate doing things at the last minute!

I bought a few snacks for Jax to take along.  Tomorrow I'll pull the suit cases out and check them over to make sure they're travel worthy as they've seen their fair share of voyage and have been tossed around a centrifuge quite a few times.

T-11 Days: 

Primate has awoken in a bad mood today he had an accident overnight first one in over a week. He seems much better now after feeding on eggs, Maple leaf bacon, oranges and raspberries!

I pulled the cases and hubbies is worst for wear, It may make it one way but certainly not a return flight. 

I emailed the resort our names and passport numbers for advanced check in as we will be arriving at the resort after 10pm, and I certainly will not feel like standing in line to register, that could take a few hours!!  Knowing this I will have to ensure we have some food for our primate as he is not very friendly when he is tired and hungry. 

Having travelled to Cuba quite a few times, 8 to be exact, I know that they lack some of the more modern conveniences we tend to take for granted . I will have to account for this when packing for our primate!

As I start making my what to bring list, knowing its a huge resort we will definitely need to have a good lightweight stroller with a shoulder carry strap to traverse the uneven terrain in towns as well as stairs and obsticals at the resort. The resorts in Cuba are not accessible. 

Jax is also basically potty trained at this point. He wears underwear all day and a pull up at night.  Now we tote along his potty/urinal everywhere we go, we even have one that stays in the van for when we are out. 

Considering we have to travel over 2 hours to get to the airport, another 3-4 hours at the airport, 3 hours of flight, another 2 hours to the resort I'm not sure how this is all going to work! Do I revert and put him in diapers? As his favorite potty training book states "I don't want to!" 

I'm not going to. No, I can't! The thought of having him reverse his potty use and stay in diapers until he's 3 is a nightmare!

I will have to make sure he has enough changes in clothes, a few pull ups just in case and I will bring his potty as a carry on item in a plastic bag. 

His potty is very light molded plastic made by safety 1st. Such a great invention as not only is it a floor potty but you can hang it up on the wall and it turns into a little urinal. Genius! 

T- 7days:

Had a few days of exhaustion, got some shopping done but that's about it!

We decided to have a party for Jax on Saturday (T- 5 days) How can you not throw a little party for your baby boy!  Lol his is sure to contribute turning the next few days before departure into shear chaos! 

The stroller arrived, have not had a chance to look at it yet, starting to feel a slight twinge of panic lol

I got Jax a Spider-Man carry on so he can pack some snacks and activities to keep him busy for over 12 hours of travel!

Hubby and I decided its in our best interest to invest in a little portable DVD player so our little primate can watch his shows or better yet, his favourite move The Lion King :)

The cloth training pants and swimsuits I ordered still have not arrived I'll be sad if they don't make it in time for this holiday 

Necessities for travelling:

1. A good lightweight stroller.

We have a Britax BReady and it's been a great stroller so comfortable for Jax on long hikes on the trails but not designed for travel! It's big, bulky and heavy! 

Jax also has a Mamas and Papas Urbo stroller that I won from OSM.  Jax loves this shiny stroller and it's lighter than the Britax and wonderful for urban strolls and at the mall but still not convenient for air travel as it needs to be taken apart to collapse into 2 pieces and although lightweight does not fold down enough to be gate checked.

I had been researching light umbrella strollers and there were a few that would have been great to have like the higher end Britax bnimble, Mamas and Papas tour, a Maclaren (obviously). 

Since we ended up having to pay for a seat for Jax because the day we leave (His Birthday) he turns 2.. We couldn't afford to go all out in a 3rd stroller just for travelling.  I came across one from Summer infant called the 3D lite and it looked perfect! At $79.99 usd it has all the features if the more expensive models.. A large basket, 4 position recline, cup holder, 11 lbs and most importantly a shoulder carry strap.  I was so disappointed to find out its not available on the Canadian market yet! So sad as it seemed like the perfect travel stroller that won't break the bank!

Went back to looking and came across the Baby cargo 200 review by whispering 

Coming in at 149.99 it was a bit more then I wanted to spend, also had the option of the 100 model at $119.99 for the extra $20 the 200 model is much more luxurious! After test driving it out at Toys r us, I was convinced to spend the little extra and get the 200 model.... That was until my wonderful sister in law announced she was driving down for a visit with a special surprise.. She had ordered the 3D lite!!! 

2. Familiar snacks, food and drinks

When travelling to a foreign country with a toddler its smart to bring along some familiar foods. Knowing Cuba is not how would you say.. A culinary capital of the Caribbean, this is one area that I will not compromise on! 

3. Toys, books and activities