Teeny babies in caravans

[Jennifer_5040686]

Practical Caravan would like to hear from anyone who has experience of caravanning with a baby. What tips do you have for other parents? What were your own experiences of taking baby away in your tourer? How can parents make the whole thing a more relaxing experience? Please post your answers on the forum, or email me direct: jennifer.stuart-smith@haynet.com

 

[Dusty1]

It was back in 1979 when we took our son on his first caravan holiday. It was Easter and he was nearly 4 months old. We travelled 35 miles to Chester Race Course where we stayed for a few days. For the first couple of days he wouldn't settle and one night we ended up going for a drive to get him off to sleep. After that he was fine and we went to Bangor on Dee at Whit and never looked back after that.

At first he would sleep in his carry cot on the back bunk bed but then graduated to the bunk bed with a Mothercare bed guard to stop him falling out.

From an early age he would scoot around on a sit car and this used to go with us on every caravanning holiday. He certainly enjoyed his independence on site.

 

[TheSimpsons1]

we took our 3month old to a site in devon, we purchased a small travel cot that fitted between the rear seats of our award night star for her sleeping, bottle sterilising was in a cold water sterilising unit with milton( travel size from boots ) and a bit of a pain as most bottle was made as we needed them as the fridge not big enough to take a day supply. most things we took were the disposable type ie nappies, bottles for day use, However the experience was good cos i fed her her early morning bottle lay her back to sleep and got to play early morning golf and was home in time for mum and daughter waking up!

 

[HomerMarge]

My wifes parents inteded on taking her on holiday (she was very young and in a carrycot at the time), I think it was quite a while before they had realised they had left her at home on the bed in her carrycot! They did come back for her though once it occured they were one down in the car! As they introduced us to caravans and found such a nice caravan for us that we purchased in April, I am sure they will not mind me letting out their big secret!...

 

[MickC1]

Hi Jennifer

Both of our children started caravanning at around 3 months old.

The main thing that we were concerned about was noise really. Both from the neighbours of an evening when the kids were trying to sleep, and from the kids in the small hours when they get their own back. We therefore tended to be a bit unsociable for a while, and parked up away from the centre of activity. This did seem to work as I don't remember them being woken up, and no one complained about any crying in the night.

I did a bit of improvising for the cot. I used two quick fit shower curtain rails. This is the sort that you can fit between two walls in a bathroom without drilling holes. They're telescopic, and work by extending them until they're hard against the walls, and then twisting them to lock them. We already had one kicking around, and so purchased another. We then got some old net curtain and sewed around them both, like a stretcher, so there was about 60cms of material between them. This was then very simple to fit to the bed in the evening, and remove and store the next morning. Anti-slip matting gave the ends added grip. It must have been strong enough as it was never pulled off by either of them. When they were older, we changed it to a portable bed guard that could fold up during the day.

Keep a good supply of nappy bags in the caravan and car. If you have a dog then these are also great for clearing up after them. We still use them now as they're alot cheaper than poop bags that you get in pet shops, and smell nicer as well. Well, when they're empty that is.

Food wise we just had a small electrical food warmer, it came with a dish on top. My wife made a lot of baby food herself in a blender, which was then frozen and taken in the ice box of the fridge. Milk was never a problem as Mum supplied it all.

One really useful bit of kit that we had that's a bit difficult to describe, is a child seat that could be used on a normal chair, or clipped onto a frame and attached to a table. It is made of plastic and can be adjusted to two heights when attached to a chair with straps. Or it can be clipped into a metal frame which then clips onto a table. In our Bailey the table wasn't free standing, one end attached to the wall and the other was supported by a single leg. This was ideal, as the chair frame easily clipped onto the leg end and wasn't going to tip up as the other end was secured to the wall. It also came with it's own detachable tray. This meant that we could all sit around the table together without any problems and with plenty of room.

Take a night light, especially if you have a socket in the sleeping area that can be left on safely at night.

Take plenty of the favouite soft toys and blankets to help them to sleep.

A backpack child carrier, or front carrier is also more practical than a push chair or pram. You can still go wherever you want to, shopping, walking visiting places of interest etc very easily, and it stores easily in the car. It also keeps you fit.

We found that the rear wash room of the caravan was a boon. If the baby/child has an accident, no messing about, straight in the shower. Take the clothes off in there and give them a quick shower straight away. Easy.

Take plenty of packs of baby wipes. A pack in the caravan, one in the car, one in the backpack etc. They're also great for cleaning your own hands after a meal for example, or even getting marks off clothes or furniture. We still carry them around with us now, years later.

Take loads of nursery rhyme or story tapes or CDs in the car. It can help a long journey to pass without too much whining.

The main thing is though to keep them interested. Wildlife parks are great and sets the childs interests for the future. Our kids are now 6 & 9, and last week when we went away they were allowed to stay up late each night to watch Springwatch on the BBC with Bill Oddie, Kate Humble and Simon King. They love it. The kid are now wildlife mad. Plenty of outdoor fresh air, yes I know that it's unavoidable in a caravan, and they'll be asleep in no time. They'll also grow up to love the great outdoors.

As long as you can put up with the "I want" every time you pass within sight of a gift shop, you'll have no problems and happy campers.

I'm sure that I thought of something else earlier but can't remember it now. Oh well, may have to add some more later.

 

[flippered1]

Hi Jennifer,

We have a 5 week old baby, who has spent the majority of his short life in Special Care Baby Unit and we went away last week, one week after he was sent home to escape the hordes of visitors descending on us. (BTW, this was with the agreement of the midwife who thought the fresh air and break away would do us good as a family - and she was right!) Incidentally, this was our first time away in our recently purchased Avondale, so Dad had to do most of the setting up and running about whilst Mum and Baby Will rested!

We have booked to spend six weeks in July and August touring the UK (trips to Scotland, Lakes, Cornwall, Devon and London planned - injections don't allow foreign visits) and we see no reason why having a new baby should preclude us from having a good time this summer.

Our advice to other new parents would be to relax and don't worry about taking babies away - Will is our second child and as such we are less anxious and more relaxed parents and we are sure a small, short cry in the night will not upset the vast majority of decent caravanners. To minimise crying and preparation time when feeding, we use ready mixed cartons of formula as these do not need warming up.

Incidentally, Will finds sleeping in his moses basket on the worktop in the Rialto extremely comfortable.

Best regards

 

[Pelyma1]

Hi

We have a 5 1/2 year old and an 18 month old and have been caravanning for over 2 years now. Caravans and babies do seem a bit difficult to marry together as there are lots of problems and not many rady made solutions. The usual feeding and steralisation problems are easily solved with Milton and a bottle warmer. The biggest problem we have faced has been finding a cot. Our first thought was a travel cot, but these are generally too large and we felt a fire hazard in our van, particularly if you need to get out quick. Our eventual solution after trying a collapsable bed side (which didn't stop the dogs trying to get in bed with baby, was to use a wooden cot side from a friends cot (they were throwing it out) and fixing it via a bolt in the bottom of the bed box. The lay out of our van (Abbey Expression 5 berth) means that the other end is secured by the cushions. When travelling the cot sits under the cushions out of the way and weighs very little. We now have a secure place we can put baby. We have used pipelagging to soften the bunk leg that comes into her bed and by using the growbag that she sleeps in at home means all works well.

Our biggest unsolved problem is the heater, it is very difficult to keep baby away from the fire and we haven't been able to find a guard.

We have found our popup scienic awning to be vital also for a pram and bike seat to be housed out of the weather.

Tiny babies we have found to be a doddle, it is toddlers that are more testing - just like real life I guess!