Bali Baby

Not too long ago that post could have read Bali Belly...I highfived my Husband on our return once I realised I hadn't gotten sick, that's two in a row hurrah! But what a difference a baby makes, I think Bali Belly might have been easier to cope with.

As some of you may know I headed off to Bali as part of my Mum and new Step-dad's honeymoon (they took the whole family) which also coincided with the 'week of Jess' (my birthday on May 6th through to Mother's day - unfortunately both days were taken up with airports and flights). It was an interesting holiday to say the least and I know now that relaxing holidays by the pool are a thing of the past.

Thankfully I was surrounded by my wonderful family who helped us out way more than they should of and we managed to have a dinner & lunch date and go white water rafting. My new step-sister was an absolute gem and helped out so much with babysitting.

We stayed in two amazing places but nothing could top the first location in Ubud called Villa Sebali. The staff were amazing, the grounds like something out of a movie and the outdoor bathrooms out of this world. The next was in Seminyak and the place was gorgeous (you could step out of the kitchen into the pool) but it wasn't practical and the staff were terrible. But it was good for shopping at least - not that I did much of that.



Hot holidays are definitely hard with a baby and especially hard in a country where you can't drink the water. So if anyone is planning a trip to an Asian country with a baby here are some of my tips.

1. Make sure you have a comfortable baby carrier that you've used before and a nursing cover to hook over.
2. Take an electric fan if you plan on using your pram/stroller otherwise you never will.
3. Take a small but padded blanket (one of the Mums in my Mums Group made me one and may be making more to sell in the future if anyone is interested) - we used this for him to play on the ground on when high chairs weren't available.
4. Take light weight long sleeve shirts for Bubs, you don't really need long pants because their legs are usually covered.
5. A large/huge plastic zip lock bag and Milton (antibacterial) tablets - this was so helpful in sterilizing Logan's food and sippy cups.
6. A mosquito net for the portacot, our first place had one but the next one didn't and we had to try to fit his cot in under our bed's net and it was a pain because of course there were still gaps!
7. Take a dummy/pacifier holder! Even if you hate pinning a dummy to your baby's clothes it is well worth it to avoid losing your dummy to floor germs! Unfortunately the 5 second rule doesn't apply to dirty streets...
8. Take a light weight wrap to use as a quick cover for dirty chairs, floors etc...
9. And of course all the other things for hot weather - sippy cup with water, hat, sunglasses, safe sunscreen (if you want to go down that route).
10. Finally consider trading your nappy bag for a backpack, it's a lot easier and nicer on your shoulders!

The trip was good and I'm now feeling more prepared for our long haul flight to Toronto in October but it is sad saying goodbye to relaxing holidays.

As for the week of Jess, there's always next year and I plan on avoiding airports and planes on both of my special days next year!