When our first baby, Casey, came along, my husband and I were determined to make sure she assimilated into our life, not the other way around. We were pretty active and keen on keeping it that way. But there were a lot of things to think about when our duo became a trio, and in the forefront of our minds, like all parents, was safety. I was thinking about this since September is National Baby Safety Month. Keeping baby safe is really sort of all encompassing.  In those early days, what I thought most about was keeping Casey safe in transit for those trips around the block, when I would strap her in the car seat and pray she would go to sleep. Yeah I did that. With this in mind, here are some of my top safety tips from one good enough mother to another.

THE CAR SEAT:  Ahh yes…car seats. For the record, they’re much easier to install now, than even a few years ago. I wish I had a nickel for each time I spent struggling and sweating to make sure the car’s seatbelt was tight enough, then tugging to make sure the car seat itself didn’t move or rock if I took a sharp turn, or God-forbid, worse. Now, with bases that click and lock, you know it’s in there to stay. Bonus: you can get them in and out quickly, provided you know what you're doing. My recommendation is to find one you are really comfortable dealing with, since your baby will spend quite a bit of time in it. Ask around and read product reviews and make sure you find one that will give you the most “bang for your buck,”  and always read the entire instruction manual before using the car seat.

BABY GATES: Now if you’ve driving over the river and through the woods to let’s say Grandmother’s house, everyone, including your toddler, is going to be itching to get out and stretch their legs. And that’s good. But if you’re at grandma’s house, a baby gate is going to be a must, seein’ as it may have been a while since a little one’s been tooling around her house. The gates nowadays are lightweight and sturdy, which translates to peace of mind for you. You need this because having a little one who’s mobile is the very definition of a “game-changer.”

BABY-PROOFING: And then there’s this, catchall term. You know you need to do it, but what is IT exactly? You’re probably aware of the usual things, like covering electrical outlets. But also take extra care in the kitchen. If you’re still at Grandma’s, ask her to turn down the hot water heater to 120 degrees Fahrenheit and keep all medications out of reach of little hands.

Here’s one more trick I used. I loved being on the floor with my kids. So while I was down there tickling and loving on them, I would take a good look around so I could see the world from their perspective. What’s at eye level? What’s brightly colored and dangling off the counter, just waiting to be tugged on? What little tiny objects did the vacuum miss, that are now tucked away in the corner, just waiting to be popped in a mouth? You might be surprised what you find. Of course, it means finding the fun in putting stray pieces of string in your mouth, but if it will help keep baby safe, get on down there and take one for the team! A little planning and forethought can go a long way to making sure your baby grows up happy and healthy.

By Evenflo Savvy Parenting Expert Rene Syler, founder of Good Enough Mother

Gearing up for summer travel has got me thinking. I’m thinking about sleeping.

Tiny babies: Believe me, anyone who weighs less than 15 lbs does not require a real bed. Newborns can sleep in their bucket-style infant car seats overnight. (Or not sleep, as the case may be.) I also like to give a little dose of infant massage right before bed in a strange place to really knock the baby out.

Big babies and toddlers: I love the pack 'n play style travel cribs. If driving, go ahead and shove it in the trunk. If flying, borrow or rent one at your destination. Bring familiar security objects and sheets from home to make the bed on the road smell and feel more like home. We also travel with a white noise machine to cover those mysterious travel noises.
 
Big toddlers and preschoolers: Let the fun begin! If we’re traveling to friends’ homes, we can often use a sleeping bag on a rug. But if we’re in a hotel (with questionably clean carpet), I like to build a “nest” out of sheets, blankets, and towels. Its fun for the kids to sleep in a special nest too. Win-win. We also travel with our favorite flashlights and nightlights to ease those midnight runs to the potty.

Have you invented any creative sleep places for your kids while traveling? Anything that absolutely didn’t work?

- By Guest Blogger Heather from Rookie Moms

Are We There Yet? Are We There Yet? Are We There Yet? Traveling with kids can make even the sanest of parents feel like they are quickly going bananas. I even find myself leaning over to my husband and asking him, “Are we there yet?”

The trick to traveling with children is to be prepared. Know what your kids are interested in and make sure you bring activities that will keep their attention and are age appropriate. My children are both toddlers so I’m going to focus on what to do for toddlers.

My last trip I was actually over prepared for and I recommend you do the same. You never know when you’re going to get stuck somewhere unexpected overnight and that’s just what happened to us. Luckily, I had plenty of activities and snacks on us. Here are a few suggestions on how to be prepared.

• Let the kids pick out a backpack with wheels. Having wheels on it allows them to be able to pull it or wear it, depending on what they feel like. Pick out coloring books, lacing toys, crayons, markers, travel puzzles and put them in the back packs. Have lots of different short activities they can do in their laps. Let them pick out some toys as well and have them add them to the bags. Giving your children choices and letting them help in the packing process makes them feel important and valuable. I’ve found that giving them the choice also makes them a lot more persuadable. 
• Choose healthy snacks that make little to no mess, dried fruit, freeze dried fruit, drinkable applesauce, crisps and crackers to name a few. Keep an extra bag in your purse so you can collect the garbage. Grab some reusable drink containers and put them in their bags as well. We drink a lot of water and the kids like to be able to get it out of their own bags.
• I keep snacks, napkins, and baby wipes in my bag along with an extra set of clothes, diapers and pull ups. Even if you have a potty trained child, you might consider putting them in a pull up during a long flight. We did this with Zoe, turned out we made it without any accidents but I know if I had not been so prepared, we would have been wet.
• One last tip would be to bring something very familiar to them. We brought special pillow cases with us on our last trip. That way, no matter where we ended up sleeping it still felt a little like home to them. The pillow cases helped make a huge difference from one trip to another.

By Guest Blogger Louise from MomStart

Since my extended family lives so far away, the holidays always mean we get to spend a full travel day on either side of a visit. Speaking of lessons learned the hard way, I have had my fair share of air travel experiences and would like to impart my wisdom with you so that you can make all of your own mistakes!

Always bring enough diapers. During a flight, conventional wisdom might tell you to be spare in your packing or that your child only uses four diapers in a normal day. Well, flying days are not normal days. I suggest you pack one diaper per hour of travel time. Better safe than sorry. Trust me.

Pack the right toys. You want to have enough activities and toys to entertain your children but not so many that you bring a separate suitcase.  Multi-use toys are good. Games without pieces (like I spy or “what’s that in the SkyMall catalog”) are awesome. Toys that look like a bomb-making kit (play doh and some bendy wires for instance) are bad. See Debbie at DeliciousBaby and her fantastic travel toy ideas to spur your thinking.

Expect the unexpected. What’s unexpected? Earaches, teething, and crankiness in your otherwise-healthy child (so pack baby pain relief); pee accidents or spills from your potty-trained four year old (so pack pull-ups and jammie bottoms as back-ups); reading a magazine or napping for you (sorry, can’t help ya!)

Bribe the people sitting around you. Dole out apologies and free drinks in advance.

By realigning your expectations that the travel day is a means to an end -- an adventure to endure -- you are more likely to be pleased when there are only 3 crying fits and one missed nap rather than stressed-out.

By Heather from rookiemoms.com

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Heather and Whitney blog frequently at rookiemoms.com (always more fun than wiping someone’s tushy!) and 510families.com (more fun with kids in the East Bay). They love taking trips and eating dark chocolate.