Mr. Dolphin and I are passionate about traveling; Mr. Dolphin even got a tattoo when he graduated high school that translates to “wanderlust.” The travel bug really hit me when we spent our entire second year of law school abroad in London and traveled extensively throughout Europe and Morocco. Since returning stateside, we have continued to travel abroad quite a bit and have been to about twenty-five countries together, plus an additional dozen or so countries that I travelled to myself for work. Ideally, we’re hoping that we might find a way to move abroad again, but we want to be sure we are done having babies first (after two high risk pregnancies, I’d prefer to be with a team of doctors that I’m already comfortable with if we do decide to try for a third).
One of my all time favorite trips with Mr. Dolphin: Iceland 2012.
One of my biggest fears about having children, was that we wouldn’t be able to travel anymore. After having Lion I had a small meltdown, worrying that we didn’t have the budget to travel. Even putting the budget aside, Mr. Dolphin had concerns about bringing a baby on long plane rides and going through multiple time zones. We were determined to make it work, though, because traveling and experiencing new cultures is so important to us.
We started small by taking Lion on a trip when he was three-and-a-half months old to Chicago/South Bend when we went to a football game at our alma mater. Since that first trip, Lion has become a seasoned traveler, crossing multiple time zones so we could visit family on the West Coast and accompanying us to Europe. He’s been to several different states and five countries outside the US.
The sheer size of everything at the Diocletian Palace in Croatia impressed Lion.
Sometimes, our families have questioned our decision to take Lion (and soon, Panda) on these adventures when “they won’t even remember the trip.” I loved Mrs. Bee’s post on things her kids have learned while traveling abroad and wanted to share a dozen reasons we like traveling with young children even if they won’t remember:
For Us
Many of the reasons we travel with Lion and Panda even if they won’t remember is because of the benefits to Mr. Dolphin and me as parents, as a couple, and as individuals passionate about experiencing new things.
Babymoon to Israel and Jordan at 24+ weeks pregnant with Lion!
1) We will remember: It’s true that Lion and Panda will have no memory of the trips we take them on now. However, Mr. Dolphin and I will remember! My mom has fond memories of the Disneyland trip we took when I was three where I apparently wanted to ride Dumbo all day; I have no recollection of this, but she does. I know that I will fondly remember Lion pointing out the window of the waterbus in Venice, impressed by the sheer fact that we were on a boat; of his first taste of taramasalata in Greece, which he loved; and of him following cats around in Montenegro, pointing excitedly each time he saw a new one, exclaiming “Cat! Cat!”
Running around outside the walls of the Diocletian Palace in Split, Croatia.
2) We get to see the world through the eyes of a child: I love to see how Lion experiences the world around him and while we can certainly do this in our own city, it is nice to be in completely new surroundings. Things that are ordinary for an adult can become magical for a child. Traveling also gives us time to slow down so that our kids can enjoy the everyday things we might otherwise rush past when we are home, like when Lion wanted to hang out with the pigeons in Greece.
Lion squatting down to be on the same level as pigeons.
3) It helps us understand that our lives and hobbies have changed, but we can still enjoy the same activities in a different way: After taking Lion on a couple of trips, I felt much better. Traveling with Lion made me realize that while our lives have changed, we could still share in our favorite hobby—and, better yet, we could share it with someone who shared with us a new way of looking at the world in a way that only a child can. We can’t hit every single site we want or spend all day in a museum anymore, but we can still hit the highlights and enjoy new cities in different ways. By being forced to slow down, we also notice more of the small details that may otherwise have gone overlooked.
The stroller took a bit of a beating on all the cobblestones and off-roading we’ve done during our travels. Totally worth it.
4) We all get a break from most obligations and can enjoy a true vacation: It’s no secret that our families sometimes question why we travel internationally instead of taking a trip back to the West Coast. While we absolutely adore our families and want to encourage a relationship between our children and our parents and siblings, let’s be honest: those trips are not restorative and are not a vacation. Because both of our parents are divorced, we have four sets of family we need to visit, plus our brothers and friends when we go back to the West Coast. When we took Lion to California at nine months old, it was an exhausting whirlwind visiting my dad and stepmother, my mom and brother, Mr. Dolphin’s mother, Mr. Dolphin’s maternal grandfather and uncle, Mr. Dolphin’s father and stepmother, aunt, uncle and grandfather, and then spent time with a couple of my friends before taking a red eye back to DC. Lion started to cry on sight of his carseat and continued to do so for weeks because he had been moved in and out of the car so many times over the course of six days. When we’re on vacation with kids, Mr. Dolphin and I will to scale back our usual activity, work around nap schedules, and be more adaptable to how the kids are feeling. However, when visiting California or Seattle, there is a sense of obligation. We don’t get back to the West Coast as often as we would like, so whenever we are there, we feel like we have to see our parents, stepparents, siblings, and friends, resulting in a very exhausting trip.
A rare photo of all three of us (four if you count 24-week-old Panda) during babymoon #2.
5) It helps keep our relationship as husband and wife healthy: Travel is so fundamental to Mr. Dolphin and my relationship. It is one of our favorite things to do and share. Whenever we’ve felt like we were burning out at work or not spending enough time together, travel has been a way for us to recharge and reconnect with each other. It is one thing we do to help keep our relationship healthy because we disconnect from work and other external pressures, completely turn off our phones and spend time with each other. Being able to experience new things in another country is great for our relationship.
A selfie from the top of the Eiffel Tower ten years ago on our first international trip together.
6) Practical considerations: What would we do with the kids if we didn’t take them with us? We don’t have a babysitter that we use and Lion is very shy. He would be terrified if we left him and isn’t at an age where he would fully understand that we are coming back. He’s not familiar enough with our family since they live so far away, so we can’t rely on them to watch the kids. And honestly, I would miss the little ones if I were gone for long enough to take an international trip.
For the Kids
Just as there are significant benefits to traveling with kids for Mr. Dolphin and myself, there are plenty of advantages for Lion and Panda.
This was a trip where almost everything that could have gone wrong went wrong, but we still had a great time! This trip solidified my desire to travel the world with children.
7) They get new experiences: There’s a difference between experience and memory. For us, it’s enough that the children will get to experience new things. Even if they won’t remember that trip to Italy or Guatemala, the experiences they have as young children will help shape how they react to future experiences. Travel will help shape who they are and change how they see the world around them.
Walking around in Cusco, Peru.
8) Travel nurtures cultural sensitivity and awareness: We want our kids to understand that there are many different cultures and while there are dominant and secondary cultures in the United States, there are so many that we don’t experience if we don’t travel. We hope that through travel, our children will learn to embrace differences and inclusiveness. While we certainly try to encourage cultural awareness at home, too, through books, museums and festivals, there is something so powerful about the immersive experience of travel.
A photo from a work trip to Brunei in 2013.
9) It encourages an adventurous heart: I want our children to be adventurous and willing to try new things. I hope they learn to try food that they’re not used to, take different forms of transportation, and explore unfamiliar terrain. I want them to embrace the unfamiliar rather than fear it. Perhaps with travel, one day they will adopt this Mark Twain quote as their motto: “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”
Lion enjoying the iron gates of an old fortress.
10) They will learn to be good travelers: By traveling at a young age, we hope that they will learn to be good travelers and appreciate that on airplanes and public transport, they must be aware that they are sharing the space with other people. We want them to be able to get through airport security with ease, to be calm when travel goes awry, and to learn to sleep in new environments. We also want them to learn to be entertained while confined in relatively tight spaces. We hope that they will learn to be good travelers because the experiences at the destination are well worth the travel.
Enjoying a beautiful hike in Montenegro.
11) Traveling cultivates patience: In the DC area where it often seems that there are a disproportionate number of A-type personalities (myself included), impatience pervades the culture. We try to teach our children patience in a variety of ways, but leaving even briefly, is a helpful reminder that much of the world does not operate at the fast pace as DC. Beyond that, travel requires waiting in line for tickets, waiting to board a plane, and waiting in airports during layovers. Mealtimes in many other countries are much more leisurely, a lovely experience in itself.
Playing with cars in the airport while I waited in line for 2.5 hours to be rebooked and rerouted after our flight was cancelled during last year’s Lufthansa strike.
12) We all spend quality time together and can nurture our relationships: Just as travel is restorative for Mr. Dolphin and my relationship, so does it allow for quality time with the kids. When we are home, too often our daily lives are filled with deadlines: rushing to get the kids fed and dressed then off to daycare; rushing through dinner so we can get to bathtime then bedtime; cleaning the house on the weekend so it is not a complete disaster come Monday morning; checking work e-mails and responding to them at all hours due to the 24/7 culture of the digital age. Traveling with our kids allows us the time to disconnect from our usual obligations and really connect, spend quality time together and appreciate each other.
No Dolphin travel albums are complete without a picture of our traveling Koala!
Travel is so important to the Dolphin family and we love having the opportunity to share this activity with our kids. I hope to share some of the tips we’ve discovered on surviving long flights and layovers with babies and toddlers, deciding whether to adjust to a new time zone, how we’ve used miles/points and other travel strategies to get where we want on a tight budget and more in future posts!
pomelo / 5866 posts
Great post! I travelled a lot with LO and there are some people I meet who just don’t believe in taking their kids with them if they can’t remember it. This is a great response!
Regardless, it is such a precious time and I’ll remember it (well, most of it)!
blogger / nectarine / 2043 posts
I love this! We made the opposite decision, despite being big travelers (Baby C’s baby room was/is travel themed, even!), not so much because she won’t remember, but primarily because we wanted to maximize our limited budget and travel when all 3 of us would get more out of the experience. I also really envy people who find traveling with kids restorative – we took a trip to the Caribbean when Baby C was nearly 2, and despite two extra family members on hand with us, we still felt like we spent 95% of our time just chasing a toddler around, except this time on a beach rather than at home. She’s 3 now, so I think we’ll probably hit the road in a couple of years with her.
guest
Tha is impressive! We have traveled a few times with our 2 year old (including two trips to Europe to see family). We just came back from another trip to France and it was really tough! Our tot is not easy-going, especially in a new environment, so it was a lot more tiring than being at home. We may wait another year before doing such a long trip. How do you deal with jet lag? That’s the tough part for us.
grapefruit / 4923 posts
wow the places you’ve been! i’m impressed. i get jittery about even going to california (i live in northern virginia) thinking about the kids waking up at 3am. how do you manage the time differences?
blogger / apricot / 367 posts
Love this! I’ve been dying to take the kids on a longer trip to Europe or even to somewhere like Hawaii but my husband is a little wary of how they will handle it. Your post gives me some good reasons to convince him to take the trip
cherry / 176 posts
How do you manage the sleep schedule? Is your little one a good and flexible sleeper? My 2-year old has had such a difficult time with sleep that we’re hostage to our nap/bedtime routines. He hasn’t been able to sleep on a plane since his first trip at 2 months old, which makes trips a little miserable:( I’m looking forward to future posts on traveling with little ones!
pomegranate / 3768 posts
Great post! We’ve taken DD on a few trips but nothing more than a 5 hour plane ride. This winter we’re planning to take my almost 4 year old and 1.5 year old to Hawaii (9 hour flight) and next year possibly a trip to Asia. A part of me is afraid of traveling with little ones but then I tell myself sometimes you just gotta go for it! Looking forward to your future posts. And I love your blogger name + icon.
blogger / apricot / 482 posts
@808love: So glad I’m not the only one who has to explain why we travel with kids! I love making these memories with our kids!
@Mrs. Carrot: Well, we don’t necessarily find it fully restorative like vacations of the past. But so far it’s still partially restorative…something about being in a new place works wonders for us (even if we’re chasing a small child around)!
@Mrs. Juice: Mr. Dolphin was definitely worried about taking a longer trip, but after we did it, he was sold. Sometimes you just have to take the plunge and see how it works out!
@dolphin: Thanks
We were very nervous about taking our little guy to Europe, but he handled it much better than we thought. Even though everything that could have possibly gone wrong went wrong on the trip (delayed flights, cancelled flights, reroutings, lost luggage, an allergy to medication, getting sick), we agreed that we still had a really good time . . . which meant Mr. Dolphin was sold on future trips.
blogger / apricot / 482 posts
@julie and @edelweiss: Yeah, jet lag is tough. We’ve tried a variety of things depending on how far the trip is. When we go to CA (from DC) we try to move their schedules by an hour so it’s less of a shock and put them to bed very early when in CA so that they aren’t affected too much. For a bigger time difference of over 6 hours, we just try to acclimate as soon as possible to the new schedule. Because our kids are such early risers, we don’t mind if they sleep in a little bit later (so if we’re going to Europe, it works in our favor!). In 2017, we have a trip or two planned, but for at least one will stay within a closer time zone by going to Central or South America rather than Asia or Europe.
@AnnabelleG: Our oldest is a terrible sleeper, unfortunately. I know a lot of people recommend taking red eyes, but we’ve taken the opposite approach when we can. We find it’s much easier to entertain him on long flights where he’s awake because if it’s his sleep time, he can’t fall asleep on the plane and ends up crying a lot. He is cranky if he misses a nap or has a shorter nap, but readjusts after sleeping that night.
blogger / apricot / 482 posts
@Mrs. Carrot: Also, I totally get wanting to maximize a limited budget! We’ve been trying to use miles/points nowadays due to the high costs.
pear / 1547 posts
Love this! We also live on the east coast with family (and my parents divorced) on the west coast so I can appreciate that struggle. We’ve done one international trip when LO was 10 mo (Paris and Barcelona) and hope to do another. Lots of other states and weekend trips though. We like to go places! It’s just slower with a little one…
pomegranate / 3225 posts
Love this! I really want to start traveling internationally with my one and three-year-old but I am a little scared
but, you have inspired me!
blogger / olive / 64 posts
Mr. Macaron and I were just talking about traveling with Petit Macaron. We debated if it was worth doing while he was so young since he wouldn’t remember. I LOVE your points. Great post.
pineapple / 12566 posts
We’ve traveled a ton with both of our LOs (they have each been to 4 continents and many countries!). I love how it broadens their perspective of the world and lets them see the diverse people in it.
blogger / apricot / 275 posts
I loved this post – it totally inspired me to start planning a trip abroad with my 2 little ones! Our oldest who just turned 3 has traveled a ton, but all within the USA and almost all for those non-restorative family trips (lots of fun & family time but not so much exploring/ simply enjoying travel together as as a family). I’m eager to hear how your first trip with 2 goes … we’ve taken both of ours on a few family trips but it feels so much harder for some reason.
nectarine / 2210 posts
When I was a year old my parents took me to Europe. Growing up I used to complain about it, mainly because I was almost jealous of myself and couldn’t remember it. But looking back now, I totally get it.
blogger / kiwi / 675 posts
I love that you guys travel still, your children will love to look at these memories someday! So cute. Also want to go to Iceland it seems amazing.
admin / watermelon / 14210 posts
love this! i’m dying to go to iceland. my kids miss the snow living in tropical weather.
blogger / nectarine / 2600 posts
Wow thats super impressive and what memories you are making!
blogger / apricot / 482 posts
@MenagerieMama: Love it! It is a little slower, but still so much fun!
@kml636 & @Mrs. Peas: Take the plunge! It’s totally worth it (I say, having never taken two kids at once
@Mrs. Palette & @Mrs. Bee: Can’t recommend Iceland highly enough! It’s really kid friendly and we can’t wait to go back and do it with the kids. Easy to rent a car and travel around the entire island. We went off-season, so there’s a ton of activities we missed out on last time that we think the kids would enjoy, like seeing puffins.
blogger / apricot / 482 posts
@lamariniere: Absolutely agree! Love that you travel with your kids and that they’ve been to such diverse places!