Hellobee

We did it! A month ago this would have seemed like the most exhausting idea ever, but this weekend Mr. Gumdrop and I took a vacation with our two-month-old baby. Here are a few things that made it much more doable:

1. Another month. There is a huge difference between one and two months, for both mama and baby.
2. Her grandparents came along! It made me much more confident knowing we outnumbered her 4:1.
3. Her Pack n’ Play. It has a bassinet, so it’s actually her crib for everyday use at home. So, she had her usual bed along.

Aside from a few mosquito bites, it went off really well and I think it was really good for all of us. Little babies do a lot of relaxing and just hanging out and this weekend so did we – that’s what vacations are all about. We also didn’t have WiFi access except in a designated area, so I wasn’t distracted the way I can get at home and we paid a lot of attention to her.

I definitely recommend for new parents to take a long weekend away if it’s an option in your life – as early as you feel ready. It can be scary but it’s so freeing and good to spend time together outside of normal life with the newest little member of your family.

Tips for a great trip:

• If you’re flying, breastfeed as you ascend and descend so that baby is swallowing and popping his or her ears as you go.
• Bring some familiar things from home along for baby’s nap and sleep times.
• Try to keep your normal routine where you can, but adapt when it makes sense.
• Get away from WiFi or turn your data off and pay lots of attention to your family and baby instead.
• Go with friends or family to share the responsibilities and kid time if you can.
• Start simple and plan as much as you can ahead of time.

Mr Gumdrop and I are big fans of island adventures. An island gives you just enough space and constraints to explore for a few days but not get overwhelmed. We chose an island we’d never been to for this trip – previous trips were mostly oriented around rock climbing, and we’ve got a new love in our lives that definitely takes precedent!

We picked the lovely island Koh Samet in the Gulf of Thailand. If you ever make it out this way, I definitely recommend it for a low key family oriented time – it’s accessible with incredible beaches and just enough spunk on the north side of the island to go check out for an evening or two. In the past, we’d book the first night in our travels online and then wander around on the islands looking for and negotiating for a good deal once we’d seen what each budget place had to offer. No longer! We booked the guesthouse online for all three nights ahead of time, based on reviews that said the beach and location were amazing.

As long as you can read between the lines, booking a place based on reviews is totally possible. If you know you’re a person who thrives in a very clean and catered environment, look for reviews that seem to come from people expecting a high level of service, and make sure your budget reflects this. If you only care about the beach or the food or something else, dig into reviews that sound like you would have written them. For me, I wanted a beautiful, clean, remote beach, decent food, and reasonable accommodations for a low budget. Here were two reviews I read:

Better to go on a Survivor Trek
It costs 450 baht to take a jeep into town (which you have to grab by climbing a hill) and you will want to do that if you fancy civilization. The rest of the “breakfast” aspired to inedible… If you don’t mind all that and the lack of wifi in the room (it did have some wifi at the dining/rooster area but it was sporadic)… The lunch that I bought WAS edible (hurray for little guilty pleasures) but I had to pay for it and I waited about 34 minutes. When I demanded a cup of real coffee for which I had to pay at the bar, she began to put instant coffee into a cup. Sorry. I don’t pay for instant coffee when I am supposed to have a free cup with the “hotel.” I asked for a second “shampoo” bottle but was told that it was ONE to a room. I can’t even begin to describe the decor: Early Prison?<

This is good, damn good.
…In spite of what many other people have written about Samet Ville Resort I must say: “This is so damn good, cool, friendly and beautiful!” Honestly this is a paradise. The Beach is super duper, the water is wonderful and only this resort. Not many people and lots of shade if u want. So Relaxing and friendly, and I mean it, everybody is really fantastic, smiling, helpful, friendly… We got the best service and the staff in the Restaurant were just happy and service-minded, the food was also great. Yes the furniture were a bit old, but so charming, like staying in an old wooden boat with a great private terrace, trees and flowers and the sea. The only thing we didn’t like was the pool and the hard bed

These are taken from real reviews for Samet Ville Resort and they are really helpful (thank you to their authors!). Based on just these two reviews, I knew the resort was probably pretty basic in terms of accommodations and amenities. I expected a hard mattress and didn’t plan on swimming in a pool if the sea was out my front door. But I also knew the location, beach, and water would be awesome and remote. And it turns out that if you are friendly to the staff, they will be friendly to you!

We had a wonderful time at Koh Samet Ville and the island in general. It was just what we were looking for and based on some prepping ahead of time (thanks to Baby Jujube’s grandma for a lot of the research!) we had a great stay. We also kept in mind that if we held onto our expectations loosely and were grateful to be together in one of the most beautiful places on earth, we couldn’t be disappointed.

I’ve been learning the same lesson having a newborn – nothing will go exactly as planned but we’re trying to prep ahead for each little life adventure and enjoy each moment as it comes! I think Baby Jujube learned a lot of flexibility on this trip – and so did we. She rode on a boat, bus and plane all in one day!