Ahhh holidays...

While recently on holidays, I was doing LOTS of observing of parents traveling with small children. Hannah is a good traveler for the most part, but it doesn't stop me from being entirely tense from the minute we leave the house to the minute we roll into our hotel room.

So it helps if there are good products to make life easier.

Can I just say the the Snack Trap (with the very, very much appreciated tether) is a LIFESAVER. I saw other Mom's with a snack trap tied to the stroller with string. The tether held the snack trap, Hannah's new little wallet (filled with empty giftcards, since her favorite thing to do is empty MY wallet of debit/credit/giftcards), toys, etc. So, so so handy. So handy that when it accidentally got left at The Rainforest Cafe, Jeff had to sprint back and make them dig through the kitchen to find it (they did, Thank God!)

Also saw so many mothers with Hooter Hiders/Bebe Au Lait-- totally handy, totally discreet. In fact, the only reason I noticed them was that I recognized the patterns. Otherwise these nursing mothers blended in seemlessly with the hustle and bustle around them.

Also, at Disneyland, there were plenty of parents with toddlers or preschoolers and new babies. How were they handling it? One parent would carry the baby in a sling or carrier, while the other managed the stroller and other small children. Many parents had child harnesses (or "leashes" as they are sometimes called) but most were sitting in the stroller, and the kids were walking or riding along.

(Side note: I used to (before I had a kid) be a person who judged a child on a tether. Granted, the ones I used to see were very leash-like (while the new ones are mostly little backpacks that look like a puppy or monkey, and the parent holds the tail). Now, having a small child who can run at the speed of light, and who likes to be part of the action and not restrained in a stroller, I totally get them. Hannah didn't need to use one (like most of the kids I saw) but I still think they are smart and safe and get it when parents choose to use one.)