AND WE'RE OFF...+ TRAVEL ESSENTIALS

The travel bug has hit us again, and we’re off to the homeland today and heading to sunny Israel (hopefully the snow storm will stop!). Traveling with three small children is no easy feat (especially when the flight is close to 12 hours each way!) so I thought I’d share my top essential to make international jet-setting a breeze.

In the past I would travel to Israel with the boys alone, and back then trips could turn out to be stressful. With Noam back at home working it was a one woman show across those international borders and the boys were not always easy to deal with. There was also a possibility of a tantrum and when you’re stuck on an airplane you want to make sure you have everything you could possibly need to calm the kids (and yourself!) down. It took many back and forth trips to figure out the essentials of traveling with little ones, but it certainly makes a difference when you’re crossing borders with the whole family in tow.

There used to be so much to think about and pack to make sure we had everything we needed to make the flight easier and without Noam it was also a lot of carry. Blankets, luggage, pillows and the list goes on. Luckily the destination is like a second home to me and there were always friends and family on the other side waiting to help.

This year we’ll all be traveling together and with Noam joining us I’m hoping this will be an easy flight. (I'm so excited about!) This will be baby Romi’s first time traveling to Israel so we’re doing all we can to make sure she’s comfortable, and that the rest of the cabin isn’t subject to her crying for 12 hours straight! I'm hoping that finally I'll have some time to relax or maybe even sleep...

My first tip is to book an overnight flight so the kids are already sleepy and more inclined to snooze through the entire trip. My other piece of advice is to stay calm and enjoy the moment – nothing makes traveling more stressful than added stress! If you go into the experience with a nervous attitude more accidents, crankiness and difficulty is bound to come your way. Get excited about the vacation ahead and deal with any mishaps as they come.

I'm getting so excited about the vacation and I curated the list below. Items for me(!) this time. I hope things go smoothly and the kids are comfortable in their seats... I'll be happy for sure.

For now, I'm off to israel.

Neshikot!