Welcome to Packing for Plenty!
I’m Stephanie, a mom to Ella, wife to Peter, yogi, baker, amateur photographer, food-loving Minnesota family travel & mama blogger. Nice to meet you *virtual hug*
Packing for Plenty was started in 2017 and has undergone quite a few facelifts as I have evolved as a person and now a new mother. My first love will always be travel, so these days you’ll find helpful tips for traveling with a baby/toddler, tried and true gear, and carefully curated guides for family-friendly Minnesota and worldwide adventures.
In addition to travel, much of my brain space is taken up by things that fall in the parenting realm. Questions along the lines of:
- What does a baby really need? And dear god why does a baby need so. much. stuff?
- Am I feeding her right? Often enough? Too little? Too much? How do I start solids? What did she just put in her mouth?
- Is my baby bored? How should I entertain her? What can we do to play together?
Etc, etc. Any parent will tell you those questions are seemingly never-ending. Here at PFP, I’ll talk about things that worked and didn’t work for us, cool baby finds, and how to keep your kids entertained using a Montessori-ish approach.
I was an avid traveler before becoming a mother and had a tremendous fear all of that would come to a screeching halt because traveling with a baby is supposedly impossible, right?
NO!
I whole-heartedly believe travel and exploration shouldn’t come to an end once you’re a parent. Sure there are new challenges like having to make extra stops while on a road trip (sometimes every hour), scheduling flights to try and coincide with nap time, full-on meltdowns while quietly exploring local museums…I’m looking at you, Ella.
But with the added struggles and shifts in schedules, exploring, whether abroad or in your own hometown, opens your little’s eyes and minds to the amazing sounds, sights, languages, and beautiful cultures of the world.
And that can’t be taught anyway else.
So I am here to help and encourage you so that you can help and encourage your children to not sit still and to enjoy, explore, and learn everything they can about the world around them.
Stephanie has done quite a bit of traveling over the course of her life, mainly in recent years. Shortly after graduating college she booked her first international trip to Europe and has been on the go ever since. To date, she’s been to 29 states, 17
Pete has done a bit less traveling, but once he met Stephanie he knew he was in for a life full of adventure, both foreign and domestic. In the first year of their relationship, they traveled to a few states and three new countries!
After every trip, we are frequently asked questions like:
How does traveling, especially with a baby, seem so easy to you guys? SPOILER: IT’S NOT EASY!
How are you lucky enough to visit so many wonderful places?
How on earth do you even begin to plan a trip? Especially one that involves working around kids and their needs?
And we get it! Planning a vacation and following through with those plans can be tough and nerve-wracking. We hope to use this space as a way to teach others what we have learned. More importantly than that, we want to inspire the confidence to take the first step out the door as a family and explore this great world before it’s too late.
As with most things, the first step is the hardest!
We also hope that you are inspired to create your own bucket list and follow along as we tick some major things off ours!
Some of our favorites include:
Riding a camel through the Sahara Desert…
Swimming with manatees in Florida…
and finally setting foot on the Cliffs of Moher…
So pull up a chair, stick around for a while, and have fun exploring.
Thanks for indulging in our story.
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Happy travels,
xx