so anxious about the holidays

this is our first year dealing the holidays.
what do you do when the babies need to nap? mine have never taken a nap in a pack and play before. will they even nap in one? i dont want them becoming overtired and i dont want them off their schedule bc everyone wants to touch and see them. lol.

how do you feed them when you dont have boppies, infant seats, highchairs, etc?

 

I think if you have your babies on a schedule, you stay relaxed and act as if you would at home they will probably nap fine. You will probably have to be strict with the family though in telling them that you will absolutely not upset their schedule. That is what I had to do and some people (MIL & BIL) were not very happy/understanding but so what your the one that will have to deal with the aftermath not them! As far as feeding them goes how do you do it at home? If you use a nursing pillow can you take it with you and go into another room if you want privacy? Also do you use an infant carseat? If so you could throw a towel over it and feed them solids in there or else just hold them on your laps. If you have a pack n play at your house maybe try putting them in there for a few naps in the days before to see how they do and get them used to it? I'm sure they'll do fine, good luck!

 

I will say from experience that one day off their schedule will not throw them off permanently. As for napping, no they probably won't nap as good, but yours are probably still young enough that if someone is snuggling them and they have any lovies/paci's they need to nap, that they will fall asleep eventually. Might be a bit later than normal but they will likely still snooze. As for feeding, if you are nursing then take your nursing supplies and discreetly go into a different room. If you are bottle feeding, I'm sure you will have plenty of willing helpers to hold a bottle for you

 

Ours typically don't nap/sleep as well during stays at home, but it's gotten better as we're traveling a little more now. We used to try to be fair by breaking up the trip half at DH's parent's house and half at mine. But no one was sleeping when we did that, so now we stay at my parents because they have an extra bedroom, two cribs and two extra bathrooms and at least we sleep comfortably. Plus, my mom is an angel and will sometimes (or anytime I ask really) sleep in the babies' room with them while DH and I get an uninterrupted nights sleep in another room.

I keep them on their schedule and go with the flow. Sometimes they won't nap at all, other times they take an extra nap. Feeding at the usual time and the usual foods seems to be super important for mine..especially that last bottle of the day before bed. DH and I do that one just like we do at home. Mine weren't big on sleeping in pack and plays after about 6 months of age or so because it was so low to the ground and I think then they associated it with playing. But every baby is different. If you have anything that smells like home - a hand blanket, lovey, etc. take it with you and it might help. Ours have to have their hand blankets and I never wash them before we go that way it smells like their beds. For feeding, my mom has two little space saver like high chairs (these from walmart)and they're great. You can always take just one piece of gear for feeding, like a bumbo, bouncy, highchair and rotate while someone else plays with the other baby. Just enjoy the extra help and stick as closely to your schedule as possible - don't be afraid to go about business as normal. People/family/friends should understand.

 

Are you driving somewhere for the lunch/dinner? My boys always fell asleep in the car. We let them nap in their car seats/carriers since we could rock them to sleep. Things will get a little messed up, but the next day you can get things back on track. As for feeding, I would just feed them in their carriers. Or can you bring a bouncy chair with you?

 

I am glad that I am not the only one feeling anxious about thanksgiving and their schedules, and dirty hands and houses!!! Thank you for posting and thank you to the others for their good ideas.

 

Ditto as well. We're going to be driving 2 hours to the in-laws and we'll be taking 1 pack n play and 1 bouncy seat with us. They have 1 full sized crib already in the guest room, but the boys are 15 lbs each now and really move around a lot at night so we'll need to separate them when sleeping. They've both been STTN so good the past month or so that I'm scared what will happen when we get home! But hopefully if they get thrown off their schedule and STTN it won't take long to get them back to normal. I hope!!