Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Moving abroad Part 1: Overprepared = underwhelmed

The countdown to take-off has yet to officially begin, but the more focused preparation has commenced. Yesterday I was on the phone for nearly three hours with the airlines trying to figure out baggage allowances, checking bicycles, making seat reservations, going over layovers and flight itineraries etc.

(On a tangential note: I used to be afraid to call strangers. As in, I had my mom making my dentist appointments when I was in college. I had to get over that one real quick after I got married. Now I feel like making appointments and calling customer service people is my part-time job.)

I've started making a packing list. I know, it may seem a little early, but some things on the list may take a bit of time and effort to get (enter: prescriptions for a year. Hello insurance company, doctor's office, fax machine, telephone, internet . . . it's a pain. Trust me). Thinking all of these things through in advance will hopefully save me headache down the road.

To say that I've been scouring the blogosphere (and bookosphere) for tips would be an overstatement, but I have put aside time to find ways to ease the mess and hassle of not only traveling with an infant, but moving to another country. Yikes. I want the experience to more closely resemble a well executed battle plan, rather than a three ring circus.

Organizationally, I think that DesignMom had a brilliant idea with this accordion folder to store all of the papers they would need on the way over to France during their move. Now that we have our visas and other documents coming back, I think it will be important to find a good way of keeping this info safe, yet accessible.




I'll be posting more tips for traveling with babies and relocating abroad as I come across them (because I have been looking). In the mean time, you can check out my Pinboard on the subject.

1 comment:

Copper (Annalisa) said...

I like the accordion file idea - just make sure it's plastic! I use a sturdy plastic envelope to store all of our important papers so that it will protect them from accidental spills or down pours. It also makes it easier to find the smaller items.

I'd also recommend using air compression bags for clothing. Remember when I headed to the East coast to visit WGBH, Discovery, etc? Kemsley and I only took carry-on bags - one each. I got my bags at WalMart, but they also sell them (or used to) at Burlington Coat Factory - and I think they were cheaper.

I also created a binder (1/2 inch) to hold all of the maps and important information for each leg of the trip - it's the reason we were so prepared and survived that whirlwind of a visit!

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