YYZ Bambina featured on Kids On A Plane's Meet the Blogger series

Cheryl from Kids On A Plane recently interviewed me about our family trip to Hawaii for her Meet the Blogger series. Check out the post here!

© 2012 YYZ Bambina. All Rights Reserved.

Flying with Baby

As you may recall from the post A Fear of Flying, I was really scared to take Hannah on the plane when we went to Hawaii.

Even once we were at the airport, waiting to board, I was still nervous.

But then I saw the other babies. And once we boarded, I heard the other babies.

That's when I realized, like everything else in life, there will always be better behaved babies than mine on a flight AND there will always be worse behaved babies too.

So really, I should have only been afraid that Hannah would be the worst behaved baby on the whole plane.

Not so. She was a dream. She slept, she wore Daddy's Beats by Dre headphones, she pressed the television screen in front of her, she ate, she talked to another baby across the aisle. It definitely helped that we were three adults taking care of one baby. Especially when it came to schlepping our stuff during the layovers. But in all fairness, Hannah flies very well. At least at this age.

To make things easier on us, we did board the plane early, and we usually waited to exit the plane last. WestJet usually sat us close to the back of the plane on all of our flights - right near the washroom where the change table is located. Chris was super Daddy and changed her on the plane, so I don't have experience to share about changing a diaper at a gazillion feet in the air.

Security let us go through will all her formula, solid foods and bottled water for her to drink (even when I forgot it was in there, and offered to throw it out, they said if it was for the baby it was fine). Getting the stroller through the x-ray machines was a bit of a challenge, but it's no worse for the wear. We took her umbrella stroller, which we took right to the gate and was always waiting for us right where we got off the plane. We also took her car seat and it travelled as checked luggage with no issues.

My best tip is to not bring noisy toys. We didn't. I think most people are understanding you can't control the noise your baby makes 100 per cent of the time - but toys you offer them? That's all you.

What are your travel tips when flying with children?

© 2012 YYZ Bambina. All Rights Reserved.

Snorkeling and Dolphin Watching in Oahu (#hnlbambina)

My favourite day in Hawaii included swimming with a wild sea turtle.

Chris and I did a tour with Hoku Nai'a that included dolphin watching in the morning, lunch on the boat, and snorkeling in the afternoon. We left Waikiki early in the morning, and boarded the brand new 149-passenger two-deck catamaran, custom built for eco-friendly dolphin watching around 9 a.m.

The dolphin watching was so cool. We saw a pod of at least 15 spinner dolphins, and they lived up to their names. As I remarked to Chris, I had to stay on the top deck of the boat or I would have been too tempted to jump in and swim with them.

Around lunch time, the boat got quite rocky and a lot of people started to get sick. The crew apologized for the rough ride and blamed the winds. I don't know if it was riding the subway while pregnant that made the boat ride a walk in the park for me, or just the fact that I was so excited to get in the water but thankfully I was fine.

Finally, the moment I had been waiting for arrived. I got to enter the water! As soon as we got in, one of the tour guides pointed out a sting ray swimming beneath us. Then a sea turtle was spotted. I tried to take photos with an underwater camera we purchased at the ABC Store, but it was so hard to see through the view finder. At one point Chris wanted to go back to the boat, so I swam back with him and then back out to the group. Those few moments when I was "alone" with the fish were amazing. I swam with a school of fish going the same direction as me and I felt a part of their pack.

When we got to the second snorkeling location, many folks decided to stay on the boat. I was the first tourist in the water and the last out. This time there was another turtle who was quite active. He swam by me, maybe five feet away. I think he was OK with getting closer to us because there were less people in the water. Our tour guide made sure we kept a good enough distance as not to startle him. Of course, by this point, I had no more film left in the underwater camera. A part of me was actually thankful for this - it made me truly experience the moment rather than attempting to capture it on film.

While it was mostly adults on the boat, and at least half only boarded to dolphin watch, one family who had a four-year-old daughter entered the water and she was quite happy to do so. I can't help but hope in a few years Hannah will be interested in joining me and seeing wild sea life up close. Being able to snorkel with my daughter would be the ultimate highlight of any vacation I could ever take.

YYZ Bambina is tagging all Hawaii-related posts #hnlbambina.

© 2012 YYZ Bambina. All Rights Reserved.

Honolulu Zoo (#hnlbambina)

I was in love with the Honolulu Zoo. And the animals at the Honolulu Zoo were in love with Chris' camera, he got lots of great shots (it was really hard to determine which ones to post).

Again, before we went my Mom warned us the Zoo hadn't gotten the best reviews online. I have no idea what these people expect for $14 admission, but our trio (and our free baby visitor) were quite impressed.

It's not as big as the Toronto Zoo, and there's no huge hill to check out the animals who are indigenous to the island (thank goodness). The exhibits are big and beautiful (although slightly odd when you can see a Waikiki hotel towering in the background), but they aren't so far apart you feel like you are walking for days until you reach one animal from leaving another. We saw everything the Zoo had to offer in about three hours.

There are more than 1,200 mammals, reptiles and birds that call the Honolulu Zoo home. There are elephants, lions and chimpanzees. Hippos, tigers and meerkats. If the animal showed up to Simba's introduction in the "Circle of Life" in the Lion King, you can most likely see them here. Like one of the dolphins at Sea Life Park, Hannah attracted many of the animals to come close so she could get a better look.

With all the controversy surrounding the elephants at the Toronto Zoo, I think their new home should be the Honolulu Zoo. And I think for coming up with that idea (although, not offering to foot the cost to fly them to Hawaii - perhaps Bob Barker could do that?), I should get a free trip every year to visit said elephants in their new paradise home.

Located quite close to the Waikiki Aquarium and across from Waikiki Beach, the Honolulu Zoo is a must for all visitors - with or without children.

YYZ Bambina is tagging all Hawaii-related posts #hnlbambina.

© 2012 YYZ Bambina. All Rights Reserved.

Waikiki Aquarium (#hnlbambina)

The Waikiki Aquarium is right on Waikiki beach. It's a short walk from the Honolulu Zoo, and a great place to cool off and see some really colourful fish.

Adult admission is $9, but we found a coupon for $1 off in one of the touristy magazines - and they honoured it for both Chris and I. As always, Hannah was free. My Mom had already been, so she decided to spend the couple hours at the hotel pool.

A couple hours was less than what it took. We walked there from our hotel, saw the Aquarium, and walked back.

It may have been the smallest aquarium I've ever visited, but it was the cheapest admission-wise and you definitely get your money's worth. It's the third oldest aquarium in the United States, and one of the coolest - almost all the indoor tanks have access to natural sunlight.

Hannah's stroller was the perfect height to check out the big fish, small fish and jellyfish. The aquarium houses more than 3,500 marine animals in their exhibits including the famous Hawaiin State Fish - Humuhumunukunukuapua'a (see photo at right). Seeing that fish is worth the admission price alone. The aquarium also has a touch tank (Hannah touched a shell) and two Hawaiian Monk Seals.

The Waikiki Aquarium is the perfect place to spend some time out of the sun - and learn about the fish you can snorkel with on the island.

YYZ Bambina is tagging all Hawaii-related posts #hnlbambina.

© 2012 YYZ Bambina. All Rights Reserved.

Sea Life Park - O’ahu (#hnlbambina)

One of the attractions I was most looking forward to on our trip to Hawaii was Sea Life Park.

Anyone recall the movie "50 First Dates" with Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler? This is the park Sandler supposedly works at in the film. And I say supposedly, because most of the scenes I remember from the film I did not see at Sea Life Park (as a big fan, I've watched the movie at least 20 times). I should have done a Wikipedia search before I left. Apparently the park featured prominently in the film is Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, in Vallejo, California.

Regardless, a park set on the coast of a Hawaiian island is good enough in itself.

Hannah was free, the adults were all $29.99 for admission. People have complained about this entrance fee on travel websites. With the Honolulu Zoo costing $14 and the Waikiki Aquarium $9, I can understand why they are upset with the steep jump, but as a family with a baby it was well worth the price.

The Wholphin is on the left.

My Mom made a list of all the scheduled shows to ensure we would catch all of them. Hannah LOVED the shows (and I'm not going to lie, I enjoyed them too). She learned to clap shortly before we left for Hawaii and the sea lions and dolphins amused her to no end (and got gasps of glee AND lots of claps). Sea Life Park is also the home to the only know Wolphin - her parents are a whale and a dolphin. 

The park itself is quite small - I'd say you could circle the main path housing exhibits in 2 minutes easily if you didn't stop to watch. With a baby who likes to be carried, I didn't mind the park was so small, just as families with toddlers who like to walk by themselves wouldn't mind either.

We also fed the sea turtles for $4 - the cost included broccoli, celery and a cute "I fed the sea turtles" cup. Hannah also got to touch the shell of a baby sea turtle who was 3.5 months old.

Sea Life Park also offers activities such as swimming with the dolphins, feeding the sea lions, "swimming" with the sharks, etc. Most of the older families we saw the day we went had also signed up for one of these activities.

You can tell these animals are well taken care of. There seemed to be as many staff members attending to the animals as there were visitors in the park. There were a few too many sea turtles for my liking in their exhibit, but the other animals seemed quite happy in their homes. I wish there were more underwater viewing tanks - just the sharks and a few of the dolphins had these.

It's about a 50 minute bus ride on TheBus (O'ahu's public transportation system) from Waikiki which charges $2.50 each way for adults - which is nothing considering the amazing views you get riding to the park (a lot of the journey is along the coast).

If I ever get back to O'ahu (and I hope I will), I would definitely return to Sea Life Park. 

YYZ Bambina is tagging all Hawaii-related posts #hnlbambina.

© 2012 YYZ Bambina. All Rights Reserved.

Back to Reality...

Today has been the longest day of my life, at least flight-wise.

We are finally back in Toronto. When I get back on THIS timezone I hope to post many stories about our adventures in Hawaii and travelling with baby.

Strangely enough, I am still suffering vacation withdrawal. Even if being on mat leave means I don't have a 9 to 5 job to return to, just being back in my "normal" setting is somewhat depressing. I wonder if I could be the first Torontonian to successfully grow a palm tree?

Anyway, here's a quick photo of Hannah and I at Sea Life Park. Hope you will stay tuned for my upcoming posts!

© 2012 YYZ Bambina. All Rights Reserved.

I'm Thankful for Paradise...

We arrived safely in Hawaii.

While Daddy is climbing Diamond Head and Grandma is at the pool, Mommy thought she would give an uber quick update while baby sleeps in the hotel crib.

Paradise is fabulous and well-worth the LONG flight from Toronto. Thankfully there were babies on both our plane rides, and all the touristy attractions are well-prepared for infant guests.

Having a great time - can't wait to write some of my first posts about travelling with baby, when I'm back in cold, palm treeless Ontario.

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving everyone! :)

© 2012 YYZ Bambina. All Rights Reserved.