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Great parents raise children who are smart, confident, kind, independent, and equipped to thrive as young adults. But knowing how to be a great parent is hard! There’s no single resource or guide that will answer all of your questions, and for the most part, parents have to figure everything out through trial and error. To make things easier, the Toddler’s Travels blog offers up the following advice you can use in your own parenting strategy.

Balance Boundaries and Freedom

• Knowing when to provide support can be challenging, especially as your kids get older.
• Parental Roles: How to Set Healthy Boundaries with Your Child
• How to Give Your Older Kid More Freedom
• 12 Tips for Raising Confident Kids

Develop Daily Routines

Routines are important for establishing healthy habits and providing a sense of structure that can give children greater confidence.

• Why Family Routines Matter and How to Improve Them
• Best Ways to Help Children Fall Asleep at Nap Time
• Routines and Teens: How You Can Help

Teach Essential Life Skills

Give your children the life skills they need to cope with the world and thrive as adults.

• Learn About Building Healthy Relationships Through Be Strong International
• Developing Critical Thinking Skills in Kids
• 5 Ways to Encourage Self-Directed Learning in Young Children
• How to Encourage Self-Control in Tweens and Teens

Be a Role Model

Children learn what to think and how to behave by observing their parents. Be a good role model for your children and practice what you preach!

• Monkey See, Monkey Do: Model Behavior in Early Childhood
• Modeling Behaviors You Want Your Children to Practice
• Find Ways to Help Your Children Develop an Appreciation of Nature
• How to Be a Role Model for Your Teen

As a parent, you want your kids to live happy and successful lives. There are several great ways to support your children as they progress through every stage of development. Set healthy boundaries, give your kids freedom, establish routines, model desirable behavior — everything you do today will set your kids up for a successful future.

With two award-winning family travel guidebooks, as well as an award-winning family travel blog, you can find a myriad of tips and advice about products and gear, kid-friendly destinations, travel planning, a worldwide directory of vacation babysitting services and a wonderfully comprehensive worldwide directory of baby gear rentals.

Shelly and I have been in contact since she visited San Diego with her family and wrote a blog featuring Toddler’s Travels in 2008.   I am filled with admiration for Shelly who has managed to create a life where traveling and adventures with her family is intermeshed with her work.  Shelly has traveled to Thailand, Tunisia, Manhattan, Yosemite, Paris, Chichen Itza, Hawaii, Pompeii, Barcelona, Jamaica, London, Costa Rica and elsewhere with her own children under five- so she is quite the expert on how to travel with babies, toddlers and young children.

Now that Shelly and her husband’s children aren’t toddlers anymore she has started a new website, Family Travel 411, for all kinds of useful information about travel with school-age children.  My new go-to resource!

Shelly lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and three children. Visit her website and blogs at www.TravelswithBaby.com and the new www.FamilyTravel411.com.

San Diego is lovely in the Fall, Winter and Spring- much less crowded. You can get up close to all the animals at our World Famous San Diego Zoo enjoy having no lines at LEGOLAND in Carlsbad, or have a blast with your kids at the water park there. Or do all three parks and visit SeaWorld- walking under the shark exhibition is my favorite part.

You should be able to find a reasonably priced vacation rental at this time of year- we have a list of recommended property managers on our Partners page. Be sure to pack your shorts, sandals and swim suits- you can go back home and brag that you were swimming in the ocean in January, lounging by the pool getting a tan and building sandcastles with your toddler or baby.

I can’t imagine it will last forever- we’ll need some rain at some point. So hurry, hurry- be spontaneous!  Book the flight, accommodation and car- we’ve got you covered for the beach and baby equipment rentals.

TRAVEL TIP: Winter Special at Toddler’s Travels.  Free item of your choice with your order of $75 or more; see our Packages page for details.

Bundle up the kids and head out to the San Diego Botanic Garden for a magical holiday experience.

Take a wagon ride on beautiful Clydesdale draft horses through a dazzling display of over 100,000 sparkling lights.

Santa will be there from 5:30-8:30 pm under the Gazebo for the perfect family photo opportunity. There is hot mulled wine for you and s’mores for the kids to roast over the campfire, as well as hot cocoa, coffee, gyros, kabobs, soups, salads and baklava available.

There is live music from 6-8 pm and yes, even snow- at least snow on December 26 and 28 with sledding permitted. Sorry, we don’t have sleds for rent- we have pretty much everything else you need in baby and beach rental equipment while on vacation- maybe grandma’s house has one lying around?

Stroll through the gardens- we do have strollers for rent:) Help the kids with special holiday crafts they can take home and enjoy the Nutcracker exhibit and Alice in Wonderland displays.

Admission prices: Adults $12.00; Seniors, Military & Students $8.00. All Children 3-12 $4.00. Children 2 and under free.

San Diego Botanic Garden is located at 230 Quail Gardens Dr, Encinitas, CA 92024

Have fun and happy holidays from all of us at Toddler’s Travels!

The Marie Hitchcock Puppet Theatre is featuring The Merry Christmas Show, Jack and the Beanstalk and Rumpelstiltskin in the upcoming weeks. The San Diego Air and Space Museum has a Star Trek exhibit for trekkies and little boys also love the San Diego Model Railroad Museum . For a true San Diego tradition, get tickets through December 28, to How The Grinch Stole Christmas at the Old Globe Theatre (for ages 3-19); it’s excellent!

Another easy venture for a rainy day is The New Children’s Museum at 200 West Island Avenue; there are lots of craft activities and a fun pillow fight room.

TRAVEL TIP

For infants and toddlers we rent top of the line strollers and baby carriers to make exploring Balboa Park an easy experience to enjoy (no need to lug it through the airport). Check out our Go Baby page for Graco Quattro Tour strollers (singles or doubles), Graco travel systems, BOB joggers (singles and doubles with weather shields), compact toddler strollers, baby carriers and framed baby backpacks.

FUN FERRY RIDE

If you want to create an adventure for your little ones, hop on the San Diego Bay Ferry from 1050 North Harbor Drive at the Broadway Pier. You can have lunch at one of the many restaurants at The Ferry Landing Place or picnic on the beach.

Bikes and Beyond rent bikes with with Burley trailers. Their surrey-on top is a 2-4 pedaler which has extra jump seats children in the front. They have kites for rent too! The bike path offers magnificent city views and takes you to a great children’s playground by the Coronado bridge.

ICE CREAM

Nothing like ice cream to keep the kids happy. With locations at 1025 Orange Ave and the Del, Moo Time Creamery manufactures its specialty ice cream on-site; its long lines attest to just how good it is. Ferry Landing has the also popular Cold Stone Creamery.

HOTEL DEL CORONADO

Last, but not least, no visit to Coronado is complete without a visit to the historic Hotel Del Coronado . Built in 1888, its iconic red turrets make it look like a fairy tale castle- little girls might enjoy the high tea served there on a Sunday afternoon.

TRAVEL TIP: For a picnic at the beach, rent one of our coolers, some beach chairs and a beach umbrella or canopy, along with the bag of toys which include toys for the beach. For a run or walk along The Strand, our all-terrain BOB joggers can have the front wheel either fully rotating or fixed; singles and doubles are available. Our all-terrain Radio Flyer Wagon is perfect for carting the kids and beach gear down to the water.

Issues we are addressing as an association include: how equipment is cleaned and sanitized, how often equipment is replaced, rental and cancellation policies, product recalls and how to spread the word effectively about the wonderful service we offer to traveling families. With airlines charging more and more for baggage (I’m presently in San Francisco and had to pay $15 to check my one and only suitcase) it makes sense to have clean, reliable, safe equipment waiting for you at your destination, delivered and set up, ready for your little one. While our members provide car seats , cribs , strollers , toys and lots of other baby equipment, we’re also partnering with websites such as Babies Travel Lite and Planet Zee . It’s a work in progress and any feedback/comments on what you need as a customer or from the website is very much appreciated.

I cannot testify as to the cleaning techniques used in car rental companies, but feel confident they come nowhere near our standards if cleaned at all. Eventually the employee I was dealing with produced our car seat, the Graco forward facing Safe Seat 2 , which he found in the car. Frankly, I was appalled at the condition and safety of the car seats I saw; I know I would not feel at all confident placing a baby or toddler of mine in any of the car seats.

Not only that, but these companies charge between $10 and $13/day compared to our $7/day or $35/week. Rest assured, all equipment including car seats at Toddler’s Travels is thoroughly sanitized and inspected with each and every rental.

We can meet you at the car rental company of your choice during regular business hours. Even if you have an early or late flight, we’re only 10 minutes drive from the airport, and it would be worth your while to pick up or drop off a car seat to us while your family waits somewhere comfortable.
Please refer to the article put out by Delicious Baby about car seats at Advantage Car Rental company’s car seats.

You can however keep your little one safe and comfortable by renting from a baby equipment rental company which understands and appreciates the safety concerns of parents; do yourself a favor and rent from Toddler’s Travels or one of my affiliates at Baby Travel Pros next time you travel.

Infant car seat
Umbrella stroller, Travel Mate, Front-style baby carrier or framed back pack

AND FOR YOU:
– An extra shirt
– Hand sanitizer or sanitizing wipes
– Bottled water and a snack
– Contact information with the pediatrician’s number, a neighbor’s number, and a number where your spouse or one of baby’s grandparents can be reached
– cell phone with charger
– Reservation confirmations, tickets and itineraries
– Maps and directions
– ID or drivers license/passport
– Medical insurance cards
– Keys (car & house)
– Magazines & books

IN YOUR CHECKED BAG:
– more baby wipes
– more changing pads
– ziploc bags for soiled clothes
– receiving blanket or two
– waterproof sheet
– bottles, nipples, bottle caps, sippy cups
– washable bibs
– First Aid Kit including thermometer, prescription medications and copies of the prescriptions, antibiotic cream, allergy relievers, any homeopathic remedies you like, motion sickness relievers
– travel night light: So you can keep the room lighting soothingly low during middle-of-the-night diaper change
– clothes, socks and shoes- One to two outfits per day is a good guideline. Denim and dark colors are good for hiding dirt and stains. Prepare for weather changes by dressing in layers.
– light jacket
– Childproofing gear, such as outlet covers, doorknob covers, and toilet locks
– Baby sun block, sunhat, bathing suit
– tissues
– small bottles of baby shampoo, baby wash and baby lotion
– camera with battery charger
– book light  so you can read and not disturb your baby’s sleep
– a few favorite toys

WHEN YOU GET THERE:

Rent the comforts of home such as a full size crib, all-terrain stroller, play yard or pack’n play, bag of toys, high chair, and bath tub.  Have it delivered and ready to put your baby to nap upon arrival.