Advice on how to prep your little guy for a few days at home without mommy!

Cathy Solo post:

I follow a mom blog written by Dagmar Bleasdale.. http://DagmarBleasdale.com 

Dagmar is off to Blogher11 and had asked for advice from her readers on how to prep. her little guy for her time away.

She usually puts her son to bed each night and is still breastfeeding so the nighttime routine is gonna be her husband and child's biggest obstacle.  I came up with a few suggestions that I thought might be helpful (guess I was in "prepare to travel" creative mode this a.m.) and so I figured I would share my thoughts here as well in case they could perhaps help another traveling parent make the transition away smoother.

Advice on how to prep your little guy for a few days at home without mommy!  Could be used with singletons or multiples...

• Video yourself reading some books on your web cam for nighttime "settle-down" mode.  Little guy and daddy can watch them while you are away.

• Have Dad try to put him down to bed for the few days before leading up to you leaving...even if it just means dad taking him from your arms just before little guy is totally conked out so he sees dad is involved.
• Talk to your little one about where you are going and show him a map of where you'll be.  Dad can then show the map to him while you are away. That way they can point to it and say good night to mama on the map while you are gone.
• Give him a picture of you to slip into his pillowcase so that he can "hug you" all night while you're gone.

• Kiss a piece of paper with lipstick and tape it to his bedroom wall right next to his bed so that he can "kiss you good night" each night (Mom can do the picture pillowcase thing too and put little guys lipsticked lips on paper as well so that he knows you are doing the same thing each night where u are.)  
• Do a linked paper chain with a link for each day you are gone and he can rip off each days link so he can get a tangible sense of when you will be home.

• Make up a night time story about a mom who goes away on a big plane to a fancy hotel and how she had fun while she was away but missed her little guy all the time and in the end the mommy ALWAYS came back.

• (For breastfeeding moms or cuddling nighttime moms)...To help dad, I was thinking if you are still breastfeeding or cuddle tight with your little at night so you and the little guy get warm and cozy together, dad may want to have something warm to put between himself and your son while they snuggle up to be "like the warm mommy"...perhaps a heating pad or one of those microwave-heat pads or a face towel heated in the drier for a little while...This could be a fun thing they place between them and they can joke that it is their "little, warm mama pad".   

Hope these ideas help others make the time away easier on your little guy and remember, we all need time away as individuals and your little guy/s will survive.  This may just make it all a little easier for everyone!  Please comment with any more great ideas that you have used to make traveling away from you kids easier on them.

Safe travels to all -

Cathy