9 month old crawling/trying towalk cruise tips? :)

[subwife81]

Hi all,

I saw a previous post asking for tips about cruising with an 8 month old but I noticed no one talked about when they are crawling/trying to walk.

We cruise in mid-Dec, and our daughter has already been crawling for a month now. She loves to stand up so I want to anticipate her trying to walk around the same time that we cruise.... does anyone have any tips regarding that stage?

Also, how did your babies do at sleeping on the cruise? Did anyone have any problems?

I'm thinking about taking the baby jogger as the primary stroller- the wheels can be broken down so it shouldn't be too bulky. I've read a lot of umbrella strollers being used but has anyone used a jogger?

Sorry so many questions, just trying to figure out how all of this is going to work. ;)

[Kerry's Girls]

One thing nice about cruise ships is there are no sharp edges on the furniture, so it's great for starting to walk because they're not as likely to get hurt if they fall. On our first cruise, one of my girls was still learning and one of the waiters made it his mission to get her to take her first steps on the cruise (didn't happen :rolleyes:). But my twins loved playing in an empty lounge or disco and crawling/walking the dance floor to follow the lights and pull them selves up at the tables, etc.

 

Wide strollers are not your friend on a ship, so I probably wouldn't bring the jogger, but others may disagree.

 

As for sleeping, our experience has been that there's no sleep like cruise sleep - my girls never sleep better than on a cruise (because of the activity during the day and slight rocking at night).

 

Best,

Mia

[cb at sea]

I don't see why being on a cruise would be any different for baby, as far as walking or learning to, goes!

There are plenty of places where you can take your child to "practice", without getting trampled by the masses! (you wouldn't want to do that in main thoroughfares or on the pool deck!)...shoot..even you cabin hallway will offer long expanse for toddling!

I would recommend washing baby's hands frequently...once they start "pulling up", they are grabbing some frequently touched areas....you don't have to freak out about it, but do wash their hands often!

And yes...they will sleep like, well....babies! The slight rocking motion is great for anyone to sleep by!

[oyme]

On Carnival Spirit we often took our 17 m/o to "The Jungle Room" as it usually wasn't super busy so he could go there and run around and let out energy. Plus he loved the jungle theme he'd stop to point at the animal themed decor. I also think it would've been a nice place for a new walker to roam. I'd suggest you just scope out areas on the ship that you will be on so you can find where you can take your child where you will feel safe. For my son we have the peapod plus, he usually sleeps with a sound machine from HomeMedics so we brought that and the 3 of us all went to bed together and he slept awesome. Our cabin was really baby-proofed since it only had 1 outlet fairly high up out of baby's reach and as Kerry stated there's not really any dangerous furniture (sharp corners). It was more baby proof than any land based hotel! Hope I helped.

[jerin]

there are always relatively vacant spaces to allow a crawler/new walker a little bit of roaming space.

As far as jogging storllers, most ships have a standard door width of 24" -- so narrower than land-based doors. You probably need to keep your width below 23" or so to fit. The passageways can also be pretty narrow and there may be the need to be able to let other passengers by, so the just under 2' width takes this into account as well (assuming the hallway is 3' wide). If your jogger meets this criterion, then sure, bring it. If not, then an umbrella stroller is probably a lot easier than removing the baby and folding it up every time one of these needs arises, especially if said baby is napping in the stroller.

[cantw8togo]

Our 15 month old reluctant walker finally learned to walk on a cruise ship. Talk about sea legs! He didn't like the way the carpet felt and that was the incentive that he needed to get up off the floor. We were mindful of staying out of the way of crowds, but there are usually some quieter areas on the ship.

 

We too took a good quality umbrella stroller that reclined and had a sunshade cover. It was much easier to manuever through the halls and crowds. I also took our Baby Trekker baby carrier. There were several ports that we wanted to explore that had cobblestone streets and it was much easier to carry him than push a stroller over bumpy cobblestones.

 

Have a great trip!

[subwife81]

Our 15 month old reluctant walker finally learned to walk on a cruise ship. Talk about sea legs! He didn't like the way the carpet felt and that was the incentive that he needed to get up off the floor. We were mindful of staying out of the way of crowds, but there are usually some quieter areas on the ship.

 

We too took a good quality umbrella stroller that reclined and had a sunshade cover. It was much easier to manuever through the halls and crowds. I also took our Baby Trekker baby carrier. There were several ports that we wanted to explore that had cobblestone streets and it was much easier to carry him than push a stroller over bumpy cobblestones.

 

Have a great trip!

 

Bringing the baby carrier as well as the umbrella stroller is a good tip. I hadn't even thought about bringing it.

Did you find shoes useful at all for them?

[jam82]

During the day the disco is usually not being used and it's a great place for the little ones to run around and get their energy out.

[Name Of The Game]

They were having trivia in the main lobby and a young mother sat her 7 month old baby down on the floor with toys and allowed him to crawl around and put the toys in his mouth......yuck! :eek:

[sherry7]

Hi all,

I saw a previous post asking for tips about cruising with an 8 month old but I noticed no one talked about when they are crawling/trying to walk.

We cruise in mid-Dec, and our daughter has already been crawling for a month now. She loves to stand up so I want to anticipate her trying to walk around the same time that we cruise.... does anyone have any tips regarding that stage?

Also, how did your babies do at sleeping on the cruise? Did anyone have any problems?

I'm thinking about taking the baby jogger as the primary stroller- the wheels can be broken down so it shouldn't be too bulky. I've read a lot of umbrella strollers being used but has anyone used a jogger?

Sorry so many questions, just trying to figure out how all of this is going to work. ;)

 

Hello Subwife. :) We are going on the same cruise as you with our baby who will be just shy of 8 months old. I recognized your name from the Meet & Mingle thread.

 

Olivia isn't crawling yet, but I'm sure she will be by the time of the cruise. On previous ships I've been on, there are a lot of empty (carpeted) lounges during the day. I plan on taking her to one of those to crawl around and expend some energy.

 

When you mentioned the Baby Jogger stroller, did you mean the Baby Jogger City Mini or one of the larger models? We have the City Mini, and it's what I plan on taking on the cruise. I was debating buying a narrower umbrella stroller for the trip, but the quick fold and huge sunshade on the City Mini should be helpful on the cruise.

 

I'm thinking that the gentle rocking motion of the ship will help lull her to sleep...it certainly works for me! You can pre-request a Pack n Play for the cabin. I've heard that they use regular size bed sheets though in it (which can be a SIDS hazard), so I plan on packing a couple of our own Pack n Play sheets to use.

 

I'm a planner by nature, so I'm trying to find out all I can about cruising with a baby. I have a few questions that maybe you have already found an answer to:

 

• Will the Dining Room and Windjammer wait staff puree foods for the baby? I'll pack less baby food if that's the case.
  
• Are the high chairs the standard wooden ones that pull up to the table?
  
• Are there changing tables in the public restrooms?
  
• Can I ask the room steward for a special diaper disposal trash can? I know that the sanitation staff hand sorts all of the garbage for recyclables. I know they wouldn't want to run across a dirty diaper! :eek:
  
• Have you found out any info about the Fisher Price playgroup?
  

[subwife81]

Room and Windjammer wait staff puree foods for the baby? I'll pack less baby food if that's the case.

• Are the high chairs the standard wooden ones that pull up to the table?
  
• Are there changing tables in the public restrooms?
  
• Can I ask the room steward for a special diaper disposal trash can? I know that the sanitation staff hand sorts all of the garbage for recyclables. I know they wouldn't want to run across a dirty diaper! :eek:
  
• Have you found out any info about the Fisher Price playgroup?
  

 

Sherry, all of those are great questions- and I still need to call them to ask for a Pack n Play for the room. I need to add "pack and play sheets" to my list of things to take!

There is a thread I saved about the playgroup- search for "Royal Babies" on the family crusing forum to bring it up. Apparently there will be a notice in the daily news (forgot what RCL calls theres) and it is 1-2x a day.

I am actually thinking about bringing our own high chair- it's one of the portable ones and worse comes to worst I can just store it in the shower if it takes up too much room.

The baby jogger we have isn't the brand name- my husband told me it is "definitely too wide to take" so I think we are just going to take the umbrella stroller.

If you haven't already, you might want to try starting a new thread with your questions- I am sure someone on the forums knows the answers!

Looking forward to meeting you and your little one! :)

N

[subwife81]

Will the Dining Room and Windjammer wait staff puree foods for the baby? I'll pack less baby food if that's the case.

• Are the high chairs the standard wooden ones that pull up to the table?
  

 

Sherry,

 

I just got off the phone with RCL and this is what they told me:

 

*The high chairs are standard. The woman I spoke to said there should be no reason to bring your own high chair

 

*They DO provide sheets for their pack n play. (And they will launder them just like the bed sheets) the only reason to bring your own sheets is if you want the smell for your baby.

 

*They offer diapers/baby food/etc to be delievered to your room so you do not have to bring diapers or food with you.(I got very excited about this!) The link is here:

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/giftcatalog/category/home.do;jsessionid=0000TSWc9NLFwGz3ixqCvFBiSiW:13hldil87?catCode=BABIES

If the link doesn't work, go to "Deals and Gifts" --> "Shop Gifts and Gear" --->"Gifts and Gear Aboard" (Click shop now under it) --"Babies 2 go"

 

Hope this helps!

N

[PattyW]

RCCL's high chairs are the gray plastic Rubbermaid kind. They can pull up to the table or, especially in the Windjammer, you can find ones with actual trays.

 

There are changing tables in the restrooms, but I never used one. I generally just went back to the cabin.

 

I never had a separate trash can, but we did bag each diaper in scented diaper bags before throwing them away. They empty the trash twice a day, so you only have a diaper or two at a time in there.

 

The play groups meet every day, but I've never attended one on a port day - I think they are generally canceled those days for lack of interest. They do a few activities songs and such together as a group and then they bring out toys for the kids to play with. Each day is a different theme and the toys match the theme (ie, farm, trains/transportation, etc).

[jerin]

If you want the staff to puree foods, then you'll need to contact the special needs department at least 3 weeks before you sail and let them know that there's a passenger in your party who needs pureed foods. I know that they can offer this in the MDR, not sure about the Windjammer (the special needs department can let you know), but the Windjammer always has a good selection of fork-mashable kinds of things.

[boulders]

The play groups meet every day, but I've never attended one on a port day - I think they are generally canceled those days for lack of interest. They do a few activities songs and such together as a group and then they bring out toys for the kids to play with. Each day is a different theme and the toys match the theme (ie, farm, trains/transportation, etc).

 

The two times that we attended the playgroups, we were the only people there. They certainly did not cancel them for lack of interest.

[sherry7]

Sherry,

 

I just got off the phone with RCL and this is what they told me:

 

*The high chairs are standard. The woman I spoke to said there should be no reason to bring your own high chair

 

*They DO provide sheets for their pack n play. (And they will launder them just like the bed sheets) the only reason to bring your own sheets is if you want the smell for your baby.

 

*They offer diapers/baby food/etc to be delievered to your room so you do not have to bring diapers or food with you.(I got very excited about this!) The link is here:

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/giftcatalog/category/home.do;jsessionid=0000TSWc9NLFwGz3ixqCvFBiSiW:13hldil87?catCode=BABIES

If the link doesn't work, go to "Deals and Gifts" --> "Shop Gifts and Gear" --->"Gifts and Gear Aboard" (Click shop now under it) --"Babies 2 go"

 

Hope this helps!

N

 

Thanks! Good to know about the Pack n Play sheets. As long as they are the right size, I won't bother bringing my own. Olivia could care less whether they smell like the ones at home, LOL. I checked out the baby gear delivery service. If we were flying I might use it, but since we're driving to port it's not much of a problem just to pack an extra suitcase with diapers, baby food, etc. Plus, it gives me room for souvenirs on the way home. ;)

 

RCCL's high chairs are the gray plastic Rubbermaid kind. They can pull up to the table or, especially in the Windjammer, you can find ones with actual trays.

 

There are changing tables in the restrooms, but I never used one. I generally just went back to the cabin.

 

I never had a separate trash can, but we did bag each diaper in scented diaper bags before throwing them away. They empty the trash twice a day, so you only have a diaper or two at a time in there.

 

The play groups meet every day, but I've never attended one on a port day - I think they are generally canceled those days for lack of interest. They do a few activities songs and such together as a group and then they bring out toys for the kids to play with. Each day is a different theme and the toys match the theme (ie, farm, trains/transportation, etc).

 

Thanks for the reply. I've been on a few cruises with RCCL, but you just don't notice that kind of stuff when you don't have a baby along.

 

If you want the staff to puree foods, then you'll need to contact the special needs department at least 3 weeks before you sail and let them know that there's a passenger in your party who needs pureed foods. I know that they can offer this in the MDR, not sure about the Windjammer (the special needs department can let you know), but the Windjammer always has a good selection of fork-mashable kinds of things.

 

Oh wow, I'm glad you mentioned that! My TA didn't mention a word about it. I will contact the special needs department tomorrow.

[cantw8togo]

If your baby has sensitive skin, you may want to bring your own specific brand of diapers and wipes. And if they are sensitive to textures of foods, you could bring a baby food mill and prepare food off of your plate. The Happy Baby Food Mill was a small, easy to use version.

 

Don't forget a baby first aid kit as it can be difficult to get infant medications on board and even if they do have them, they can be quite expensive. I also took my go-to baby book with me in case something come up. Like the time that my DS came down with strep throat while on vacation. It was also reassuring to be able to read up on some new stage of development, like learning to walk.

 

Regarding the question about taking shoes for little ones; our sons often wore slip on leather shoes when they were little. I think the brand was Robez, but I could be wrong. They weren't as structured as a running shoe, but not as thin as a pair of socks either.

 

In terms of the size of stroller, the larger the stroller, the longer the wait for an elevator. There were times (not many mind you) when it was quicker to fold up the umbrella stroller and carry our son and the stoller up the stairs than wait for an elevator. It was more of an issue when a show just got out or when everyone is trying to disembark when you get to port. You may want to walk to an elevator that is further away from the place that you want to get to so that you avoid the crowds and make it easier to get an elevator that is empty enough to accommodate a stroller.

 

The one trip that we used the pack n play, the sheets were the standard full size sheets that were folded and tucked under the padded mat. If you have a kid that tosses and turns and untucks all of the sheets in the night, then you may want to bring some fitted sheets. My kid didn't like sleeping in it and we rarely ended up using it. This was a number of years ago on "X" and things may have changed since then.

[onesphinx2004]

Hello Subwife. :) We are going on the same cruise as you with our baby who will be just shy of 8 months old. I recognized your name from the Meet & Mingle thread.

 

Olivia isn't crawling yet, but I'm sure she will be by the time of the cruise. On previous ships I've been on, there are a lot of empty (carpeted) lounges during the day. I plan on taking her to one of those to crawl around and expend some energy.

 

When you mentioned the Baby Jogger stroller, did you mean the Baby Jogger City Mini or one of the larger models? We have the City Mini, and it's what I plan on taking on the cruise. I was debating buying a narrower umbrella stroller for the trip, but the quick fold and huge sunshade on the City Mini should be helpful on the cruise.

 

I'm thinking that the gentle rocking motion of the ship will help lull her to sleep...it certainly works for me! You can pre-request a Pack n Play for the cabin. I've heard that they use regular size bed sheets though in it (which can be a SIDS hazard), so I plan on packing a couple of our own Pack n Play sheets to use.

 

I'm a planner by nature, so I'm trying to find out all I can about cruising with a baby. I have a few questions that maybe you have already found an answer to:

 

• Will the Dining Room and Windjammer wait staff puree foods for the baby? I'll pack less baby food if that's the case.
  
• Are the high chairs the standard wooden ones that pull up to the table?
  
• Are there changing tables in the public restrooms?
  
• Can I ask the room steward for a special diaper disposal trash can? I know that the sanitation staff hand sorts all of the garbage for recyclables. I know they wouldn't want to run across a dirty diaper! :eek:
  
• Have you found out any info about the Fisher Price playgroup?
  

 

You had better pack enough food for your baby for the entire cruise. We ordered food through the RCI web site to be delivered to our cabin. When we boarded, we discovered that food had not been delivered. Guest services was so sorry but for some reason, oops, the food was not on board. Unfortunately, our 11 month old would not eat the dining room's pureed food. Very distressed!! He lived off of cereal and smashed bananas until we arrived in St. Thomas. Our St. Thomas excursion was to a K Mart for baby food. Yes, RCI did re-emburse us for the ordered baby food and did pay for food we bought in St. Thomas. They also paid for the cab fare to and from K Mart. My advice --- bring your baby's food.