Traveling with Homemade Food

Hi,
I made homemade baby food for my twin boys. I used a vaccuum sealer, the ones on late night tv. It kept the food fresh. I would freeze it and put it in one of those mini coolers, that kids take to school, and by the time I needed it it was thawed. I worked out great.

I traveled several times when my first child was a baby and I made ALL her food. I would take some food with me in my suitcase in a soft pack with a small ice pack. It made my suitcase heavier than usualy, but it worked. I'd take grains some fresh fruit I might not be able to get in the state I was visiting... Then on my way from the airport once I landed I would hit a store and get anything else I needed. Then I would borrow a blender/food processor and ice trays to make the necessary foods I would need while visiting. It worked out every time and I plan to do the same with my second baby who is about to try food for the first time this week!

Hi-

My kid's are now 9 and 12 but when I travelled with them on a plane I brought an insulated bag of homemade food, and then shopped for Earth's Best (the only Organic brand at that time,) jarred food when I got there. I know this isn't what you asked for, but it worked for me.

To preserve good relations with your in-laws (these relationships are very important), I'd recommend purchasing what you can while you are visiting. There are many good organic baby food options in grocery stores nowadays.
One vacation from your superior home-made food won't spoil your child's nutrition.
Good luck

My third child eats organic glasses of baby food mixed with whatever we are eating that day. I understand that you want your child to eat healthy but I think its more important to have a good time with your relatives than to insist on flawless nutrition while you are at their house. I guaranty that you will irritate your host if you make her feel like she is a bad parent because she feeds her child ready made foods. Compromise. You need to make peace with that now because you will not have total control over what your child eats in the future anyway. There are play dates and camp and school cafeteria foods and so forth. In my experience your child will be a "good" eater simply by observing you.

I traveled to TX with my homemade babyfood. You can totally do it. I had a lot of people tell me to buy food there, but making my own is just so much cheaper and I didn't want to have to run to a store. This is how I did it.

Instead of ice cube trays I froze servings in a muffin tin (it is the same as 3 ice cubes per "muffin"). This way they don't defrost as fast. I put each "muffin" into single serving tupperwares (gladlock?) and then packed them with ice in a tiny soft cooler. I put the cooler in my checked bag. When we got to our destination (6 hours fly time and 3 hours drive time) the food still mostly frozen (slushy). Since you are not supposed to re-freeze I put them in the fridge and then just had the servings in the fridge ready to go.

Good luck!

Hey Lyndsey,
I think it would be better to use the frozen food and put it in an insulated lunch bag. I used to freeze the food in ice cube trays for short day trips. If you freeze the food in a margarine container, it might take longer to thaw and you can use it a day or two into the stay at your sister=in-law's. Pack one or two oof those freezer pack blocks and it will keep longer.
Have a great visit.
G. Skeens
Valencia

I would make some ahead and freeze it, then pack it with cold packs to keep it frozen- this is acceptable to take on a plane, too. And for the trip I would also make some that morning and take it as well. THEN I would politely offer to cook for the whole fam while I was at my sister's house- Jr. lunchables, seriously???? I mean, we're all busy moms, but there has got to be something better than that she can give him. I run into similar problems when I go home, too. None of my siblings or inlaws have kids yet, and my mom is pretty open and flexible. But my mother in law- don't even get me stared. The only vegetable they eat are corn and potatoes (which I don't even consider vegetables- I count them as starches) and OCCASIONALLY canned peas. And the only cereal in their house is the super sugary kind. They all drink soda all day long (like 4 or 5 apiece) All their snacks are chips and little debbie cakes, and they deep fry all the time, and melt butter over their steak then dip the steak in butter- makes me want to vomit. So when I go home to visit I buy vegetables and cereal and a few healthy snacks to make sure Izzy has some healthy foods, and I try not to piss off my super sensative mother in law.

OH, and depending on where your sister lives you may be able to find frozen babyfood at a health store- I've never tried it, but it's almost always organic and I've heard it tastes better (and probably conserves more nutrients) than the jarred kind.

Check with the airline and airport to see if they allow cold packs to keep it "refrigerated" because I've have to throw them out in some airports but not others. Check on the breast milk policy to see if they allow ice packs for that either, if yes, then maybe you can use it for both. I'd personally start with frozen food you've frozen ahead of time and still use ice packs. I don't think it is safe to make food in the am and transport it without some method of refrigeration. Good luck.

I would just plan on a shopping trip when you get there. Make some food up once you are there. You proubably could freeze then keep in a freezer bag with ice, but I would't want to risk it melting at all on the plane ride. Plus with customs and all that who knows if they will let the veggies and fruit go thru. They are suck sticklers these days. When I flew with my son I had to taste his formula...yuck! I would bring enough for the plane ride only, then his a store on the way to your sisters.

Keep it frozen and pack it in an insulated lunch bag with an ice pack. You can pack it in your reg luggage that way. Stowage on a plane is really cold once you're up in the air. Or, shop for food when you get there. Maybe purchase a food grinder for your travels.

Hi L.:

I would take your frozen babyfood with you, as it will stay colder longer; and pack it in a thermal/insulated container - with an additional ice pack in the container, and then refrigerate as soon as you get there. To be certain of food safety, you could stick a fridge thermometer in the bag. The rule of thumb for safety is that food be stored at 40 degrees or lower. Food can be kept out of the cold (gaining a temperature of 40-140 F) for up to 2 hours. At 2 hours you could re-refrigerate it. Longer than 2 hours above 40 degrees and you should toss it.

LOL I just finished the food safety chapter in my nutrition class!

M.

How's about using dry ice to freeze the food - it is incredibly effective and will keep food frozen for hours, but be careful not to touch it with bare hands as it can burn. It's the stuff that frozen food companies use to transport food and can be bought at some supermarkets - you don't need a lot. Good luck on your trip...and great that you are sticking with healthy choices for your baby!

Hi L. -

She feeds her son Jr. Lunchables for DINNER? OY, what a lot of salt & fat!! Sorry, that sounds judgemental -- don't mean it that way, just genuine concern. I do give in and let my daughter have those rarely (she's 8 and she's had 2 of them in her life).

Anyway, I have 2 suggestions: one, you'd need an insulated bag and something like blue ice bags. Have little "plops" of whatever you've cooked/pureed (I use to do that; I'd freeze them and have them in a container or a ziploc). You don't say how long you'll be there, but you could pack quite a few and they'd stay pretty cold. Depending on how "frozey" they are when you get there, you can either put them in the freezer or the fridge (you shouldn't re-freeze if they've thawed). Honestly, that sounds like a bit of a hassle to me, but if you're a real purist, you can go with that. Or, even better, you could always pack a food mill and grind up fresh cooked for your baby boy. OK so that was suggestion 1 and 1-a.

Suggestion 2 is pack organic baby food that you can pick up from Whole Foods or Wild Oats. Actually, reg grocery stores probably carry it by now too. As I said my kid is 8, so I haven't been paying attention in the last few years. Or, even better, perhaps there's a store nearby your SIL that would have org baby food you could buy? I think the brand I used to buy is Earth's Best. It's not fresh, but heck, when you're travelling, you need to have it be a bit more simple!

Be prepared for some eye-rolling --- my dear sister with 4 kids was over it by the time my daughter came along! She thought I was a total fanatic! But you should see my daughter's immune system, strength, & stamina! (I am willing to admit that might be genetic -- but I'd like to take some credit for feeding her very well).

Have a wonderful trip!
Colleen

ps -- you know what? you should probably check with the airline to see if you can pack food, even in store-bought jars. You might end up having it taken away from you. A food mill is prob the simplest, lightest, easiest way to go! I guess I take back most of my suggestions! LOL!

When I went to visit family friends I traveled with my little bullet blender to make his food there rather than travel with food. It doesn't matter what you have in the baby's bag, mine got searched from and to LAX so I don't recommend packing anything more suspicious than formula powder, teething tablets and diapers. To take bottles of water on the plain, I told them it was full of distilled water for the baby after speaking with head-of-security they let me through.

I'm sure your sister in law will be happy to sacrifice the little servings to make meals for your son while you visit.

I can't help you with the homemade baby food for travelling, but just in case the other moms don't have the tips you need, you could check out Earth's Best baby food as a back-up. It's all organic and the ingredients have nothing but the pureed food and water - no preservatives or anything else added. It's the next best thing to Mom's homemade food.

Hi L.,
Baby food should not be left unrefrigeated for long.I think your best bet for traveling is to freeze, ice cube trays work well for handy small portions. Keep a couple cubes in a container, and they should be thawed out and room temperature by the time your baby is hungry, if you feed your son shorlty before your flight. (cubes in a zip lock bag can be warmed up in a cup of hot water, or ask the flight atendant to do it for you) You can also cold pack some for travel(Dry ice) and thaw out small portions quickly, (I fed my kids homemade when they were young, and we made it through 18 hours of plane rides and airports )
I also recomend you do not bring a large amount, but rather talk to your sister in law before the trip about the posibility of you making some baby food at her house, she is family after all, and will probably not object, as long as it is presented as what you want to do for your child and not as a jugement on what she does as a mother. Aranging ahead of time to do some of the cooking, as a thank you for her hospitality is also a way you can make sure that you are in charge of healthy food choices, just don't expect your nephew to be made to eat all you prepare. Who knows, you may even ispire her to try making some great meals of her own.
Good luck.

Hello L.. When we traveled with the prepared baby food that I made, I would always freeze it and then bring it in a ice chest. That way you can be for sure that it stays preserved. Otherwise, depending on how long you will be traveling it may work to just keep in cold in an ice chest. Since you will be at your sister in-laws you could always prepare fresh baby food there if you felt comfortable in her kitchen. Enjoy your travels and your visit.

I am not sure where you live, but I am assuming you are flying to your family's house? In that case, you may want to keep in mind the current liquid restrictions at the airport. They may be doubtful if you show up with plastic baggies of something they don't recognize. Also,you may not be able to keep your food cold enough to prevent it from spoiling during the travel...just a thought. When my family traveled to Chicago from O.C. I brought baby food through security (in 1 oz containers, I had to double up because they required each individual container be no more than 2 oz I believe?) Anyway, you may want to consider serving him store bought just for the day of travel,(or a possible layover, it wouldnt hurt to have an emergency stash!) or perhaps you could buy yogurt once inside the airport for a meal before take off, and then hit a local grocery store when you arrive, or pack bananas or baby carrots or cream of wheat etc, so you have something that you can cook right when you get there. Traveling with babies is a lot of work! I hope you enjoy your family time, and I dont blame you for not wanting to feed your son Lunchables! lol Have a wonderful trip!

Hi L.,

I suggest you bring along a mini food processor, a couple of ice cube trays, a few freezer bags, and a folding steaming basket in your suitcase and make a few purees when you get there. Talk to your sister in law in advance about your making homemade food for your baby and how easy and fun it is. Maybe she will want to do it with you and be inspired to feed her little one something a little better.
Before I was a full time SAHM I was a personal chef and never met a parent who didn't want to have better and more nutritional food for her family. Many mom's don't know where to start or are just too tired to battle the kitchen or their kids for that matter and get something healthy in them.
I have tried traveling with frozen cubes of puree packed many different ways. Even if you pack it in a whole mess of blue ice in a cooler it will begin defrosting in just a few hours. It's really sad to have done all that hard work and have to toss it out once you get to your destination. Just pack enough cubes of puree to get you through your travel day and make the rest when you get there.
Good Luck!

My husband and I are the only ones on both sides of our family to keep kosher, so we always have to bring our own food! You can pack it in dry ice and it will stay frozen, then send it through with the checked luggage. BUT make sure you check with your airline and airport first. Most have specific requirements for using dry ice and you need to be very careful. It is such a hassle to try to prepare your "special" food while traveling (plus shopping for the food once you are there and all), but if your carrier won't let you use the dry ice and you don't want to compromise on your food choices, there is little else to do.

Good luck, and safe trip.

Litz

Hi There.. I made homemade food for my daughter and faced the same predicament when we needed to fly from Hawaii to Iowa on a 10 and a half hour flight. I made everything and froze it in the deep freeze and I packed a coler in my luggage which I packed all her foods and packed it full of frozen ice packs. When we arrived the first thing I did was throw everything into the freezer. When I unpacked it it was still slushy and cold. As for food on the flight I just packed a carry on cooler with his fods and ice packs. If driving and traveling..we found the little 6-pack fridges which plug into the cars cigarette lighter worked wonders. If your afraid to travel with all his food then take what you need for the trip and as soon as you get there go straight to the store and go make your baby's food right away for the rest of the trip. So either way good luck and go for it.

Hi L., put it in a cooler, or ice chest to keep it fresh. J.

I would pack your frozen food in your checked baggage in a cooler with blue ice. From my experience, it generally takes a day or so to thaw in the fridge anyway, so you should be fine until you make it to your destination. Another option is to buy -JARRED- (ack), but organic foods once you arrive. Its not the best, I know, but at least much better than lunchables!
Good luck,
M.

It is possible. I go out of town for figure competitions and pack my food. You will need frozed peas to keep the food cold and bring it on as a carry on. Be sure to check the airline for their rules. I also go to the grocery store when I arrive in town to pick up what I could not bring with me and things I forgot. Good for you!! Have a fun trip!!