Traveling with Children and the Kits That Might Save Your Trip with Brianne Hepworth
This week’s guest, Brianne Hepworth
Founder of Mini Voyager and mom of four
Episode Description
It’s scary, traveling with kids. If you’ve done it, you know what I’m talking about!
But it can also be so worth it. In my last episode, I talked about my own personal tips and tricks for traveling with a toddler.
This week, we’re joined by special guest Brianne Hepworth, a mom to four kids and the founder of Mini Voyager, a company that curates travel kits for kids of all ages to help families feel more confident about traveling with their little ones.
I came across Mini Voyager through somebody else’s Instagram account, and I thought, finally, somebody’s done this. It’s about time I found it! What I love about these kits is they’re streamlined and compact. Children can even carry them themselves.
In today’s episode, Brianne and I talk about these life-changing kits; how sometimes there is no “balance” between work and parenting; and why traveling with your kids can be so worth it.
Routines for kids who travel
Bri began flying when her first baby was three weeks old.
She’s in a similar situation that I’m in. Her extended family lives on the West Coast, and for a while, she lived on the East Coast. Her husband’s work requires him to travel often. There’s no avoiding getting on a plane.
In those early days, Bri says she’d get a pit in her stomach while driving to the airport, worrying about how her baby would be on the plane and what everyone around them would think. I remember the fear of those first trips. It hasn’t stopped us from traveling, but sometimes I blissfully forget how stressful flying can be.
Bri says she used to bring a giant duffel on the plane, bigger than her own personal suitcase. Over time, she refined that duffel, honing it down to what is now a travel kit of toys and activities for kids on the go.
When Bri travels, she has a routine for her kids, which she recently shared on Instagram (which is full of great tips for traveling with young kids). The only things she doesn’t streamline are items that help her kids sleep, from paperback books and car seats to a portable sound machine.
Why travel with kids?
People have asked Bri, why travel with kids? After all, they won’t remember it.
And yes, this is true. Bri’s seven-month-old won’t remember this trip. But this baby is part of Bri, part of her family. And Bri will remember this trip.
Also, kids can learn so much from traveling. They learn to be adaptable, and they learn to be open to new cultures and new experiences. Vacations together usually means uninterrupted family time. While kids might not remember WHERE they went, they will remember how they felt on that trip.
She says not to worry about what other people say, especially the ones on the airplane. The second she stopped focusing on what other people thought, the sooner she was able to tune into her child’s needs and be that calm space for them.
If you’re anything like me, you might find that when faced with your fears of traveling, they’re not scary anymore. When a couple of women in front of me physically showed me what they thought of me and my child sitting behind them, my immediate reaction was, I don’t care. I knew I was doing the best I could at that moment.
Imbalance is okay
When I asked how Bri balances business and motherhood, she told me she doesn’t.
Sometimes she doesn’t get as much done in her business because she’s spending time with her kids. Often she’s up late doing marketing work and hand-packing all the orders herself. It’s exhausting, but she’s okay with this imbalance.
Before she had kids, Bri worked in advertising, which was also imbalanced – but in the other direction. She’s happy she did it, and it ultimately gave her the confidence to start Mini Voyager, but she knew it wasn’t going to work when she had a family.
Like Bri, and probably a lot of people listening, I attempted a more old school career path where the company dictated the hours you worked and the responsibilities you had. I left in search of something with more flexibility.
Bri says what’s really important in any sort of creative outlet is to make sure it’s something you are passionate about.
I love that; imbalance can be okay, so long as there’s joy with it.
Notable Quote from Bri
“I am not against tablets. My motto is do whatever you have to do on the plane. All the rules go out the window. All the snack rules go out the window. Literally, just survive. But there's also a way to thrive with the travel kits, and make it actually fun. My kids – I don't love how they get after too much screen time. They all get grumpy, they all get grouchy, and four hours into a flight, having three grumpy kids is a total disaster. ”
“There are some days I'm just totally spread thin and it's super, super hard. But at the same time, I know it'll pass. I know we will figure something out. All the hard parts are just a phase. It'll work out. Something will work out. And we can apply that to motherhood, too, right? As you have a little baby or a toddler, everything is a phase. When you're in it, it seems like it's never going to end. And it does. It does eventually.”
Resources & Links
Follow her on Instagram and visit the Mini Voyager website to check out the travel kits, with different packages available for young babies to kids eight and older.
Learn more about Project: Mom and follow us on Instagram at @projectmompodcast.
Do you want to share your motherhood journey on the podcast? Email me at projectmompod@gmail.com.