Many new parents stay in Delhi a lot longer then we did and are probably better resources. I am definitely not an expert on living in Delhi with newborns or travelling with infants. But, I know there are many people travelling soon for baby pickup and I thought I would share with you what worked for us and some of the things we packed that didn't work. We plan to travel often with R&B and will most likely refine our traveling skills, as time goes on. If you have anything on your 'must have' list for travelling/living with twins, please leave a comment!
The great thing about Delhi is almost all baby items you will need are available. However, the brands we are use to at home come at a steep price. Besides the obvious preemie clothing and bottles, our packing list consisted of the following items (and my review):
Baby Stuff
Preemie Diapers - Pampers worked for us. We found newborn diapers in Delhi, but no preemie diapers. To be honest, we didn't look too hard since we had the diapers from home. Also, there is very little difference between Preemie and Newborn sizes. Since returning to the states we have been using a combination of gdiapers, 7th generation and huggies. gDiapers and 7th Generation seem to contain the most bodily fluids. I expected huggies or pampers would be the best, but I am happy to say that is not the case.
Wipes - I took three weeks worth of
7th Generation wipes because I wanted to keep their chemical exposure to a minimum. You can find similar chlorine free wipes at MotherCare in Select City Walk.
Disposable Changing Pads - We used these to set up a temporary changing area on the couch in our apartment and to change the babies on the airplane. I did have the changing pad that came with my diaper bag, but it is much smaller than these pads, which cover the entire airplane fold down changing station. We reused each pad many times, as they fold up easily and don't take up much space. I would recommend these to anyone travelling with diaper wearing children.
Thermos - I never expected to love a thermos, but I do. We kept the sterilized water in it and now home we keep lukewarm water in it, so that we don't have to worry about heating/cooling each bottle. When you are making 20+ bottles a day it is nice to have the water the right temp.
Sterilizer Microwave Bags - I found these to be easier than boiling the bottles and parts. Sterilizing the bottles was a huge pain, but obviously necessary. These bags don't take up much space and are reusable. Obviously, you need a reliable microwave in your apartment to use these.
Formula Dispenser - This is great when you are out of the apartment, on the airplane and late at night when you are holding a crying baby (or two) and only one hand to make the bottle. This is an item that I didn't think was necessary, but now I strongly recommend it.
Infant Carrier - All four of us love these. They are easy to put on and the babies instantly fall asleep. The carriers are great at keeping the babies covered and the germs/onlookers at bay. I
Swaddle Blankets - We use these blankets for everything! In Delhi, they were sun, bug and germ protectors, as well as the appropriate level of warmth for the warm days and nights. Our babies are always wrapped in one of these and I would definitely recommend these to any new parent.
Pack n Play - we bought one at Mom & Me in M block. The babies used it with a bug net while in Delhi and now home it is functioning as our changing table. There are many different items that you can buy for your baby to sleep in that I am sure work great. This option worked well for us.
Car Seats - We brought our seats from home. These were nice to have in the car and they made us feel better from the safety aspect. These are probably not a 'must have' since Rahul has one car seat you can request. If you decide to bring your car seats, I highly recommend these
travel bags. We filled the extra space in the bags with blankets, diapers, wipes, etc.
A
Notebook to write down every feeding and changing. It is amazing how easily one can forget the last time one of the babies were fed or changed. This is an absolute necessity. I bought a really cute notebook in Delhi for 50 rupees.
Other stuff - We bought Pigeon infant laundry detergent and dish soap in Delhi. These are items that don't take up much space, but eat into the precious weight limits the airlines put on our luggage.
A few things I packed that we didn't use were car seat bug nets (swaddle blankets work perfectly fine) and Halo Sleep Sacks (the babies were too small).
Non-Baby Items that are Great
Many babies things are on the 'must have' list. However, if a retailer can put the word baby in front of the product it some how adds a 100% markup! When possible, I have attempted to avoid the short-term baby stuff in exchange for things I know we can use for years to come.
Diaper Bag/Backpack - Everyone with more than one baby told me to buy a backpack diaper bag. I read through many product reviews and ultimately decided to stick with a bag we already had. This
backpack is the perfect size and has many pockets and sleeves to make a fantastic diaper bag.
Since we need many bottles every time we leave the house, I needed a bag to store our Dr. Brown Bottles when on the go. The Eagle Creek, size medium, travel bag works wonders! I fit 4/5 bottles and 3/4 spit-up rags in the bag. The bag is waterproof and has a nice little latch that attaches to the top of my diaper bag, so I don't lose it and need to go digging-
The Plane Ride
My biggest concern was running out of food! I took 12 Enfamil nursettes and disposable nipples with us just for an emergency on the plane ride home. We came home with 14 dirty bottles and six empty nursettes.
One of my other fears on the plane ride was running out of clothes for R&B, Lee and me, as well as not having the right clothes packed for the temperature. Since the babies were use to the warm weather in Delhi, I was very concerned about them being cold. I filled six zip lock bags each filled with a hat, bib, spit rag, cotton pad, onesie, one piece pajamas, socks and a jacket/sweater. I used the zip lock bags because I thought we would be in coach and that way I could just grab a bag and have everything I could possibly need with me in the dirty airplane bathroom. We didn't need to worry about since we had so much room, but I will use this packing method on our next plane ride.
We also each packed extra pants and t-shirts for the spit-up/poop session that could potentially happen.
I am sure there are a few things I am leaving out, but by this point I am sure everyone has stopped reading this post so I'll put an end to it.
