Thursday, June 26, 2014

Toddler List for Burning Man

This will Tuckers 1st year, my 2nd year and Wayne's 3rd year going to Burning Man. This time around  I know what I'm getting into, but with a toddler in tow, the game has changed. I've thought very little about myself this year, as the  priority is preparing for anything that might come up for Tucker.

There are great guides for family survival at burning man, and comprehensive checklists of what to bring in general, but I haven't seen a list of what to prepare for your toddler, so I made one... I linked to my favorite products, as well as the products that I will be trying as I have researched them and they have gotten good reviews. (I have no association with any of these companies, and get nothing for endorsing them.)

The following is my plan for tackling burning man with a toddler… Wish me luck! Also if you have any suggestions as to how to improve this list, I would love your feedback!


Protection from the Elements

Dust

  • child size dust masks (trying several though I've heard great stuff about vogmask) additional suggestions??
  • bandanas
  • goggles
  • child size nasal filters (goes right in the nose, I figure it's worth a shot.)
  • 2 bottles of saline spray  - to use like a neti pot to get dust out of their sinuses (I'd like to teach my child to use a neti-pot, but am afraid of accidentally water boarding him.)
  • white vinegar and spray bottle (neutralizes the alkaline dust and restores PH balance) 
  • bag balm to sooth rough skin (originally made for milking cows, so they didn't chafe, we use in trapeze for raw hands)  - a little goes a long way, so get the small container
  • boogie wipes (has saline and extra moisturizer)
  • Q-Tips

Noise

Sun


Hydration 

  • snacks - fruit and veggie pouches (plum organics) - Can be expensive, but they have sales on these occasionally, at supermarket)
  • camelback water bottle
  • sippy cup
  • reusable snack bags 
  • coconut water (this is awesome for balancing electrolytes, but can be a diuretic so if you notice the stool getting too loose, switch to Pedialyte and give apple and banana (real fruit or pouches).
  • unflavored Pedialyte (all the others have dyes and chemicals in them)
  • Trader Joes honey wheat pretzels 
  • frozen fruit pops
  • multi vitamin 


Hygiene

Poo

Baby Toiletries 

  • baby shampoo
  • moisturizer 
  • body oil 
  • diaper cream 
  • diaper lotion potion spray (love this stuff - soothing and moisturizing
  • toddler toothbrush and toothpaste
  • healing balm 
A good idea might be to get a starter kit from California Baby or Honest Co (Honest has  free samples, you just pay for shipping - they have it for diapers/vitamins too.)


Entertainment 

Toys

My plan is to hit some garage sales before we go to find some fun scores.
  • craft projects 
  • new toys for the long ride in the car
  • trains with tracks
  • bubbles
  • soccer ball for road trip stops
  • creative building toys (wegits - love this!!!, magformers, make-a-monster puppet
  • I wanted to bring a kiddie pool, but was talked out of this. (Uses a lot of water, gets dirty quickly, and you need a good plan for discarding used water. It was that last one that dissuaded me) … If you are bringing one, let me know where you will be and we will come play :) (or if you have a good idea of how to discard water??)

Media

  • iPad with movies and cool new apps on it (don't forget the charger)
  • portable dvd player with dvd's 


Sleep

  • bed tent (My thought is that this will be like his own room when he goes to sleep, will block some light, and act like a guard rail to keep him from falling out of bed, as well as keep some heat in for cold nights.)
  • blanket or sleeping bag
  • pillow
  • blankie
  • monkey and train pillow
  • trains (our son sleeps with 1-3 of them these days, it's very cute!)
  • pacifier (I hope he won't still be using one by then, but who knows)


Clothing

  • 2 long sleeve pj sets
  • 2 flannel footie pj
  • 1 short sleeve pj set
  • 6 short sleeve shirts
  • 2 long sleeve shirts
  • 2 flannel long sleeve button ups
  • winter hat
  • winter jacket
  • light jacket
  • 4 pants
  • 4 shorts
  • sandals
  • sneakers
  • 8 pairs socks (it's apparently a good idea to wear socks with sandals also to help with playa foot)
  • ziplock bag with set of clothes in it for ride home


Emergency


Out and About

  • lights for lighting him up in the dark
  • reflective vest
  • child-size headlamp
  • bike transportation (my friends Dave and Kenny, have helped us to create a tandem bike with sidecar. The sidecar part was amended from a bike trailer I found on craigslist.)
  • stroller with big wheels (I don't want to trash by Bob, so I'm going to find a cheap imitation on craigslist or at a yard sale)
  • ID bracelet 
  • backpack harness?? (Wayne is strongly against leashing our child. But, our kid is a runner, so I'm seriously tempted to get one. This one looks like and monkey with the leash as a tail.)


What should go in my Diaper-bag? (Which will ALWAYS be on hand!)

  • 4 Diapers
  • wet-bag 
  • small pack of wipes 
  • small pack of boogie wipes 
  • sunscreen 
  • face sunscreen 
  • water bottle 
  • 4 food pouches 
  • 2 snacks 
  • change of clothes
  • muslin blanket
  • entertainment activity
  • hat
  • dust mask 
  • bandana
  • goggles 
  • pacifier 
  • harness?)


Costumes: 

Consignment stores and yard sales are the best for finding costume treasures! I actually amended a couple of old costumes that were to small to fit him now. 


So far, we are bringing: 


  • giraffe
  • prince charming
  • pirate
  • peter pan 
  • dalmatian
  • tiger 
  • monkey tail
  • tutu (for tutu tuesday)
  • superman is super-sized so didn't make the cut… but how cute is my kid!

I hope this is helpful. Have something to add?