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Tomorrow, Stia, Caleb and William will be leaving for Finland. Caleb has a business meeting, so Stia and William are tagging along for the trip! Wish them luck on the long-haul flight- last time we flew overseas William was four months old, and these days he is much more active. Plus, Jean was there for extra support! He loves flying and greets everyone with a loud “hello” (aka squeals) as they walk by. So here’s to hoping he wins everyone over and then sleeps for the evening! We have a 9-hour overnight flight then a quick layover, before boarding our final flight to Helsinki.

Speaking of Helsinki- have any of you visited the area before? This was a very last minute trip- we just found we were going two weeks ago, so haven’t had much time to plan in the middle of NYFW chaos! We do know that Helsinki is a very beautiful city, surrounded by water and very walkable. But would love any other recommendations you may have!

Here is my packing list for Finland:

• Sweaters: The weather will be cool- in the mid 50’s and I am so excited to get to wear some new fall pieces. When in New York, I picked up this olive green sweater, a neutral sweater, and a great basic sweater.
• Comfortable shoes: Because Helsinki is very walkable, I plan to spend most of the time strolling through the different areas with William, and Caleb when he’s done working. These flats are so comfy, booties in case it gets really chilly and I will probably bring a pair of slip-ons for the longer walks.
• Warm coat: I picked up an oversized “coatigan” from Amanda Uprichard– it is so warm and soft. It will be easy to layer with sweaters and tops when it’s really cold! I can’t find it online, but this one is similar
• Jeans: The only pants I plan on bringing- one pair of distressed and a pair of skinny jeans.
• Tote bag: Let’s be honest- traveling with a baby does not mean packing light! As we’ve traveled  more and more with William (this will be flight 14 for him!), I’ve learned to edit what to bring in-flight. I keep to just one carry-on (my gigantic tote bag) and if I run out of room to pack something, then we don’t need it! For this long-haul flight, we won’t need much. William will sleep most of the flight because it’s overnight. Extra diapers, a few toys, his favorite blanket, pacifer and an extra pair of pajamas (you never know!). I’ll keep some version of the above in my tote bag for days around the city. Thank goodness for the massive storage in our stroller!
• Crossbody bag: This bag is perfect to keep the essentials close to me. Such as: wallet, lipstick (this is my go-to color right now), phone (couldn’t resist this fun new cover) and sunglasses!
• External charger: There is nothing worse than a dead phone when you are in a foreign country!
• Skincare: For the long flights, I will hydrate with TULA: eye cream, moisturizer, hand cream and hydrating mist. PS: Here is a great travel kit! And get 20% off TULA w/code bishopandholland20!
• Passport cover: It can be stressful not knowing where your passport is in your carry on bag. A passport cover always helps me find my passport quicker and I love that I can keep other important travel documents in it, too.
• Journal: I am still old school in that I love to write things down. I have a few restaurants, places to see and shops to visit written down so far. This refillable journal is my favorite- it’s good size, comes in a million colors (I have the baby blue) and can be personalized, even more fun!

Shop Finland Packing List:

Cheers,

Stia, Jean and Katherine