When work sends you on a business trip, even if it’s to an exciting new city, being away from your family can be lonely and difficult. Paige Rien, a designer on HGTV’s “Hidden Potential” and a new mom, knows just what it’s like. During her son’s first year, she traveled monthly, sometimes up to 8 days at a time. “I just didn’t want to be away from my son for that long,” Paige says. “Bringing him along allowed us to be together. It could sometimes be challenging, but we decided we’d deal with it so that I wasn’t away from him so often.

Whwork sends you on a business trip, even if it’s to an exciting new city, being away from your family can be lonely and difficult. Paige Rien, a designer on HGTV’s “Hidden Potential” and a new mom, knows just what it’s like. During her son’s first year, she traveled monthly, sometimes up to 8 days at a time. “I just didn’t want to be away from my son for that long,” Paige says. “Bringing him along allowed us to be together. It could sometimes be challenging, but we decided we’d deal with it so that I wasn’t away from him so often.
The idea of hitting the road with your child can be daunting, but you can find a way to have the best of both worlds: eating dinner with your family while away and being at work, fresh, the next day. These five business travel tips will help you in your quest to minimize time away from your family when your job requires your expertise elsewhere:
1. Consider Your Hotel Choice – Opt for a more economical hotel, where you can get a suite or adjoining rooms for roughly the same price as a higher end hotel. This can make your trip much more enjoyable, giving you the space you need to work, make breakfast and clean bottles (if there is a kitchenette), nap your baby, and unwind after the kids are asleep. A suite can also reduce the cost of bringing along your much-needed caregiver, as there’s more room for everyone.  
2. Leave Early – Traveling with little ones is no small feat. Relieve stress by building in extra time to get to your destination, allowing you to settle in, adjust to time changes and deal with delayed flights. Consider taking an early morning flight to allow for a later nap in the hotel, should your child not sleep on the plane. (Planes are just too exciting for some little ones!)  
3. Establish Your Routine – Before traveling, make sure your baby’s routine is well-established. The more predictable his bedtime is at home, the better it will transfer to a new place. A good routine might include dinner, bath, pajamas, brush gums/teeth, read books, sing two songs and into bed.  
4. Bring Home With You – Reinvent home as much as possible inside your hotel room. Consider taking your own blankets, white noise machine or music, books and your child’s teddy bear, blankie, or other lovey.  “It was imperative that my son’s room was as dark and quiet as possible, so we’d put blankets over windows, remove alarm clocks and phones, so as not to interrupt his sleep,” says Paige. “Whether at home or on the road, dark and quiet are important to his sleep, even today."  
5. Practice Makes Perfect – The first time you travel, it might not go perfectly. Maybe your baby was too excited to nap on the plane, or the hotel room just didn’t smell like home, or you forgot your toddler’s blankie. Keep trying. The more you travel, the more routine it becomes.
It’s exciting to know that being a traveling, working mom can mean that you can see your family on the road and still be fresh for your day’s work. Even with help, traveling with your family is challenging, but well worth it for that extra time with your child. And nothing beats the joy of kissing her goodnight. 
Nicole Johnson is a sleep coach and the owner of Pick Nick’s Brain (http://www.picknicksbrain.com) specializing in baby sleep products and consulting services. She is also the President of Babble Soft (http://www.babblesoft.com), a premier baby software company, in order to further help new parents. Nicole is a wife and the mother of two boys. With a B.A. degree from UC Berkeley and an MBA from Ohio State University, Nicole has also received an honorary degree in “Surviving Sleep Deprivation,” thanks to her son’s “no sleep” curriculum. She has become an expert on infant and toddler sleep and has made it her mission to help other parents solve their child’s sleep problems, too.

The idea of hitting the road with your child can be daunting, but you can find a way to have the best of both worlds: eating dinner with your family while away and being at work, fresh, the next day. These five business travel tips will help you in your quest to minimize time away from your family when your job requires your expertise elsewhere:

1. Consider Your Hotel Choice – Opt for a more economical hotel, where you can get a suite or adjoining rooms for roughly the same price as a higher end hotel. This can make your trip much more enjoyable, giving you the space you need to work, make breakfast and clean bottles (if there is a kitchenette), nap your baby, and unwind after the kids are asleep. A suite can also reduce the cost of bringing along your much-needed caregiver, as there’s more room for everyone.  

2. Leave Early – Traveling with little ones is no small feat. Relieve stress by building in extra time to get to your destination, allowing you to settle in, adjust to time changes and deal with delayed flights. Consider taking an early morning flight to allow for a later nap in the hotel, should your child not sleep on the plane. (Planes are just too exciting for some little ones!)  

3. Establish Your Routine – Before traveling, make sure your baby’s routine is well-established. The more predictable his bedtime is at home, the better it will transfer to a new place. A good routine might include dinner, bath, pajamas, brush gums/teeth, read books, sing two songs and into bed.  

4. Bring Home With You – Reinvent home as much as possible inside your hotel room. Consider taking your own blankets, white noise machine or music, books and your child’s teddy bear, blankie, or other lovey.  “It was imperative that my son’s room was as dark and quiet as possible, so we’d put blankets over windows, remove alarm clocks and phones, so as not to interrupt his sleep,” says Paige. “Whether at home or on the road, dark and quiet are important to his sleep, even today."  

5. Practice Makes Perfect – The first time you travel, it might not go perfectly. Maybe your baby was too excited to nap on the plane, or the hotel room just didn’t smell like home, or you forgot your toddler’s blankie. Keep trying. The more you travel, the more routine it becomes.

It’s exciting to know that being a traveling, working mom can mean that you can see your family on the road and still be fresh for your day’s work. Even with help, traveling with your family is challenging, but well worth it for that extra time with your child. And nothing beats the joy of kissing her goodnight. 

Nicole Johnson is a sleep coach and the owner of Pick Nick’s Brain specializing in baby sleep products and consulting services. She is also the President of Babble Soft, a premier baby software company, in order to further help new parents. Nicole is a wife and the mother of two boys. With a B.A. degree from UC Berkeley and an MBA from Ohio State University, Nicole has also received an honorary degree in “Surviving Sleep Deprivation,” thanks to her son’s “no sleep” curriculum. She has become an expert on infant and toddler sleep and has made it her mission to help other parents solve their child’s sleep problems, too.