A visit to a Mom 2 Mom sale….

Alaska Baby Rentals is the proud co-sponsor of the Fall AK Mom 2 Mom sale event that will be happening on Saturday November 10th from 10am-2pm at the Northeast Community Boys and Girls Club.  Jamie Robinson, owner of Alaska’s Kids and I volunteer our time to organize and coordinate this fun and needed community event.

Mom 2 Mom sales originated in Michigan and have spread across the United States.  AK Mom 2 Mom is the first Mom 2 Mom sale that have been held in the state of Alaska.   When traveling this weekend, I visited a Mom 2 Mom sale in the lower 48!   It was one of 19 Mom 2 Mom sales held on this Saturday and this particular sale had over 90 tables.  The sale was from 9-1 and I arrived later, after 11am.

I visited their large item room first….the volunteers working in the large item room told me that only about 20% of the items remained at that point!  Crazy!  The room was HUGE!   Think a basketball gym!   And there was still quite a bit of selection left but you could tell that it had been picked over.

Next I started walking through the event.  There were tables, tubs, racks, baskets, totes and more everywhere you could see!  The tables were lined down the hallways, in two large room, one open foyer area and an extremely large gym too!  There were tables that had only older boys and girls clothes, tables with just toys and books, others with only infant and maternity items.  Anything you wanted from birth trough age 16, plus maternity was here!    Each seller set their own prices, organized their items differently and had different selling strategies.

I was shopping for my son (the airline lost his luggage)…whoops!  And looking for a few things for my daughter too to tide her over until I can shop at the AK Mom 2 Mom sale in November since all of her pants have become capris AGAIN.  When I shopped at various tables, I spoke with the sellers.  They had sold most of their items at this point and each person that I talked to was very happy with the outcome of the event and would be selling at one again.  They were able to sell their kids outgrown items and purchase current sized items and spent very little money to clothe their children.   A few sellers also said that they liked the community aspect because the money spent at these events stays with local families and helps their budgets.   And yes, I totally scored some adorable outfits for both kiddos for less than consignment or eBay prices!

p.s. Have items you need to sell?  Register to sell at the AK Mom 2 Mom sale today before the event is sold out!   Need to buy items?  Mark your calender for November 10th from 10am -2pm and be there!

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We had the pleasure of being featured as a guest blogger today on the Alaska Mighty Mom’s Blog talking all about family travel and Club 49!  Go check it out and tell them we said hi!

http://www.alaskamightymoms.com/1/post/2012/07/guest-post-travel-tips-1-from-alaska-baby-rentals.html

2012 Kids Fishing Day in Portage Valley Alaska

2012 Kids Fishing Day Portage Valley, Alaska!

Yesterday despite the grey skies and cloudy / rainy weather we journeyed about an hour outside of Anchorage to Portage Valley, Alaska where the 2012 Kids Fishing Day event was happening at Moose Flats.  It was our first time attending and we will be making it an annual event!  The Chugach National Forest rangers and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game were on hand to demonstrate, explain and show off their skills!  Fun for little ones and big kids too….along with those big kids at heart!

Events included:

Fishing for rainbow trout with daddy!

Fishing for rainbow trout – Our 2 year old caught his first fish!  Too bad I wasn’t able to capture that on camera!  But from observing the crowd, the fishing is a big hit and being able to borrow a pole was a great way to get everyone involved even if you don’t own your own fishing equipment.

Decorating a t-shirt at Kids Fishing Day!

Painting and decorating your very own Kids Fishing Day t-shirt.  Our 4 year old thought this was awesome.  And they even had sparkles and so many colors of paint to choose from!

Learning how to tie a fly to go fly fishing.  This was very informative and if you thought scrapbooking had lots of “tools” you haven’t met a fly fisherman!

Hooligan fish & a big “cheese” grin!

Native fishing for Hooligan.  The 2 year old LOVED this display and was fascinated by all of the fish in the baskets.  Then he wanted to pick them all up to show us.  This is his prize fish from the basket and his “cheese” smile too!

Fishing at Kids Fishing Day in Portage Valley at Moose Flats!

Annual event that happens  on a Saturday in June.  Perfect free event for locals and visitors alike!   Thanks for a great event Glacier Ranger District, Chugach National Forest, Alaska Department of Fish & Game,  U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Anchorage Municipality–Watershed Management Division, and Bureau of Land Management!  We had a wonderful time!

Author Sarah Phillips Knechtel is a mom of two little ones, family travel enthusiast, entrepreneur and the founder and co-owner of Alaska Baby Rentals at www.alaskababyrentals.com

10 Tips – Best Things to Bring when Traveling by Air with Toddlers:

Flying on a red eye flight cross country, you are never too tired to play at a play area!

10 Tips – Best Things to Bring when Traveling by Air with Toddlers: 

Planning your summer trip?  All excited until you starting wondering how you are going to keep that little person busy for 9 hours in 2 feet of space on an airplane?  All of our tips have been tried and tested on real kids and real parents!

1)  A few of your child’s favorite toys – books, cars, doll, coloring book & crayons, etc, but nothing that makes noise or has a lot of loose little pieces.

2)  A roll of blue painters tape or masking tape – endless entertainment, no mess and lots of fun! Rip it, stick it, make a ball, etc.

3)  A few brand new items that they have not seen – think a travel magna doodle, dry erase board or activity, a car, a book, post it notes, a new app on your phone & fun snacks.  MOST IMPORTANTLY  – only give out 1 thing at a time and space them out.  And if you really want to be a rock star parent, wrap a few in wrapping paper like little presents.

4)  Bring their blanket, lovey, pillow or whatever it is that makes the comfortable to fall asleep on the plane.  My kids loved pillows…yes, the full size bulky, awkward ones, but they would always fall asleep because they were comfortable.  This means happier everyone, including you!

5)  Bring a sippy cup, straws, bottle or something that will allow them to suck to relieve the pressure in their ears.  As adults we relieve this pressure swallowing, etc, but at this age they don’t know how and it can really hurt.  If your child is older, a piece of gum is great too.

6)  Bring a change of clothing in your carry-on!  You will feel more prepared if your luggage is lost or delayed and more relaxed about any spills or accidents that may occur midflight….and yes, that means you should include a change of clothing for yourself too!

7)  Food.  Yup, lots of snacks…and then add a few more snacks! We eat healthy, however when we travel, some fun snacks and special treats go a LONG way.  Include some protein.  Think cheese strings, nuts, snack size hummus, baby carrots, etc.  Then think fun, like gummys, m&m’s, dried fruit, chips, cookies, etc.  My kids love Cheetos and M&M’s.  They always sit buckled so nicely and wait much more patiently when they get to eat food they is not usually allowed.

Yes, there is food at airports and on airplanes, however, if you have a stash in your bag that works for your child, you will be prepared regardless of the situation, like 10 minutes between connecting flights, when you were supposed to have an hour and waiting on the jetway for 90 minutes before taking off and the airline offers any food or drink service.

8)  Your imagination – talk to your kids. At the airport, kids are fascinated with the planes and equipment.  On the plane, look at the safety card together.  In flight, play games – from peek a boo to I spy.  Tell a story.  Be silly and tell jokes.

9)  Your friendly attitude, along with a warm smile, regardless of the situation!  You may not be able to control the people around you, but you can control your own attitude.  Ask for help.  The worst they can say is no.  If you have been gracious, it is amazing what people will do to help you when you are flying with kids!

10)  Be relaxed, take a deep breath and enjoy the trip..easier said than done, I know.  If you are more relaxed, then your children will be more calm too.  They read your cues. And yes, this is coming from the person who once on a non-relaxed day, contemplated getting off the airplane solo 🙂

Happy travels and we would love to hear your tips and tricks to fun and smooth travel with kids!  For more travel tips and gear ideas, like us on facebook and follow us on twitter!  

Author Sarah Phillips Knechtel is a mom of two little ones, family travel enthusiast, entrepreneur and the founder and co-owner of Alaska Baby Rentals at www.alaskababyrentals.com

5 Terrific Reasons to Rent a Car Seat from a Baby Equipment Rental Company

Per our previous post “Traveling by Air with Car Seats…the Adventures!” to minimize you making some of the same travel mistakes as me, here are:

5 Terrific Reasons to Rent a Car Seat from a Baby Equipment Gear Hire Rental Company

1)      We are less expensive than renting a car seat from a car rental company and we offer current non-recalled models, in working order, complete with the instruction manual.

2)     We GUARANTEE that we will have your car seat available and reserved for YOU when you arrive! You won’t have to worry that the airlines will lose it or the car rental agencies will be oversold.  This is our specialty not a sidebar service and we love to help you relax and enjoy your destination!

3)     We will meet you at the airport or other suitable location that works best for you at the times you need.

4)     We have infant, toddler AND booster car seats rentals available that are name brands, most similar to what your child currently rides in at home, in new to excellent condition that are current, not expired, with recalls monitored daily and the car seats thoroughly cleaned and sanitized between each use.

5)     You will be more relaxed traveling, not schlepping large and bulky car seats between terminals, through jet ways, going to separate baggage claims, filing a claim because it is broken, missing, lost, etc!

p.s. If you are a local and a grandparent, have friends with kids coming to visit, etc, we are a much less expensive option than buying a car seat as well!

We are proud to be a member of the Baby Travel Pros (www.babytravelpros.com) organization of independent baby equipment rental companies.  The members strive to provide safe, clean, high quality baby equipment and gear rentals throughout the United States, Canada and internationally as well.  If you are traveling, please consider renting from the Pros, the Baby Travel Pros!

Author Sarah Phillips Knechtel is a mom of two little ones, family travel enthusiast, entrepreneur and the president and co-owner of Alaska Baby Rentals at www.alaskababyrentals.com

Traveling by Air with Car Seats…the Adventures!

We love to travel, both before kids and now with our kids.  However, as a new mom, there is a learning curve and I was unaware that I could rent car seats from a baby equipment rental company, and as a matter of fact, I didn’t know you could rent any baby gear!  (What a great idea…I was inspired and thus Alaska Baby Rentals was born!)    However this did not happen without some fabulous misadventures of our own!

On one of our first trips, I wanted my daughter to have “her own” car seat that she was comfortable with when we arrived and not a gross car seat from a car rental company…sound familiar??   We arrived after a delayed flight and it was late at night (i.e stores are closed).  My car seat was nowhere to be seen.  Greatttt.  The airline tried to tell me that it would most like arrive the next day and that they could deliver it.  While this would have worked for luggage, where in the world was I going to put my 6 week old daughter while driving to our destination?  On the floor of the back seat???  So after fussing a bit, they informed me that they did have some loaner car seats.  We perused their car seat selection to see that out of ALL of them only ONE was in “working order” and it was pretty dirty.   Since I had no choice, we took it.  NEVER AGAIN!

Since I was getting smarter now, as a more experienced parent traveler, I decided to rent a car seat from a rental car agency.  Reserved it with my reservation as recommended and called to confirm.  I know, you can guess what happened, right?  I didn’t realize that even though I reserved it, that does not guarantee a car seat! Ummm…hello!  Uggghh!  Thankfully we were in a location with family and were able to resolve the car seats situation locally, this was still not ideal and an expensive proposition.

And, yes, we have many more family travel stories…both best practices and the hard learned entertaining ones!

p.s, In case you were wondering, I now rent car seats whenever possible when traveling from a baby equipment rental company!!

We are proud to be a member of the Baby Travel Pros (www.babytravelpros.com) organization of independent baby equipment rental companies.  The members strive to provide safe, clean, high quality baby equipment and gear rentals throughout the United States, Canada and Internationally as well.  If you are traveling, please consider renting from the Pros, the Baby Travel Pros!

Author Sarah Phillips Knechtel is a mom of two little ones, family travel enthusiast, entrepreneur and the president and co-owner of Alaska Baby Rentals at www.alaskababyrentals.com