Hi! My name is Shaina (pronounced like the country China, with a ’S’). I am a Pakistani-American, living as an expat in Amsterdam with my husband and two toddlers. Although travel is a bit different with kids in the picture, it can still be done and enjoyed! This blog aims to share tips based on our lessons learned so that other parents can travel with their tots (or even move abroad) – because life continues to be an adventure, even with kids.

Backstory: 

When I was in my 20s, I hit the checklist of my ‘traditional’ goals (i.e., college + grad school, worked my dream jobs as a public health consultant, got married, and had a baby). I felt like the big adventures were behind me, and everything moving forward was mapped out. When I was 30, my husband received the opportunity for us to move to Europe. I was terrified; but, we decided ‘when else in life will we ever do this’, and took the plunge.  It worked out great, and we were able to extend our time a bit and currently living in Amsterdam. 

It isn’t always easy, but this has been an amazing experience to bond as our little unit of 4 and make these memories together.  We have been fortunate to have travelled from the US and taken our kids to almost 20 countries! We know that we are truly blessed, but for us to enjoy these trips, it has required quite a bit of strategizing and research.

After being asked by friends in-person and over social media on our tips and thoughts on traveling with babies and toddlers, I decided to create this blog! The goal is to share our experiences and empower other parents to travel with their young kids, or even move abroad with young kids, because time goes by fast – and it’s amazing to fill the time with special memories.