Did anyone make aliya with an infant?

We will, please Gd, make aliya in abt a year or so. I can't get pregnant now due to medical concerns but would like to get pregnant in the next few months. I don't want to wait until after we make aliya to get pregnant and I would also definately not want to make aliya pregant. what is it like going with an infant? I have 3 other kids, 5, 3, and 1

Silver Member Joined: Jun 12 2011 Posts: 785

I don't know what you consider "an infant", but my youngest had just turned 1 when we made Aliyah. He was actually the easiest one! A baby does not really care where he is as long as he's with you. What part are you worried about? The trip itself was a bit tough (for all my kids), but keep in mind when you make Aliyah you get free tickets for everyone. We brought a car seat (approved for air travel -- most in the U.S. are) and he sat in it in his seat for the bulk of the trip. It took a few days for him to get over "jet lag", but that was true about all of us.

We brought a lift so most baby equipment we just brought what we already had (crib, etc.) I didn't use formula, but if you do I guess that may be something to figure out -- if you need to get used to Israeli brands, etc. If you have specific questions I'd be happy to share my experiences, but I'm not sure exactly what you are concerned about.

We also came with four young kids, and one thing I would suggest considering is NOT going on the Nefesh B'Nefesh group flight. We had an awful experience. They put all the families with young children in the way back of the plane where the seats were more narrow. That meant a very difficult time anyone needed to get in or out of the seats (a rather frequent occurrence when you have a few young children.) Then we were obviously the last ones off the plane because we were in the way back, which is also pretty tough when you have young kids who take more time to get from place to place. We had tons of carry on pieces for everyone, but we couldn't start organizing ourselves until the aisles cleared out because the super narrow seats didn't give us enough space to even stand near our seat and pack things up on the seat. By the time we were able to move into the aisle, the staff was already yelling at us to get off the plane already! (And we have traveled by air with kids before without these issues.) Then the kids were just exhausted and had no Koach to sit through the speeches, etc. 2 of my kids actually fell asleep on the floor in the back of the room during the speeches and ceremonies! If you just fly a regular ElAl flight you can try to get more normal seats which makes a BIG difference. One advantage of the NBN flight is they didn't weigh our luggage -- but we didn't know that beforehand, so we already drove ourselves crazy making sure everything was the right weight, and even put some extra things in our carry ons because we were nervous. Had I known, it would have made a big difference.

Finally, do keep in mind that if you are first beginning to try to conceive in a few months, and are planning Aliyah in a year, you are opening yourself to the possibility of going when pregnant. . .

Executive Member Joined: Apr 09 2008 Posts: 295

ODD was 4 months old when we made aliyah. she was our only at the time, and it was hard for me to be away from my parents with a newborn.

the biggest thing for me (besides missing my parents) was adjusting to the doctor schedule and trying to figure out when to go where. We brought a lot of baby stuff with us on the lift, which made my life a little easier
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DD 05/09
DD 06/11

Executive Member Joined: Jun 05 2006 Posts: 307

I came with children age 51/2, 3 1/2, 2 and 3 months. I didn't do it any other way so I can't compare. It is definately better than coming pregnant or having a baby soon after. There is alot of change to get used to and especially in that area things work so differently here.

The only problem with an infant is if you would want to go to ulpan to learn Hebrew.

I made aliyah not on a group flight, and I didn't know this but when I said I'm making aliyah they also didn't weigh my bags or maybe if they did they didn't care that it was over. But I wouldn't count on that I guess.

I made aliyah with a 3 month old. It was fine. Just make sure you bring mefical records from the hospital etc. I remember I difnt kmow the answers to some of their questions about which shots she got in the hospital etc. Its also definitely wortj habimg your baby with family than alone in israel.

Gold Member Joined: Jul 02 2010 Posts: 1416

What's the question? People make Aliyah with babies all the time, some of them only a month or 2 old.

OP: thank you everyone. I see that it is doable