Baby makes three in rural France

An umbrella stroller will be a godsend. The kid can sleep in it while you have lunch, etc. We thought it would be easy to buy an inexpensive one there but could only find high-end McClarens and Peg Perigos. So we ended up using the Bjornn most of the time. It's great you'll have a car. Fill the trunk with supplies from a Carrefour or other hypermarche at the outskirts of town. For lodging, check out the Logis de France association of small, family run inns. They're everywhere, usually inexpensive and usually with a small restaurant.

Log on to Amazon NOW and get "Take Your Kids to Europe" by Cynthia Harriman. She's got a whole travel philosophy on Europe with kids. She has a lot of websites that she recommends for finding accomodations. One of my best sources for finding apartments and farmhouses has been the local tourism website for the city I'll be visiting. I'd definitely recommend farmhouses and apartments over B&B's. It gives you more room, plus gives you a kitchen and access to a washer and dryer. Makes traveling SOOOOO much easier that way. Some places advertise that they provide cribs and high chairs. I'd ask for pictures of them so you can see how safe or old they are.

For rural houses, apartments B and Bs, and even farm stays try Gites de France. They have an English-language website.

Hi Emily, We just returned recently from 3 weeks in Italy with our 10 mo daughter (turned 11 mo over there). I'd definitely recommend a stroller, as our daughter slept in it a lot while we travelled. She would get out every once in a while, run around a piazza or park, then hop back in when we needed to move at an adult pace. Your 3-5 nights is a good idea, as it's much simpler to have the same place to come back to at the end of the day. I agree with earlier poster, farmhouses are simpler than hotels/b&b's (no stroller up the stairs, for instance). They usually offer grassy areas for your little one to play (is she mobile, yet?) as well. Since we always travel carry-on (even with our daughter), we didn't bring tons of stuff. Yes we did bring quite a few outfits for her, but she was only 10 mo, so they didn't take up much space. I would add a bunting since it's autumn, and at least 2 blankets. Not every place had cribs, so check into that first. Certain places, we had to build a "nest" on the floor for her to sleep, which worked well, but cribs are definitely nicer. Most places will charge extra for this. Southern France is pretty sunny, so a hat and sunscreen (you can buy it there, but I'm not sure how to say "titanium oxide" in French. We brought ours to be safe) are a must.
We brought a Phil and Ted's travel high chair with us, but never used it since we could always get one in the restaurant. Good move on the car. We did trains and car, and the train portions were less than ideal. OK, but the car was much simpler.

It's been several years since I've had one that little, but we did travel a lot when mine were young. My general rule of thumb was to take what they're comfortable with. I used a sling a lot with #2 and #3, so I would travel with it. My youngest could sleep in it when she was 9 mos, and we could continue on our way. It's also good when you are some place with stairs (like a chateau) or otherwise can't have a stroller. If you bring a stroller, make sure it's one that you can easily fold and has a recline. What time of fall are you traveling? The later in the year, the more warmer stuff you are going to need. Buntings, blankets, etc are going to dpend a lot on how much time you're going to spend outdoors. Also be prepared that you may not be able to control the individiual room temperature for the places you stay at. It could be cold or hot at night. Having a car is good. You'll be able to stop and get supplies as needed. Definitely bring enough formula (if you use it) to cover your whole trip. If your baby has sensitive skin, you'll want to bring his/her shampoos, lotions, etc. as you do'nt want to risk a major breakout here. (Everything seems to be heavily perfumed.) Also keep in mind that even big supermarkets are usually closed Sunday afternoons (and some all day Sunday) if you start running out of diapers. No 24 hour Walmarts to be found! Sorry I don't have any specific lodging recommendations.

Wow! Thank you for all the great advice. Keep it coming. To answer a few questions: @Darren: No she isn't mobile, yet. Actually this was a deciding factor in taking a trip now versus in the spring. And if she happens to become moblie while we're there, we'll have a great story to tell. @Dina: We will be traveling the first two weeks of November. This was the same time frame we traveled in to France eight years ago. We experienced everything from cold and rainy weather requiring many layers of clothing to relatively warm and sunny. While we are fairly experienced travelers in Europe and beyond, we are first time parents. This is were the uncertainty lies. We always limit ourselves to one carry on and a day bag a piece. However, with a baby it is more of a challenge to pack light. We're fine with making due, but it can be difficult to decide if it would just be easier to take an extra item rather than try to do with out. Does anyone know if strollers are allowed inside chateaux and other sites?

This will sound crazy, but our biggest challenge when our daughter was that age was her inability to settle down in a strange bed. And our best tool, traveling all over Europe with her, was a travel crib. We had her sleep in it daily for weeks before we left home, so that is was familiar and she liked it. We found it so much easier to settle her down when she was sleeping in a familiar space. When baby sleeps, Mom can sleep.... You can get them to pack into a backpack now.

I'm not sure what sights allow strollers, but a lot of times it is completely impractical due to the number of stairs. I don't remember a single chateau in the Loire Valley that would have been maneuverable with a stroller.

I was in Italy, not France, but my stroller was permitted inside everywhere I went with the exception of St. Peter's (one of Europe's busiest sites). In fact, the stroller got me to the front of the line in many sites (Vatican Museum included).

I didn't read Dina's post earlier, but she makes a good point. The vatican Museaum comes to mind regarding steps. There were TONS of them. Fortunately for me (or for my wife, actually), an italian man would tour along until he saw steps, then would wait for me to arrive, take the front of the stroller and help me carry it up or down the steps (the italians... I love them!). This was a huge benefit. Keep that in mind (tag teaming the stroller, that is) if you're in a chateau. I would not skip the stroller for the few chateaux that you will visit on your trip, though. Indispensible (think: sleeping during lunch/dinner).