I was packing up the kids to go to my in-laws’ place for dinner on Tuesday and since I knew my husband was going to want to visit for a while with the out-of-town friends who were also going to be there, I went to pack up my son’s pack-n-play so that I’d still be able to put him to sleep at his 6 p.m. bedtime. Here’s the thing, though: I really love my pack-n-play, but it is heavy and bulky, and when I need to carry a 25 lb 10-month-old, the pack-n-play is just a pain.

Thankfully, a couple months ago, a friend of mine introduced me to the PeaPod. I’d seen the PeaPod before in photos on other blogs, but I had no idea what it was called and I’d never seen one in person. She loaned hers to me for a couple weeks, just to try it out. And I loved it.

The PeaPod is a travel bed for the on-the-go parent. It comes with an inflatable air mattress to protect against cold or hard surfaces. Its UV protection makes it ideal for outside and the zipper panels allow for easy access to your child. The PeaPod comes in two sizes, for infants and older children. It is easy to fold and the lightest model weighs only 1.4 lbs, and when folded up is only 13.5 inches in diameter—the perfect size to slip in a diaper bag or carry-on luggage.

The PeaPod, starting at $75, is available from amazon.ca and these Canadian retailers.

Jen Wilson is a married mother of three super-awesome children—two girls and a boy—who range in age from 0-10. She enjoys photography, organizing, reading, TV, and sarcasm. She drinks her coffee black and dreams of one day owning a dishwasher. You can also find her on her blog, Hey Mrs. Wilson, where she has been writing about life in Saskatchewan since 2004.