I've traveled to 30 countries with my kids. I always do these 4 things before leaving home.

In addition to the usual travel documents like a passport, the author said she always travels with a notarized note from her husband when traveling outside of the country without him. SDI Productions/Getty Images

Before I had kids, I didn't put much thought or prep into my travel plans.

A few encounters while abroad have made me change my ways now that I often have kids with me.

I now travel with apostilled copies of their birth certificates and a letter from their father.

Before kids, I traveled the world alone with nothing more than a backpack and a worn guidebook. I rarely made plans in advance and enjoyed the spontaneity and surprises that were a part of globetrotting without much advance planning.

Once I started traveling with my children , that approach seemed irresponsible and, at times, downright dangerous.…