In one week I will be travelling home to visit my parents with my 2 kids (4 years old and 18 months old) I plan on stopping about halfway and staying in a hotel with them. My husband can't come because of work so I am making the trip alone. What I was hoping you moms could help with is advice on how to make the trip as smooth as possible. I am bringing food and drinks to minimize cost and stops for food. I also will have toys in the car for them to entertain themselves in the backseat. Any type of advice from keeping myself focused and not daydreaming to keeping the kids calm and happy is much appreciated. Also, advice for packing everything I need for the trip is great. I will let you know how the trip goes when I get back. Thank you all in advance.
Just to give an update, the trip went okay. It took a while, but actually taking 2 days to complete it and travelling for no more than 8 hours in a day made it much easier. The negative thing about our trip home was that 3 of the days were spent with me and my children sick in bed. I hope that our next visit will have more time for fun stuff. Thanks again for all your advice.
Dont forget lots of wipes and paper towels and hand sanitizer! I bring myself a treat (chocolate) which I sneak when I am feeling at the end of my rope. I bring a potty chair for when someone has to go and no bathroom in sight! Hide toys that you are bringing so they will not have seen them for a while Good luck!
Do as much traveling at night as possible while the wee ones are sleeping.
Hi,
Wow, your brave! Here are some tips to help you along:
leave middle of the night or super,super early in the morning so that your kids will sleep a good chunk of the trip
Get a "suprise" for each of them to open along the way----you could do coloring book with crayons, sticker book, treats, snacks, sm. toys etc. Tell them if they are well behaved and whatever else your rules are---that they can have it when they earn it. It will get them excited about earning the toy and the time will pass by alot quicker.
Get some kid CDs so they can sing along in the car
Wherever you stop, make sure you can get the kids out to stretch and run around--- if you can, plan to stop at MCDonalds or another ffood place because alot of them have jungle gyms or play structures---great for burning off energy.
I think this covers the basics--oh and one other thing-make sure that you are relaxed and calm before the trip. It will go a lot faster and smoother.
Good luck!
Molly
We always get books on CD for road trips. There are ones with collections of short stories and longer stories at our local library.
Definately a DVD player - make sure you have a car adapter since they usually only hold a charge for 2-3 hrs. I also bring a bucket of favorite toys and books. I usually plan a stop about every 2-3 hrs to let my son release his energy. Since you are traveling alone make sure and pick well lit, busy places like McD's to stop. Also since you are traveling alone, I recommend that you travel during the daytime when it is light out. I always pack lots of water for me and at least one caffeinated beverage, also snacks that are loud and crunchy so I can eat those to help wake myself up if I get tired.
I drove 14 hours with my kids who were about the same age at the time last summer. The life saver for me was a bag of toys. I picked up random stuff from the dollar store. When they got bored or fussy it was usually a good enough distraction that they calmed down. They may have only played with it a few minutes, but I really didn't care. The soft table tops that attach to car seats were also extremely helpful. They could play with their toys on it and it kept them from dropping them as often (they are soft and cannot be used for coloring on top of). I made sure I had my favorite snacks and music to keep my mind on the road. The frequent stops with the kids helped me as well. Have a safe trip!
I make a 12 hour drive a few times a year from Missouri to Ohio. My kids are 2 years and 1 year so it's still a little difficult. I always get up and leave about 4am, that way I already have a decent chunk done before we need to stop for gas and breakfast. For lunch I would always stop at a McDonalds with a playplace and let our 2 year old run for an hour or so, that is always really great because he will nap soon after. We have a DVD in our vehicle, so that entertains the 2 year old. It's was the baby who had the most difficult time with the trip this past September, she did spend a big portion upset because she wanted out of her carseat but I know as she gets older it will get easier, good luck!
I used to make 8 hour trips to Arizona to visit grandparents alone with my little ones. I would do whatever I could to not have to make any stops. They were usually pretty good and would sleep for the most part because the drive is boring.
When I had to stop finally to move around I would make sure they ran some energy off ... even if it took awhile... at least a half hour of playing before getting stuck back in the car seats.
If they cried and got fussy I'd just turn the stereo up, that's pretty much all you can do. They get the hint that mom aint stoppin.. lol. You'll be fine, have fun.
Merry Christmas!
Can you leave at like 6pm and then stop around midnight in a hotel? The leave the next day around 5-6pm again and end at your parents at night. The more you drive at night, the more the kids will be asleep in the car =) This sounds kinda tough though, I am going to be honest with you. There is no way I would do a 24 hour round trip car ride alone with 2 kids--you are brave! What if the kids don't sleep well at the hotel and you are up all night with them? It would not be safe to then drive while exhausted. I am not trying to rain on your parade, but really think this through. Wish you the best!
DVD player with DVD's of their favorite tv shows.
Little gifts they can have during the trip.
lots of fun snacks, and waters.
Cd's they can singalong to
I found it easier to leave at 4am then to leave after 10pm.
Stop every two hours at least to let them out of the car unless they are sleeping, let them sleep.
Leave yourselff extra time, the 17 hour trip to Chicago from NC used to take me up to 24 hours driving time with 4. It took 19 with three.
Try to do more hours on the first day then on the 2nd.
When I have to make a 12+ hour trip I always try to leave just before dinner time. Drive 2-3 hours then get out and eat dinner and let the kids run wild for awhile. By then when the kids get in the car they are full and have let their energy out and will be able to wind down and fall asleep. Then to keep myself awake, stop every hour or two and get out and stretch. That is what works for us. I guess it also depends on which direction you are driving. If you are driving North from SC there are a lot more places to stop for a few minutes than if you are driving South. Anyway, that what works for us and I travel with 3 boys.
Here are some tips.
http://www.bigbluetrunk.com/ourcorner/689
We stop every 2 hours for potty breaks and exercise. The trip takes longer but to be honest it feels much shorter to me. The kids are better behaved and they can focus much better too.
Kids don't feel tired like we do, they get cranky, achy and therefore whiny, and they just get bored sitting the same way for ours.
You can find playgrounds, McDonalds with playgrounds, Burger Kings with play grounds etc.. you don't have to buy a meal but a parfait or frozen yogurt can sure make the day seem less strenuous.
