Fly or Drive?

I'm the exact opposite, I would rather fly (much shorter, they can move around, you can entertain them, etc) than drive. If you do drive, try and time it during naps, that way they can sleep during a good portion of the trip. Also, since you're potty training, use pull-ups. I had to travel while I was my son was potty learning and pull-ups are just a good idea. They may not even go in them (my son refused and wanted to use the plane's bathroom), but it will be just one less hassle for you. Good luck whatever you decide!

A., Every child is different and you won't know until you try it whether she will do well in the car. If you decide to drive I would suggest you leave something like 4a.m. You will have a better shot that she will sleep at least 1/2 of the drive, maybe more. When she wakes, stop for breakfast and you might get a nap out of her after you are back in the car. If she can sit through DVD's that will be great! If she isn't old enough for that be sure to have lots of toys and music CD's you can sing with her. Talk to her about what is outside of the car...horses, cows, trees. Bring snacks,etc... When you get to your Mom's, visit, tire the baby out, go to bed about 7pm, and plan to leave at the crack of dawn again. That worked for us.
good luck.

There is no question in our family..........if a drive is over 2 hours, we fly.

My 14 yr old has been a frequent flyer since she was a tiny baby. After you do it the first time, you won't question it again.... Flying is SO much easier and faster. Just get yourself organized, be at the airport on time, (we routinely show up about an hour before take off), have some juice or gum for her, and have fun.

Also, there are some earplugs for kids that worked well when our daughter had ear issues.... Earplanes they are about $6 at any drug store. You put them in BEFORE getting into the plane.

Whatever you choose, good luck.

Personally I would take a car trip with a 2 year old over a plane trip anyday!! You have to be so early at the airport, and with lines, security, limits on what you can and cant bring..it is just not worth it to me. We have driven with kids of every age, and really it is quite manageable. Esp. an 8 hour drive. That said...in the end, it will be a 10 hour drive quite likely, but if you can know that ahead of time, and just plan to do what works at the time, you will be fine. I highly recommend a dvd player, and some dramamine (but that is just me:) My best advice is to stop and eat where there is a play place. I eat while the kids play, then I get their food and they eat in the car.It makes it so much better for all of us. As far as potty training, I guess that will depend on how far she has come. I would for sure use a pull up for the trip, but I need to stop about every two hours, so a truly potty trained child can typically go for that long too. As far as her hiney hurting, look into getting one of those things that you can use for a foot rest under a carseat..that might help take the pressure off. (Can you imagine having to sit like that??) I think I have seen them in the one step ahead catalog. I hope this helps some..you can do it with ease if you go into it with a calm and easy going attitude. Good luck ~A.~

Every child is different for sure. We used to drive 6 hrs about 4 to 6 times a year one way to visit family in FL with 2 kids and a dog! I have a 10 yr old and a 3 yr old. My son has always done well on that trip since he was a baby. He slept most of the time. My daughter...I swear the first time we took her on that drive (6 months old) she cried the entire time. I told myself I would never do that trip with her again, but we invested in a mini van with TV and she does fine. She has been potty trained since before she was 2 but she will sometimes have an accident on a trip so maybe put her pull ups. My children do great on drives. When we moved here from Atlanta...we drove what 14 hours with 2 children and 70 lb dog. It's not that bad really.

Drive!!! Our family is 17 hours (without stops) away. In the last two years we have driven it 4 times and flown once. We flew becuase of a wedding and not enough vacation days. To save money we flew to a bigger airport and the drove the rest of the way (4 hour drive) From door to door it still took us 13 hours but waaaaaaaaay harder on us and kids. When we drive we have our own space, we can stop whenever we need to, eat whenever we want to, and even if the kids are extremely naughty the only ones that have to put up with it is ourselves. When we flew, we had to drive to the parking spot, take a bus to the airport, get checked in, get to the gate on time (and go potty before-hand), be in the plane with lots of people that maybe aren't used to kids sounds, pick up our bags, wait in line for the rental vehicle, drive in a different car to the vehicle (that airport doesn't keep the rentals at the airport) then finish the trip by driving the rest of the 4 hours. We then decided it wasn't worth it.... and we still had to do that backwards to get home. As far as the potty training bring the potty chair so she can go anytime. I agree to drive at a time when she sleeps. If she goes to bed early, put her in pj's and take off, if she sleeps in, leave early in the morning. I have been fortunate to be able to travel with my husband, so we drive through the night, taking turns driving. But so worth it. We started this when girl was 5 and boy was 3, now they are 7, 5, and the "baby" is 2. Good Luck!!

Do you like to rip the bandaid off quickly or slowly? Either way will be a challenge with a 2-year-old. I always pick flying--but my family is in NY, so DD's been flying regularly since she was 3 mos old. She now (at 23 mos) understands that she's going on an airplane, knows the drill, we bring lots of food and snacks, and it's all okay. When travelling by myself with DD via plane, I'm super anal about packing super light, so I can manage bags and DD as well--it helps that amongst old friends and extended fam, we can borrow most of what we need once we're there.

We did drive from McKinney to Tuscaloosa, Alabama last summer to see DD's godparents. DH and I were together, and 2 people were definitely necessary. My DD is SUPER active, doesn't like to sit still at all, and maxes out on DVD's after 30 minutes. So DH and I traded off sitting in the backseat to play, read, sing songs--and we still stopped every 90-minutes to let her out to run around. We divided the trip into two days, and a 7 hour drive took 11, all told, after all the stops. But our DD is on the super active side--if your kid will sit and watch a whole disney movie, for example, it's a different story.

In your situation, I would pick the plane, but it depends upon your kid's temperment. Yes, it will take a while by the time to get to the airport early, etc, but you can give your DD most of your attention most of the time, instead of trying to drive and entertain her at the same time. GL!

Since flying has gotten to be much more time consuming than it used to be, I'd drive. Time it so that she is asleep for the end portion of your drive. Bring lots of things to do and plan to stop once along the way so she can get out and run around.

I have done both when my daughter was 2 and either way I would suggest investing in a portable dvd player and the "we sing in sillyville" dvds. The helped on both types of trips. Also, if you drive I would suggest getting a "pottete". Its a travel potty that collapses and u can get it from babies r us...or since its just you two just bring the regular old potty to maintain consistency from home