Our estimated 13 and a half our trip turned into 17+ hours. Traveling with an almost 2 year old can slow things down quite a bit!
On the way down we decided to travel through the night. We traveled caravan style, with other 2 car fulls of other family members. We left our house at 9 PM. It wasn't long after our departure that my toddler son, and myself, settled into a less than comfortable sleep.
We started off pretty good! Had some issues traveling through some construction zones in the "big" cities. But for the most part my son did a great job. When we stopped for restroom breaks, he woke up. We got out to change diapers, stretch, and run around. Alex thought it was cool that his grandparents were also following us in different cars so he wanted to say "hello" to everyone.
The hard part was getting Alex back into his car seat. He was restless and didn't want to get back in the seat. He cried and fussed, but was easily distracted. Thankfully I found this awesome traveling carrier from One Step Ahead that held so many books, toys, cds, portable DVD player, and other snacks & drinks. It was perfect for such a long trip. And it was on sale so that made the purchase even better!!
Before leaving I did a lot of research about traveling with toddlers. Many good blogs out there with a lot of helpful hints. I started a list of things to buy and also things to pack in the car with us. Luckily, on the way down to South Carolina we had an empty seat. It really helped keep my stress levels down because I had easy access to everything Alex may need. I just reached over for a new book, toy, or snack! It seemed like there was a lot, but the travel organizer really held a lot. I'm so glad that I had access to everything on the way down.
Here is just a summary of things that I packed - most fit in the oranizer or on the floor of the empty seat.
Things to Pack IN CAR:
·
First
Aid Kit * Books * Phone charger
·
Toys *
Diapers * GPS
·
Wipes *
Sippy cups * Tylenol/Motrin
·
Snacks * Water * Medical Bag
·
Extra
pair of clothes * Crayons * Coloring Books
·
Flashlight * Towels * Paper Towels
·
Juice
boxes * Plastic bags *
Play dough
·
Plastic
puke bucket * Blankets * DVD player
·
Small
cooler * camera * magazines
· Ball *
Clorox wipes * CDS & DVDS
On the way home we had a completely different experience. We left early in the morning, which meant a lot more awake time with Alex. We also didn't have an extra seat available for the travel organizer -- which meant it was in the front seat in the middle. I didn't have easy access to it so I pretty much had to grab things out of it when we made stops. Wasn't horrible but, just made things a little more crowded and less organized.
BEven though we had more awake time, Alex did an amazing job. More fussing and let's just say it, screaming & kicking when he had to get back in the car seat after a stop, but all in all, he did a great job. Just took a lot more effort on my part of entertaining him with reading books and playing with toys. Distracting him was key to the long car ride. When he wanted out of the seat, he wanted out!! Worked himself up a couple times so much that I thought for sure the plastic puke bucket would be used!! At one point he got so worked up he choked on a chip or cracker -- in the middle of the rest stop parking lot, my kid is choking!!
Needless to say, we took a risk going on such a long road trip for our first family trip. Next time we may need to fly!!! Just kidding!! It's all about keeping new things available for the kids and lots and lots of snacks!!
No comments:
Post a Comment