Road Trip Essentials For Families – Well… at least not too happy For me, the thought of being stuck in the car with my kiddos for more than 40 minutes makes me bite my nails, and we’re embarking on a 15-hour road trip in just a few weeks this summer! We had our practice this past weekend with a 3 hour (each way) ride (you may have seen some of the rides, ups and downs on Snapchat – follow me with the username), and it gave me something to be thankful for. Items we prepare and find and buy a few things that I know I need right now
It makes it worse that my kids are strapped into their car seats, unable to move, stretch or reach for things – but in some ways, it’s probably better (besides it’s safer) that they can’t fight and they each have their own space. I remember when I was a kid, we would take out the middle seats of the family van and spread blankets and pillows on the floor.
Road Trip Essentials For Families
Well, those days are gone…but here are some other safe recommendations that helped and helped me, and I hope they help you too!
Of The Best Road Trip Essentials For Traveling With Kids
1. Universal Device Headrest Mount – We love it! Easily attach your portable device to the Velcro-backed case, wrap the mount around your headrest (vertically or horizontally) and easily Velcro the device to the back of the headrest. I like velcro because it’s easy for me to pull and slap it on when setting up a movie for each kid (in the front seat).
2. Portable Wireless Hard Drive – This is a lifesaver It contains 250+ movies that we can stream to both our kids’ devices at the same time (playing different movies) for their individual enjoyment. It’s also great for getting to different destinations and pulling movies for a night or weekend Now you don’t have to drag your big DVD stack anymore and works with all devices!
3. Wireless Kids Headphones – From past experience, I think wireless and a kid-friendly sized headphone are key. We’ve tried the opposite, and it’s frustrating trying to fit adult-sized headphones on tiny heads, and my youngest gets tangled up in cords — and all sorts of annoyances get super difficult when everyone’s stuck in a car for longer than usual. period of time
4. Watercolor Books and Magic Marker Coloring Books – These are free ways to color on the go! We used watercolor books when the kids were little, and have now graduated to Magic Markers! These entertained my kids for over 30 minutes on a trip to Omaha last week (3 hour drive) and would easily have been a hit on repeat after watching a movie.
My Spring Break Road Trip Essentials For Travel With Kids
5. Snacks – This is when I splurge on individual sized packs for easy transport in and out of the car. We pack a balanced mix of healthy, holistic and specialty treats so they can navigate most situations. Some of our favorites are Annie’s Organic Fruit Snacks, Kid’s Organic Granola Bars, Individually Skinned Popcorn Bars, Raisins and Fruit.
6. Hand and Face Wipes – After snacking or painting the rug, and any other mess, stock up on these hand and face wipes. Anything that stays in the way, needs to be wiped
7. Manage Temperature – Depending on the time of day, the sun can be harsh on one side of the car One child will be hot, the other cold from excessive use of air conditioning Create shades with window shade clings if your car windows are not already tinted And bring extra blankets for the shaded half!
8. Carseat Neck Pillow – I learned on this last trip that we need a neck pillow that is carseat compatible for both of my kiddos. When they fall asleep, their poor necks are so bent and their heads roll around – not comfortable! Something to make them sleep, and sleep longer!
Baby On Board: The Ultimate Road Trip Survival Guide For Travelling Parents!
9. DIY Play Tray – One DIY I can actually do… get a baking pan with a rim to use on each child’s lap. Edges help roll small toys, so this is important! Then, depending on your child’s age and interests, it’s a good time to break out things like Lego builder sets (my son!) and crayons and paper (my daughter!). You can take it a step further and use washi tape, create a race track on a try if you have kiddos in the car or get magnetic letters to practice spelling.
10. Backseat toy organizer – with my kids both in carseats – they need me to do everything and everything non-stop (they can’t reach!). So, I’ve been looking for a center seat organizer like this to help keep some toys, books, and water close at hand!
Do you have any tips for keeping toddlers/kids entertained in a car that feels like forever?!?! Is there anything like summer than the freedom to embark on a road trip? With warmer weather blowing in, AT&T is celebrating road trips like last summer’s hurricanes and asked me to share my must-have packing list for the perfect road trip with kids.
Before we get into the nitty gritty of packing, it’s worth mentioning that it’s not what you pack, but how you pack it when road tripping. Throw away the way you packed for any trip that involves flying For a road trip, you need to pack more day by day than by person (I’ll wait, while you retrieve your packing world from being opened.)
Road Trip Essentials For Kids
Here’s how it works: Instead of packing everything each person (or two) needs for the entire trip, pack each suitcase with everything the family needs for each night or stop. Using this method, you only need to bring one or two suitcases a night At the bottom, you can pack the car more easily by placing the necessary travel bags
The first time I packed this way, I was simultaneously delighted with the results and mad that I hadn’t tried it before.
One of my biggest challenges and frustrations on any road trip is that the car is a replica for something as important as a Bermuda Triangle charger, but for things like trash. To avoid both, I try to have a system for putting things away and keeping things tidy
Mini trash bags are great for traveling with kids As we near each gas station I pass one back and ask them to fill up before heading out to take a pitstop. Another way to eliminate clutter is to have a designated place for everything Case in point: We have a play bag—affectionately called the Plug—that holds all of our electronics, games, extra batteries, movies, etc. Kids know it’s the bag when they need something electronic They also know that this is the bag where they keep their electronics At the end of each day when we go to the hotel, the plugs are filled with the appropriate gear so they can go inside to charge.
Road Trip Essentials & Packing List For Couples
Likewise, we have a designated place for our first aid kit, movie headphones, and other road trip essentials, so we know where to look when we need them.
While we’re talking about keeping things organized, let’s talk about keeping things clean Every road trip should include a ‘clean up kit’ complete with paper towels, two washcloths, some type of disinfectant wipe or spray and a ziplock bag. Trust me, you’ll want to put all of this in a large Tupperware bucket with a lid and put it under your car seat. Hopefully, the travel gods will make it so you don’t need to drag the ‘bar bucket’, but if someone sets off the alarm while you’re flying interstate, at least you’ll be prepared.
In that same vein, pack a change of clothes for everyone—with mom at the top of your suitcase or in a separate bag that’s not buried under the mattress. I like to put one garment per person in a large ziptop bag and stash them all in a brightly colored drawstring bag that’s easy to grab if someone needs something clean. Bonus tip: If you are potty training or have a child in diapers, bring at least twice as many undies/diapers as you will need.
I’ll be honest, ten minutes into any trip my car looks the same
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