Traveling with Kids
- Mar 29, 2017
- 6 min read
I love to travel. No, really, it is one of my "most important things to do with my life" sort of things. I have met people who have never left the country, or even state, and have no desire to. I know, weird. Well, ever since I had kids, which only happened less than 2 years ago (even though they are 13, 9, and 14 months) the way my fiance and I travel has changed. A whole lot less risk taking, no more just winging it, no more last minute deciding to take a road trip and hopping into the ride. Yes, when you have kids, there are responsibilities that come with that.
Last year we took a road trip to Southern California; we live in Ohio. My baby was 6 months old. What the hell was I thinking? Well actually what I was thinking was that I haven't thought about myself in 6 months and would love to do something I would otherwise normally do for myself and that is to take a vacation (never mind, there's no such thing with a baby) take a trip out of dodge.
Actually, I had been thinking about going since prob the year before. My great-aunt had developed breast cancer for the 2nd time and I wanted her to meet my baby girl as soon as possible. Unfortunately my great-aunt passed away 2 months before I could get us there.
That is another reason why I won't let anything hold me back from travelling. My family is spread far apart and I will do whatever it takes to make sure I see them because you just never know.
Why didn't we fly? 1) too expensive 2) the experience of getting to show the older kids the country 3) I am so scared to fly now (it sucks). We took a babymoon trip sans children to Florida which is a very short flight (split into 2 even) and I'm pretty sure my fingernails are still in the armrest. It was my first time flying since moving to Ohio in 2009. I was pregnant this time so maybe the lack of alcohol and the extra life to worry about scared me.
I had already driven to California once before and by the time we got there I didn't want to get back into a car ever again. So I prepared my fiance and told him that it's going to be a lonnnng ride and to just really expect it; but there is no preparing yourself for that magnitude of a roadtrip. Looking back now he completely understands what I was saying and would never do it again hahah.
I guess we didn't fly mostly because of me and my fear. Not only was I scared but I also had to wonder if my son would freak out once we were in the air (my daughter loves roller coasters, totally fearless) but he is "logical" and would probably realize all the dangers of being 10,000 feet up in the air flying at 747 mph and I didn't want to have to console him and my 6 month old for 9 hours. Road trip it was!
We all talked about places along the way we would like to see: the Grand Canyon was a must. I had been to Arizona several times and not once gazed upon that magnificent treasure. Four Corners was along the way so that made sense. Then I found a place called Great Sand Dunes (above pic) in Colorado which looked very cool. Las Vegas was probably more my fiance's decision since he had never been. The Great Hoover Dam of course being right there and that was it. We would pretty much just tear ass through the first couple of states before making any significant stops. We wanted to get as much road behind us and our house the first day as possible as to make it there in a decent amount of time; 2 and a 1/2 days being the estimate.
Packing for the trip from HELLL just kidding!
I needed to pack for 5 people and fit it inside the back of a Toyota Highlander (the basic).
We each got a backpack:
-2 pairs of underwear (didn't want to be digging through the back for each of our underwear each time we stopped for the night)
-a change of clothes, pjs
-snack
-beverages
-games/books etc.
-chargers (we had tablets and cell phones)
-deodorant, toothbrush, one toothpaste
-ibuprofen or similar
-our jar of change for the toll roads
-sunglasses/glasses/contacts and accessories
-wallet
-camera/film/batteries/memory card
-the kids had a neck rest/pillow and blanket
I had a separate bag for the baby:
-lots of changes of clothes since they are tiny it wasn't taking up space
-diapers/wipes
-entertainment
-breast pump parts (bottles, nipples, cleaning supplies) oh yeah did I fail to mention I was strictly breastfeeding?
I had saved up quite a supply of milk for her but once we were on the road I was pumping and she was just drinking that directly so the supply ended up actually getting wasted because the ice thawed and I didn't trust giving it to her after the first 24 hours. I was VERY upset about losing all that precious liquid gold but, ya it happened. Plus half way thru Colorado which is probably the longest state EVER she started to get sick whenever she took a bottle and was throwing up a massive amount. I panicked of course and we ended up finding a place to stay. I think it was motion sickness because of the mountain roads plus the changing elevations.
PACKING:
Instead of suitcases I used 2 clear flat long storage boxes as recommended by my MIL (greatest tip!)
you can see who's stuff is where if need be and it took up less room so we could fit the stroller
-clothes for everyone (if staying 5 days no big deal packing 5 outfits, but if staying longer I wouldn't pack an outfit for each day if you have access to washing machine)
-shoes (walking, hiking, sandals)
-swimsuit
-beach towels (these take up space!)
-face wash, razor, sunblock, moisturizer, makeup (minimal)
-cash
-tools for flat tires, breakdowns of any kinds (thank God Ken knows how to do everything)
We also threw in the giant clown fish blowup water toy because we had room to spare
Snacks for the road
A few things I hate having to stop for when trying to make good time: food and pee breaks. I don't care if you don't have to go now, you WILL go now (and stretch and get the blood flowing back into your legs).
-seeds and nuts
-apples (still can't stop thinking of the time my fiance opened the car down in Manhattan and our bag of apples just came barreling out the car and started rolling down the street when we got valet at our hotel hahah, arriving in style)
-bananas
-granola bars
-water
-your favorite drinks (energy drinks, teas- makes you pee, fruit juices, Kombucha not a bad idea for road trips)
-multivitamins since your diet will be lacking
-protein bars
-muffins (I made zucchini chocolate chip muffins the morning we left!)
-try to keep it healthy, think about nutrients, think about lack of bathrooms
Make sure if you are planning a road trip like ours that you:
-pinpoint stops on your GPS or phone maps
-you tell family that you will check in with them at least daily
-you know where the hotels are
-you time it (I mapped how long it would take to get to different major cities so that I knew if we had to stop then I knew there would be a really good chance of being near hotels since we would be in civilization). Ken drove the first 12 hours, I took over around midnight and drove through Kansas in the pitch black darkness, no life around to be seen but the most awesome lightning storm flashing completely all around me. 2 lane road with no street lights. I couldn't drive anymore once my vision started playing tricks on me. The road was like driving on ocean waves. I couldn't tell what was out there. This was the 1st and only time we were forced to pullover and thank God there was the only well-lit place for miles, a closed gas station, to rest a bit. I was too paranoid to really fall asleep but once Ken was good, we hit the road again. TIME YOUR TRIPS MAJOR CITIES.
-you rent a car or have your car maintenance-d (oil, fluids, tire pressure/wear, etc)
and remember to HAVE FUN!!!
we made it!