Ever since before we had children, we’ve lived 600 miles from the majority of our family.  Luckily, though, we’re able to make the 10 hour (one way) trip to visit them fairly often.  This has given me lots of opportunities to learn what does and doesn’t work for traveling with young children.  When most people think of traveling, they think of making sure they have a full tank of gas,  cheap travel insurance, and how quickly they’ll be able to make it if they drive straight through.  But traveling with children is a whole different animal!

Here are some of my best tips:

1. Make sure to bring plenty of things to entertain them.  I  bring plenty of books and toys and I usually buy a couple of new things to introduce when it gets really rough.  It doesn’t have to be anything super expensive, just something to distract them from wanting to get out of their seats.  Also, I always bring Ava’s MP3 player and our portable DVD player (if you don’t have one, get one!  I don’t know how we survived without it!).
2. Pack plenty of snacks, but be sure they’re not high in sugar.  There’s nothing worse than trying to strap a child on a sugar high back into their car seat!  I pack things like yogurt covered raisins, dry cereal, cheese sticks, animal crackers, dried fruit, and pretzels, to name a few.  Of course, you want to make sure to have plenty of drinks, too.  Water or juice work best, but I also pack a couple of bottles of milk in a cooler, too.  Also, make sure you have plenty of wipes for cleaning up messy fingers!
3. Plan to stop at least every 2 hours, for at least 15-30 minutes each time.  Anytime we stop, we get both kids out of their seats, change their diapers, let them stretch and take turns watching them so we can both go to the bathroom.  Since we have a minivan and only two kids, we’ve found it works really well to take out the bench seat in the way back.  Then we have our suitcases and bags on the sides and there’s an open area to set up a changing area and for Ava to walk around in.  Als0, if you plan to stop for a meal, instead of hitting a fast food place, buy sandwich fixings and fruit at a grocery store and have a picnic somewhere that toddlers or older kids can burn off some energy.
4. Travel at night, if at all possible.  While it’s really hard on the parents who have to stay awake to drive, it’s much easier on the kids (which in the end makes it easier for the parents, too).  We usually try to leave late afternoon, so we can get some driving under our belts before we get too exhausted and we only have the entertain the kids for a few hours before they go to sleep.  If you’re planning on driving anytime that the kids will be sleeping, make sure you have anything they need to sleep: pacifier, teddy bear, special blanket, etc.
5. Plan out everything you possibly can to reduce stress, but remember to be flexible when unexpected things come up.  Being on the road simply isn’t going to be like life at home, so don’t expect it to be!  Oh yes, and keep your sense of humor!

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