We will be heading to Florida for my sister's wedding at the beginning of August. LO will be days shy of her 10 month birthday. We will be driving and staying at a B and B with our family.
Tips for the car ride? Things to think about? We've only traveled 2-3 hours in the car with her. I"m starting to stress now about the trip and dealing with family when we get there. LO is pretty good about traveling, but we've been in familiar places.
persimmon / 1313 posts
Since you'll be in the panhandle, just keep in mind that August is still in hurricane season which generally for the most part means lots of thunderstorms. Driving can be difficult with visibility during hard rains. Just keep an eye on the weather and drive safely!
How far of a drive is it for you?
pomelo / 5073 posts
@namaste: It's about 10 hours. I didn't even think about that!!!! NOw another thing to stress about. We are tentatively planning to leave on and drive about 5 hours to Mobile, get through the tunnel, and spend the night. Then, get up in the morning and try to get there by lunch time.
cantaloupe / 6692 posts
We'll be making a 16 hour drive to Florida in December when T is almost 10 months old too. Feeling your anxiety!
persimmon / 1313 posts
@singingbee: It's stormed every day here for about fourdays and I'm in central Florida! They aren't long just with lightning and loud thunder sometimes scares the LOs and lots of tourists hate driving in the storms, understandably so! I think you should be fine in the mornings. We usually get rain after lunch. Will be hoping August is clearer!
pomelo / 5073 posts
@namaste: I'm hoping so. I think the wedding is planned for outdoors. Sister leaves in West Palm Beach, so she is used to Florida weather.
coconut / 8498 posts
We've been doing drives like that every few months since LO was born. My tips are just to do what works. Let her sleep when she wants, snack when she wants, etc. At that age we would typically leave around 4am so we would get a few hours of driving while she was sleeping, stop for breakfast and stretch time once she started getting a bit cranky, keep driving through nap, stop again for lunch and play time, then drive through nap 2.
pomelo / 5073 posts
@Weagle: Well, the other complication is that DH will be coming off of naps that morning. I think we can leave around nap time, which is anywhere between 12-2 p.m. and then stop for dinner, get back in the car and travel some more before stopping for the night.
coconut / 8498 posts
@singingbee: That would work. My LO has always been really great at transitioning while asleep after bedtime or super early, so we've done that driving a couple of times. And if you're not familiar with the Mobile area, I can tell you good vs bad places to stop 
pomelo / 5073 posts
@Weagle: I'm thinking if we get past the tunnel and stop for the night in Daphne. Does that sound like a good idea? I'm looking to book a hotel tonight or tomorrow as they seem to be filling up quickly.
coconut / 8498 posts
@singingbee: That would be a good place to stop. There are a number of fairly new hotels right off of 10, so it would be very convenient.
watermelon / 14467 posts
@singingbee: @Danizaur: We just did this in April when LO was 6 months old (and had an ear infection). I brought several toys, including some new ones that she hadn't seen before and switched them out every couple of hours. We also stopped for 20 minutes every couple of hours to feed her and get her out of the car seat so she could stretch. It's definitely doable. On the way down, we stopped halfway in Alabama and stayed the night, then continued on the next day. On our way back, we drove 15 hours straight. I would bank on it taking longer than you think to travel. Technically, it's a 10 hour drive from my house to Tallahassee, but it took us 15 hours to get home.
pomelo / 5073 posts
@avivoca: I'm also thinking of switching her to a convertible car seat.
watermelon / 14467 posts
@singingbee: That would probably help her to be more comfortable. I need to do that as well because H is trying to sit up more in her seat and really protesting while in the car.
nectarine / 2521 posts
Just completed the same trip last week with our 6 month old! We did exactly what @Avivoca suggested (switch out toys, stop every few hours to stretch, walk him around and feed him) and it went pretty well. However, he was DONE at the 5.5 hour mark each way, but thankfully our drive was only 6 hours.
pomelo / 5073 posts
@avivoca: She falls asleep most of the time. We just went to our other place and she slept for half of the time. She would then fuss for a little bit and then try to sleep, but if it was any longer, she wouldn't have made it. She looks up at me when she is tired of the seat. She's figured out if she looks behind her she can see me or grab my hand. Such a cutie!
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