We're about to take our very active 8 month old on a 2,000+ mile road trip to visit her grandparents. She is in constant motion every minute she's awake, and I'm starting to worry about how stir crazy she's going to get strapped in her car seat for so many hours. Aside from making frequent stops, which we're already planning to do, do you have any tips for keeping an energetic LO happy during a very long car trip?
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No advice, but good luck! We're taking our 4-month old on a 2000 mile road trip in August b/c we're moving from Cali to Iowa. It's definitely going to be an adventure...
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Bring new toys and snacks. We just went on a 4 hour trip and she got very bored and fussy in the end. She threw down everything I gave her!
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Good for you for doing it, seeing grandparents is totally worth it, for both parties!
I hate the car, I am worse than my son, but what we do is travel when it is convenient for us, not the baby. We leave when it's best for us, usually the morning, and if baby naps, he naps. If not, he sleeps when he needs it.
We always stop at a rest area for mealtimes and at 8 months, probably will be crawling but not walking yet, so bring a blanket or a ground cover for her to zoom around on. You can find the ground covers at Babies R Us.
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We did a 12 hour ride with DD when she was about 12 months old; it was tough, but manageable. The best situation was driving at night; we did DD's bedtime routine, put her in her seat, and she only (briefly) woke up when we stopped for gas. Driving during the day was a little harder; we basically had a routine of driving for an hour (I sat in the back and entertained her with toys/books/etc...), stopping for 30 minutes for a feeding and a diaper change, driving for another hour (this was the tough hour) and then she would nap for 1-2 hours. Then, we'd repeat the process.
We're taking off tomorrow night for a 2000+ roadtrip, and I'm a little nervous, but hopeful (DD is 2, DS is 3 months). We'll do as much driving at night as possible, but we will have about 5 hours to complete during the daytime. The plan is to leave right after work, drive a couple hours, and stop for dinner and the bedtime routine. Hopefully, once we get back on the road, we'll be able to keep going all night, only stopping once for gas/feeding DS. In the morning, we'll stop and have breakfast/let the kids play for a bit, and then make the final few hours.
One tip I have: I've organized four reusable shopping bags to be used throughout the daytime portion of the trip. Each one contains some diapers, a couple bottles, toys, books, a movie (for DD), snacks, drinks, and an arts/crafts activity (for DD). I tried to put different, interesting items into each bag so that I can switch them out throughout the trip, and hopefully keep DD entertained. Otherwise, I've found that stuff just gets all over the car and it becomes really messy/crowded. I also put a few new items in each bag for DD (Color Wonder activities, sticker book, etc...), and I wrapped them in wrapping paper, which she loves; unwrapping each new item will keep her entertained for 15-20 minutes at a time!
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I second @Honeybee: If you can do some driving after bedtime, do it. Do the whole bedtime routine, make sure the car is gassed up, pop 'em in and go. If you have no choice, leave at their first nap time during the day, stop for lunch and a break (even if you're just walking around Target for a while) and tire them out best you can, and then pop them back in the car for afternoon nap time.
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haha... we decided to put a dvd player for times he was too jittery... but toys and snacks is the way to go.
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A mirror so she can see into the front. I just took a 3 1/2 hour trip with my 9 month old niece who screamed the whole time because she was trying to see us in the front. Also tons of books, toys, and music!
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You guys are awesome! This is super helpful.
@Honeybee: & @Mrs. Yoyo: I hadn't thought of doing the bedtime routine and then doing a good chunk of night driving. Such a good idea.
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Drive at night!! We do the same as @Mrs. Yoyo: pack up and gas up the car, do the whole bedtime routine, then instead of putting them in the crib, bring them out to the car and strap em in. We even put him in with a sleep sack on over his pajamas so when we get to our destination we don't have to put the sleep sack on. The first hour or so Wagon Jr. stays awake because he's so excited, but we sit in front and ignore him (and make sure he has his lovey) and eventually he falls asleep. Usually he sleeps the entire time. Getting to our destination can be rocky (once we got there at 11pm and he stayed awake until 3am!!) so make sure you have some recovery time the next day for everyone to get naps in!!!
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