Now, with Lori noticeably pregnant, it’s not realistic for her to have to climb in to get our two-year-old in and out of a center-positioned seat. ![]() We of all people know it’s not always feasible to put baby in the middle (heck, here in Laos, we’re lucky to even have a carseat, and can’t always use it when we want to). Studies, including this one published in Pediatrics, show for children newborn to 3 years old, sitting in the center rear seat is 43% safer than sitting on either side of the back seat. If we’re traveling more than a few hundred miles away from home, and it’s not absolutely necessary to reach our destination in one day, breaking up the trip over multiple days makes for an infinitely happier car. Nowadays, with the wee one, we try not to do more than 4-6 hours on the road per day, if we can help it.īreaks every hour or so only get you so far, and their effectiveness seems to wane as the day goes on. It wasn’t uncommon to pull 8-10 hour days on road trips before having a baby. ![]() Jose Aragones / Unsplash 12 | Less is More when Road Tripping with a Baby Just a warning with bottles-setting a timer 20 minutes before baby’s usual feeding time allowed us to make sure the bottle was out of the cooler and warm enough for baby to take when he did get hungry. Once he was on the bottle and/or eating solids, it was even easier, as one of us could sit in the back seat and feed him while we’re rolling down the road. When baby was still breastfeeding, we would do our best to align his feeding time with our feeding time. We found that, for us, the solution was surprisingly simple. I’m all for taking breaks on a road trip to eat, enjoy the scenery, or stretch the legs, but the last thing I want to do is hang out at a rest area or on the side of a rural highway for an hour when we could be getting miles behind us. Nothing’s worse than being stuck in traffic, or on a rural road in the middle of nowhere with no good place to pull off to do a feeding. Also, when Noe was young, breastfeeding could take up to an hour. Nine times out of ten for us, the crying and screaming would be related to hunger. It can be absolutely hellish trying to drive with a screaming baby in the back. Kelly Sikkema / Unsplash 7 | Anticipate Feeding Times Bring extras.īabies are like ninjas, masters at defying all expectations and always keeping the adversary guessing. Think that baby’s going to play for hours with that cool new toy that s/he’s been playing with…for hours at home? Think again. Take the number of snacks you think you’ll need for the entire family and double it. I love winging it on the road as much as anyone, letting the wind carry my soul like a bird on the wing…īut not with a baby. stowed in a convenient place, just in case.īeing prepared also means having your route planned out ahead of time. Pack travel essentials for the day (or days) ahead, but always have emergency snacks, toys, etc. Sounds simple, but it’s easy to drop the ball when you’re mental road trip prep list has suddenly tripled. Yes, our number one tip for road tripping with a baby is BE PREPARED! Reihane Haririzade / Unsplash 1 | Be Prepared! Here’s what we’ve learned (so far) from our countless adventures road tripping with a baby and young toddler. And we’ll continue to make lots. But we always try and learn something from them. It’s an understatement to say we’ve made mistakes since the first time we started road tripping with a baby (and traveling with a baby in general)-we’ve made lots. ![]() But the way we road trip has changed forever. Prior to our adventures road tripping with a baby, we road tripped as a couple often. In the two years we’ve had Noe, we’ve road tripped often. The frequency hasn’t changed one bit. Regardless, change-by its very nature-is never comfortable, or rarely easy. Thinking about road tripping with a baby? No worries! Let the good times roll with these simple tips and hacks for making the most of your time on the road, honed from thousands of miles spent with our own two boys.īefore our son, Noe, was born, Lori and I made a pact not to let a baby change the basic essence of the unconventional life that we had built together and enjoyed over many years.Īt the same time, we had enough friends and family with kids around us to know that our lives would change in many unavoidable ways and there would be limitations on the amount of spontaneity and flexibility we would have.īut change is truly the only constant in life, and living a nomadic lifestyle for our entire adult lives has instilled a love and appreciation of change, bordering on a sort of fanaticism.
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