My wife and I are planning on driving from Knoxville TN to Newark, NJ later on in September. Driving long distances is usually no big deal for us but this year, as an added bonus, we have Baby - 10 months worth of inquisitive and ACTIVE little girl who likely will not want to stay in her car seat for 12 hours.
We have an Isuzu Rodeo and it might be possible for us to arrange things so that we can make a little play area in the back. It is probably illegal as all get out, but my dad used to do it with us in the station wagon and what was good enough for me is good enough for Sophie.
We also plan on leaving around 4:00am and arriving around 4:00pm-6:00pm. Luckily, Sophia has spent a lot of time in the SUV, up to 4 hours at a stretch, so she isn’t totally unprepared for long drives. She has also flown a number of times, so she is used to weird scenery changes.
A couple of times we’ll stop at some rest stop so she can crawl around for a while and stretch her legs. We’ll bring plenty of toys and Mommy or Daddy can sit in the back to help distract her, but God help us (me!) if she decides to scream for 5 hours straight.
Has anybody here traveled long distances with their infants? Any horror stories, tricks of the trade? Advice, any advice, is welcome!
JohnT:
Mom of 3 checking in. Hubby and I are big on road trips, the 8-15 hr kind. We have been doing this since our eldest was a week old.
Please do not let baby crawl around the back of your car while it is moving. My dad was a cop and came home with too many sad stories of what happens to kids in car accidents when they weren’t in car seats. I know how tempting it is but please don’t do it. A crying baby is better than an injured one.
with that out of the way…
Instead of leaving at 4:00am, try leaving around baby’s usual evening bed time. If she sleeps through the night, she’ll sleep through the majority of the trip.
You can pretty much feed and play with baby while the car is moving and she is strapped in her seat. Stop when she really starts freaking out and then let her crawl around the car, give her a cookie, change her butt, tickle her, etc. Give it 15-20 min. then stick her back in the seat. She might start crying a little but she’s used to her car seat and she’ll get over it quickly.
Bring a camera and take plenty of pictures on the road. Bring your headache reliever (Tylenol, Advil, etc.) of choice. And have fun with your little angel.
Wishing you a safe and stressless trip,
G.
The overnight drive thing is a good option if you can drink enough coffee and chew enough No-Doz to make it.
If that timing doesn’t work though, I’d highly recommend getting a 9" TV/VCR combo unit and let her watch her favorite tapes (assuming she watches videos). At that age we traveled with our son who would sit mesmerized watching the Baby Einstein series and if he seemed to be getting restless in the car seat we could pop in another tape. The little personal DVD players or a laptop that plays DVDs would accomplish the same thing.
Leave around the kid’s bedtime. Drive all night. This has worked well with WV_Toddler when we go visit my grandmother, about a 7 hour drive.
Chances are she’ll wake up and scream a few times but it won’t be near as bad as doing it during her waking hours.
Also … and you didn’t hear this from me (and I personally have never done this b/c WV_Husband won’t let me) … I hear that some parents give their kids a bit of baby benadryl or dramamine for long car trips …
Do not let that baby roam around the backseat! If the unthinkable were to happen and so much as a hair on her head was harmed, you’d never be able to forgive yourself.
Give her lots of hugs and kisses from me and DRIVE SAFELY!
Please please don’t do this. Please remember that cars were different back then. The old station wagon that you were probably hauled around in was likely to have had a solid frame. These days, cars and SUV’s usually have crumple zones. And boy do they crumple. If you do this, you not only are letting her ride unsecured, but you are also letting her ride in the area that will collapse in case of a crash. And even if you car doesn’t have that type of a crumple zone–well, it’s illegal for a reason.
Why don’t you or your wife sit in back with her and play with her. You can play with her while you’re both safely strapped in.
Baby benadryl or dramamine (which they don’t even make, as far as I know) may not have the consequences you desire. Medicines that make older kids sleepy can rev babies up. I wouldn’t put unneeded OTC drugs into a baby’s system.
We also use a TV/VCR unit but for a rear-facing carseat I don’t know how you’d work that. We’ve only used in since my son faced forward.
When we planned on trips with our little one, we just planned on frequent stops. He slept an amazing amount, probably out of boredom and such. I gave him food that took a long time to eat, like cheerios, and kept him entertained.
When we stopped, We put down a blanket and let him crawl around and stuff. I also did stretching exercising with him (crossing arms over his body, crossing one leg and opposite arm across his body, etc).
Mrs. JohnT read the OP and opined “Where the hell did you think I was going to let Sophie run around in the car?” Score -1 for Daddy.
We did the dramamine bit for her first flight and it worked like a charm - she slept the entire way. We didn’t do it for the return flight (same time of day) and it worked like a charm - she slept the entire way. Kids! :rolleyes: So, no dramamine unless as a last resort.
I live 14 hours from my folks, and made that trip many times when my kids were itty-bitty.
Advice:
Good kids’ tapes. (The “good” modifies “tapes” here.)
Not the sappy-kindergarten kind, but the kind you can enjoy yourself. Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, even Raffi (extra credit for tapes you’ve made yourself). Sing along and car-dance along with them, and your kid will love it. I drove a VW squareback on one of my trips back in the early 80’s. It poured (double-time windshield wipers) the whole way – and this car leaked. It would save up about a quart, then dump it on your feet. Fortunately, I had brought several pair of warm socks, so that was kind of fun… Anyway, my daughter Casey was old enough to bang away on the carseat while I sang. I arrived at my folks, took a nap, and woke up with no voice… memorable, and fun.
Two parents? Gosh. No housekeeping? This could be one of the most interesting times of your baby’s life. You’re bored, he/she’s bored. So PLAY PLAY PLAY! Fisher-Price babies, whatever. Think about a typical day at home, and realize that you can devote all your time to playing! Cool.
TMI warning. I have found that under-twos on car trips can develop some explosive powers. If your plan includes a restaurant, stop first at a rest area and let your baby move around for a while. If you don’t, and instead make their only bodily motions happen as you move them from a car seat to a high chair, you might not enjoy the consequences. (Nor will the other guests at the restaurant.)
Just throwing some advice out there, for an older kid. I used to tape “read-with-me” books. Cheap tape recorder, grab his/her favorite books, and read it. Say “beep!” for “turn the page”.
They loved it. And really good for times when there’s only one parent to drive!
Oh my god, is THAT was did it? We took out then-six-week-old son on a car trip to Washington DC. I can tell diaper-changing tales that would curl your hair–one at a rest stop in Pennsylvania, another in the men’s room at the Museum of American History on The Mall (that one my husband had to manage, with me lingering worriedly outside the door throwing in extra wipes). I suddenly had no problem believing that the human colon was many feet in length. Good god, I’m still traumatized. shudder
I would say drive when it is the baby’s bedtime, it’s easier to drive long distances at night, taking into account morning and evening rush hour. You make good time and it will be easier on everyone. Just make sure you and wife get enough sleep. If you and wife need to take the day off from work, take baby to daycare. Both of you get plenty of sleep. Take provisions and plenty of toys, and music for everyone. Have a good trip.
Do not let the baby play in the back seat out of her car seat.
If you get stopped by a cop, and there will probably check points,
I/E for drinking/drugged&driving, seatbelts, and kids in appropiate car seats, you will get fined - big time,
not to mention if you get into an accident.
So, no dramamine unless as a last resort.