Two years ago my husband and I took our then ten month old baby boy on a road trip to Oregon to visit family. We referred to that trip often as the grandparent tour, as it was the first time a lot of my husband’s family got to meet Brock. The timing also worked out for us to surprise them with the news that we were expecting twins! Although the trip was very memorable, the drive home with a cranky baby the majority of the way had me swearing we would always fly after that. Well here we are with two more babies and the option to fly out the window because, Covid, embarking on that same road trip. Lord help us! Below I will share some tips for surviving long road trips with young toddlers. Then I’ll jump into our experiences from the days of our vacation spent on the road and how we utilized these tips from day to day. Enjoy!
Tips for Surviving Road Trips with Young Toddlers
1. Plan around their sleep schedule if possible
2. Bring fun snacks
3. Download movies before you leave
4. Pack new activities & toys
5. Plan stops to stretch their legs
*If all else fails play Baby Shark… on repeat!
Trip #1 So Cal -> Southern Oregon
Our first stop was going to be in Southern Oregon, a 10 hour drive from our house without stops. We decided it would be best for the kids to leave at bed time and drive through the night. The first 3 hours of the trip were glorious. The girls fell right asleep and Brock loved watching Monsters University on his iPad as we passed my Ben and Jerry’s back and forth.
My husband and I were patting ourselves on the back when we suddenly heard Jordyn crying just 3 hours in and we snapped back into reality real quick. Whether it was the highway lights shining in the car or maybe a random bump, Jordyn could not get comfortable after that. The only thing that kept her calm was feeling the weight of my hand on top of her head. Meanwhile Brock was also having a hard time and insisted he use my blanket. He claimed his had “boogers” on it (remanence from his rice crispy treat the day before) and only stopped screaming if I held his hand. So if you can picture it, I am sprawled out reaching as far as I can up over the back of Jordyn’s carseat to touch the top of her head while also reaching across as far as I can to my right to clasps fingertips with Brock, using a mini sized Toy Story blanket covered in rice crispy treats, trying to sleep myself.
A few hours of trying to sneak my hands away only to hear crying as soon as I drifted off to sleep put us at hour 6, our first and only stop for gas. This of course, woke all three of them abruptly and the only solution was to let them watch a movie until they drifted off to sleep again. Hours 8 to 10 were back to being glorious as they all slept soundly until we pulled into the nearest Starbucks right as their doors opened. With out a doubt the best part about any road trip is finally pulling up to your destination.
Although this post will mainly focus on our time spent on the road, while the pictures will speak to our time spent in each location, I have to share the GG story from our visit in Southern Oregon. Three of my kid’s five great grandmas live in Southern Oregon and we were able to spend a little bit of time with each of them while we were there. On our way out of town we were sparking up conversation with Brock, asking him his favorite parts of the trip. Well he mentioned that he loved the laughing toy he got from pink GG, the cookies the little green GG made, and the golf cart ride red and white striped GG took him on. Catching on quickly, we realized he was referring to each GG by the color of shirt they were wearing the day he saw them. Like, what? I sure do love that boys’ crazy good memory!
Trip #2 Southern Oregon -> Northern Oregon
Now back to the road. Our second destination was just a few hours further north, making it the easiest day in the car. We planned this departure for the kids normal nap time and luckily we were able to get a good hour in before I had to start entertaining. The kids refused the luncheable I had packed (insert eye roll emoji here) so we planned one quick stop for food at Chipotle and Anna and Elsa held their attention the rest of the way.
Trip #3 Northern Oregon -> Lake Tahoe
The hardest day on the road was our route from Northern Oregon to Tahoe, 10 hours without stops. We decided to take a risk and wake the kids at 4:30 in the morning in hopes they would fall back asleep as soon as the car started moving. Luckily they took the bait and slept a solid two and half hours. We found a Starbucks just as they were waking up, fueled up with eggy sandwiches and coffee, and let them get some of the wiggles out before hitting the road again. Fortunately we made it to our third trip in the car without having to use many of the activities we packed, so everything was still new and exciting. Brock spent a lot of time on his sticker book while the girls and I attempted some of their first word flash cards. Moving on quickly, the girls went through the whole bag of activities spending no more than 45 seconds on each before Moana had to take over. Nap time shortly followed and it wasn’t until the last hour that the trip felt painfully long. Baby Shark was on repeat at this point and I may have filled their snack cups to the brim with M&Ms so I could have a second alone in the passengers seat.
Trip #4 Lake Tahoe -> So Cal
Although anxious to get home, I was not looking forward to this last and final push from Tahoe to So Cal, 7 hours without stops. The kids were extra cranky from being gone so long and I wasn’t confident they would even sleep this trip. We had to get creative with entertainment as the toys I brought were old news at this point. Luckily Brock loved counting the cars Dada passed in the passing lane and spotting American flags along the road. The girls enjoyed taking turns grabbing my nose and playing peek-a-boo with their lovey’s. Food stops were sparse forcing us off course to a Pita Pit along the Mammoth Loop but it ended up being the perfect place for them to stretch their little legs. Much as I expected naps were random and short, and never all at the same time. With 4 hours left to go even Baby Shark lost its magic. Fortunately Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes came in clutch as we were counting down the minutes to the first food stop available in hours. Vanilla milkshakes and a handful of fries finally did the girls in and they drifted off to sleep as Brock started in repeating “Are we there yet?” We got him back focused on spotting American flags and the final hour turned out to be a breeze.
Although somewhat forced into driving again after swearing I never would, I have to admit that road trips are no longer off the table for us. My kids all being over one made a huge difference from my first experience that I referred to earlier. The option to throw on a movie for them was such a game changer and I secretly loved that I could use the time in the car as an excuse to not have to monitor their “screen time.” If you’re hesitant to take a road trip with young kids like I was, I totally get it but know that it can be done and hopefully these few little tips can help!
If you are planning any long road trips with your family, I’d love to hear where you are headed in the comments below!
Thanks so much for reading!
