Toddler Travels: A Peaceful Drive?!

Namastè!

Today we leave for our family vacation. I'm really chuffed because we haven't gotten a chance to do much traveling this year.

Way back last year, I did a piece on what to expect when traveling with Baby, and what pack. Since our baby is now a toddler, I think an update is in order. Baby Namastè's 19 months old now and a total big boy! I'm breaking this travel blog down into a series of four posts. First up, the drive...

*hums Twilight Zone theme*

What to wear???

For the road portion of our trip, I keep it simple. Baby Namastè will be sporting a little athletic set--a cute tee and basketball shorts. The material is soft and cool, and won't make him sweat in his seat. Because we'll be in the car for a long while, shoes aren't required (but we have them on deck in our backseat organizer). At our various stops, the elastic waist in his shorts makes for easy potty access.

A kid needn't wear their Sunday best to sit in the car for 6 hours! We've got too many cutesy coordinated outfits for his go-sees and tourist outings, but on the road his comfort is our main concern.

Entertainment on the go? Yes, please!

For entertainment purposes, I have a small go-bag! This is something new we'll be doing for this trip, and I'm pleased as punch about it. Baby Namastè's quite keen to do whatever he sees Princess Namastè doing. On this trip we'll be using that fit-in spirit to our advantage.

His go-bag is a backpack that contains a few simple surprises. He gets his very own notebook--his first little travel journal! He will be able to scribble and sketch in this book. (I plan to keep it to show him when he's older.) He won't likely be writing his name anytime soon, but I used puffy paint to write it in his book so he can see and feel the letters. Perhaps he'll write on them, or trace over them!

The go-bag also contains a few matchbox cars, his Mickey music player, an assortment of storybooks to read, and a couple dinosaurs and farm animals. It isn't an extravagant lot, but it'll help keep him occupied. He's still a pretty heavy carcoleptic (car + narcoleptic) meaning he will sleep a fair amount of the journey.

Our car has a DVD player, but since Baby Namastè still rear-faces, we usually eschew that for music, singalong albums, and audio books. 

Blankie and loveys?

Baby Namastè's got a small cadrè of must-haves for naps and sleep. His elephant, his Topsy pal, and his Blue (the blankie) are all first to go in the car.

Sometimes parents discourage loveys, but we love his as much as he does! These items help him ground himself when new experiences--sights, sounds, and people!--begin to overwhelm him, and we do our due diligence to make sure he has them. They are his comfort! His newest lovey, his Baboochi, will probably garner more snuggles than ever as we make our way to our destination.

Snacks!

We generally enjoy a very healthy diet. Fruits, veggies, and the few meats we eat are all organic and locally-sourced. When we're on the go, we try to say as close to that as possible. We like our sugary, salty, fatty snacks sometimes...

...but not at the risk of having a cranky toddler due to the sugar crash OR the constant potty breaks because salty snacks require drinks, and drinks require stops. To avoid the hassle of typical road food, I like to make smoothie pouches for the kids, using fruits and veggies and a little coconut milk. We also pack veggie sticks and dips. For drinks, we like water and fruit juice. When we do have road food, it's Chick-fil-A or a local sit-down spot.

Note: Don't wag your finger at me, Debra. My kids aren't being overly sheltered or "denied" fun food. We see our share of fries and chicken nuggets. They're just not our go-to. 

It's not too big a hassle to prepare the snacks in advance. I always prep for the week anyway, so if we have a trip I just make some more travel-friendly fare--finger foods! Bite sized fruit pieces, veggie sticks or pieces, and smoothie pouches are the current favorites for Kids Namastè. They like the option to nosh on the go, and I like not undoing all our progress with better eating.

....

All in all, traveling with a toddler needn't be reason to stay home. I find it better to leave out either right before nap time or early enough in the morning that he can sleep and wake refreshed. We can't make more than a two-hour drive without a stop, but that's still amazing because he's not even 2 yet.

Just plan it out! A failure to plan is a plan to failure.

Namastè!

-- Tayè K. ♡