road trip – Let Kids Travel

Well, everyone, we made it back from our big road trip. We visited Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, and Utah. That is a lot of states. We drove almost 5,000 miles! You may be wondering how these two kids did in the car? I am happy to answer that it went better than I expected. There were moments of tantrums and fighting between siblings and they both seem to push each other’s buttons, but they were good most of the time.

Here are a few tips: Wells for his birthday received a little VTech tablet from one of his friends. We saved it only for the car and it was only for long distances. He absolutely loved it and it kept him busy for hours. Isla really likes to unpack bags, so I had a reusable bag filled with toys or container, which kept her entertained.

We like to book our hotels ahead of time so we don’t have that stress while we are traveling. However, it sort of backfired on us since two of the days we overestimated the time we could cover due to construction or other deterrents. That made for some late nights and cranky kids. If you have access to a smart phone it would be worth it to book that same day so you can avoid some late nights. I would account for unplanned circumstances into your travel time. There was one day that I am pretty sure Wellington had to go to the bathroom every thirty minutes. That makes for a lot of stops along the way! Going with a newly potty trained child is going to be more difficult. Another thing we weren’t planning for was all the construction. We know it is summer and a busy time, but how much construction was happening and for huge stretches of a time was unreal. I am quite sure it always happened when I was driving, too.

Well, readers we made it to and back from Wisconsin safe and sound with a little stop in Utah for some extended R&R at my in-laws place (we had the house to ourselves!). I think the kids enjoyed seeing all their family. I am glad we did it for the new experience, definitely some trials but the good memories are outweighing the bad. Where are you guys vacationing this summer? Anyone headed on a road trip?

We live in Washington state but grew up in Wisconsin. Consequently, all of our family and college friends are back there. We have always flown to see them a couple of times of year but now that Wellington is over two it is becoming quite expensive, especially in the summer months. We try to keep costs low on these shorter trips to save up for big vacations so we always try to find a really good airfare deal.

Well, with planning for Europe I had no time to research airline tickets. Instead, we will drive the 2,000 miles to the Dairy State. My husband has parental leave to use from when Isla was born, so we will be packing up the car and embarking on something we have never done, a road trip. We have never driven more three hours to a destination and doing this with two children is a daunting task. I actually find this more frightening than a four-week European vacation.

We are planning to make a few stops along the way to see Yellowstone and Mt. Rushmore but even with those breaks it will be a lot of straight driving! How to keep my strong willed daughter happy is a question I ponder daily. I keep hoping that a miracle will occur and she will become a content baby. Any ideas on ways to keep an eleven month old entertained?

Tag: road trip

Family Roadtrip Finished!

Road Trip, Part 1: Unfamiliar Territory