I am planning a trip for the holidays and have been a little stressed out about how my two year old is going to do on a 12 hour drive. We have taken many trips with her, but I find that it is increasingly busy and she gets bored much faster than before. That being said, I hit up the internet and my friends for advice on how to travel with a toddler and here is what I have found out:

1. Leave early in the morning so my daughter can sleep in the car as much as possible. This works out perfectly because my husband is used to getting up at 4:00am so that also means I get to sleep first while he drives.
2. Be organized and have things (toys) handy.
3. Bring lots of snacks but not sugary ones because then she will really want out of her car seat. Over the weekend I hit The Container Store and found some amazing storage containers in so many sizes. I picked up about 10 small ones so I can portion out sizes and hand the containers to the little one as needed.
4. Bring 5-7 activity bags. Get zipper pencil bags and fill them with activities that are easy and convenient. Here are a few I made: flash cards, dress-up stuff like bracelets & sunglasses, note pad with crayons and pipe cleaners.
5. A portable DVD player for movies, books and small items that help pass time are also helpful.

A couple things I also like to do are: leave my daughter in pajamas until about mid-day when we stop for lunch so she is super comfortable, and make sure not to leave home without the favorite blanket and stuffed animal.

How do you plan to travel with your child this holiday season? Any additional tips for me?

ariene

Ariene is a Texas-raised country girl turned St. Louis city girl that loves to knit, cook, bake, do crafts, anything Martha Stewart like, and addicted to Pinterest. She is also a proud mom that often pretends she has her own cooking show.

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