Rather than making the trip all about the destination, we've gone out of way to build in visits (disguised as rest breaks) into our drive. We plan to stop and see friends all along the way either for a play or for a night or two, and family in various places for several days. We are calling it the Great Eastern Canada Adventure (GECA for short). The mission is simple--pack in as many memorable travel moments as possible into the period of a month.
Since we plan to be on the road a lot and are coming up with all sorts of ways to keep ourselves entertained in the car and on the road, so we decided to share some of the strategies that have worked so far for us:
1) Packing. Anyone who knows me knows that I don't exactly travel light. That being said, I opted out of buying a Thule for our trip and the car is currently holding three humans and one dog and it's not even full so I must have done something right. Or forgotten something very important. Best two tips I can offer are:
a) Have places for everything and pack with your most earnest needs in mind. I have spots
for "bribe treats," wipes, the mini soft-sided cooler, books, and drinks. This may seem obvious,
but I also put all the things I don't need during a long car drive at the bottom of the trunk--the
suitcases, the stroller and baby playpen. I always keep a "day bag" full of several changes of
clothes for a couple of days all individually divided as outfits in ziplock bags.
b) Ziplocks are a traveler's best friend. Not only do they compress clothing down, and keep
things dry in the case of an accidental water spill, rain, or whatever liquids you might have
happening, etc. they keep things organized and provide extra bags for garbage and for all those
nasty laundry situations--potty training mamas, you know what I mean. I organized both kids
things into outfits including socks and underwear, and then even put a couple of items I didn't
want to get dirty into baggies for myself. There is nothing quite like doing a blind search for a
sweater, only to have it be the last item out of 1000 items to be pulled out of the suitcase. Bags
help prevent all the messiness suitcases can get into.
2) Breaks. Plan your trip with breaks and stops in mind. For our trip, we did maximum six hours a day. We planned where we would stop and take long (hour to two hour) breaks in advance and left smaller breaks up to chance--diaper chances, gas fill-ups and coffee breaks of which I take maybe one (or two in the case of an emergency) in the two/three hour chunk. Fortunately, on our route we had friends to visit. So we contacted them months in advance to set up playdates. We drove 2-3 hours in the early morning, stopped for lunch and a play with friends, and continued on for another 2-3 hours in afternoon perfectly timed for naps, arriving just before rush hour in major cities. BUT, sometimes all you have a rest stop. In that case, we pulled out the bubble machine I bought at the dollar store for $2 that proved to be fantastic entertainment and great exercise for an hour at our windy location.
3) Snacks. I was going to make this the entertainment section but decided that snacks needed an entire section all to itself. My kids like to eat in the car. THE. WHOLE. TIME. Yup, and I let them. It's sometimes disgusting and embarrassing how filthy the car gets, but for the most part, it's nothing that can't be vacuumed out, wiped up or sprayed down. We try to start out with healthy snacks--fruit, crackers, cheese. granola bars.. but let's face it, sometimes there are just so many apples you can eat. So we start digging into the chips (gasp!--only on road trips), cookies, fruit snacks (Dora treats)... and eventually chocolate, licorice and other "bribe" treats (candy) for the last 30 minutes when the kids are screaming and you are all tapped out and can't think of another song or car-game to play and you just want to make it there, darn it!
4) Entertainment. Other than eating, which honestly takes up most of our time, I always make a stop before the trip at the dollar store to stock up on cheap trinkety toys, you know, things I don't mind if the kids break or loose. I buy: stickers, stickers, stickers, coloring books, trucks, airplanes, fishing rods, tiny dolls. I put a bunch of these items in their travel backpacks which they can access any time and which I reorganize again before every leg of the journey. I also stock up their backpacks with their snacks to go through.
WE DON'T OWN AN IPAD. So we must rely on non-technological entertainment.... I am not anti-technology. In fact, in the first year of my daughter's life, my older son watched so much TV that I was afraid his brain would fall out of his skull. (We did this to survive). But we just don't have an Ipad. I have tossed by iphone into the backseat for about 30 minutes from time to time just to pull us through parts of our trip so far, but since I need my iphone GPS for navigation, it's not our primary source of entertainment. Mostly the children have to interact with each other, their toys, play car games like "Eye-Spy" which is super fun with a toddler who's answer to green is always "The trees!!!!!!!" and singing lots of action songs we can car-dance to. As an aside, music is our best car friend.
5) Stops. So far we have always planned our day-end stops with friends or family. And there is usually something exciting to do there. My kids are still young, so the thought of visiting the ocean to throw rocks or ride on Bumpa's tractor is their favorite thing. I make sure to tell them what they have to look forward to so that every day is "worth it" and always an adventure.
It's been a crazy adventure, traveling solo with the littles. But we have been having an amazing time. Anyone who knows my children can attest to the fact that they are intense, high-strung and "busy." Textbooks will call them "spirited" while others may call them "wild." So there is never a dull moment. And when there is... well, it's likely because both of them are napping and then it's not really dull, it's a much needed break. All this to say, in the end, it's a matter of perspective, a mindset. I choose to take the chaos with the adventure. And so far, I haven't regretted it.
*After five hours of driving, we went to throw rocks in the ocean. My son threw his sandal into the water, which I had to retrieve and both littles were wet, shivering, hungry and overtired. The result... Hauling them hoth up a steep road back to the hotel. All I can say is there better be a massage at the end of all this.
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