Any advice for taking a 2-year-old on a road trip?

[The Chicken Lady]

When you're at Disneyland, don't worry so much if he sleeps through a lot of stuff or cries when he sees the characters. Unless he's an older 2, he might not understand or even really care about everything he sees. Don't be afraid to choose some adult attractions or visit some stuff older kids might find boring. He's not even going to be able to go on a lot of the rides, so see if they have a "parent swap" so you can take turns watching him and doing the thrill rides.

Make sure he gets food regularly and something to drink, and let him "chillax" in the stroller.

See if there's a babysitting service so you guys can have a night out for yourselves. There are a ton of great things at Disney parks that are just for adults.

I don't personally recommend movies/DVDs in the car. I think kids learn more by looking out the windows and observing the world around them rather than being mesmerized by the boob tube. I learned to spot deer and all sorts of other animals along the road this way; my DH is constantly surprised by what I can find and point out to him. For older kids, find some classic travel bingo and let them get to work.

 

[newchickenfamily]

I've got 3 kids including an almost 3 year old. We have taken lots of trips.

1. DVD player is a must.
2. Snacks & drinks (but not too many drinks!)
3. Clipboard (saw someone else mentioned that too!) with crayons
4. We stop briefly every 3 hours or so, just to stretch legs.
5. Seems like things go better if we leave super early in the morning, like 4 a.m. Kids can sleep for awhile. That has worked well for us.

 

[Anne]

Thank you SOOOOOO much to everyone who replied! Lots of awesome suggestions, I'll probably end up utilizing as many as I can!

Thanks again for all you guys' help!

 

[gaited horse]

what are the APA National Show.also bring alot of snacks as for the two year old bring lots of duct tape to keep him tied down.

 

[the simple life]

I think you have gotten some great advice.
I have always said my children are well traveled, we have been taking them everywhere since they were born.
Its good that you are starting now.

I agree with bringing activities to do, what I did was a would shop at Walmart or somewhere you can get stuff for a good price and buy alot of stuff they have never seen before.

I would buy a totebag for the special trip and fill it with all kinds of markers, crayons, paper, playdough, action figures, matchbox cars, etch sketch and magnadoodles, those glow light sticks for when its dark enough in the car to play with them, we have had flashlights but I buy the small ones and I warn them iif they shine it up front while someone is driving I will take it away, flashlights are good anyway for strange hotel rooms, (FYI silly putty sticks to clothes and car seats if it gets warm)
buy whatever you think will keep them happy and busy.

I would recommend you dress them in very comfy clothes, its hard to sit still in the car if a label is scratchy or a button digs in.
I use to always put them in pajamas if we were going to be arriving at the sleeping desination soon so that I wouldn't have to disturb them(in case they fell asleep) when we got there.
I recommend a blanket and pillow for each of them as well, again I use to pick up something new for the trip and surprise them. You know those small blankets with characters on them and the soft pillows that shaped like something.
I did not tell them I had these and if they started to get antsy I would pull something out.
It was great, I just wouldn't show them all the stuff in the bag at once or they just want to tear through everything.

I also had a cooler of drinks and snacks so that we wouldn't have to stop and eat too much fast food and also waste time getting off the highway.
It helps for in between mealtimes.
Pack handiwipes for messy snacks.

Okay, can't think of anything else off the top of my head, but hope you can use some of the ideas.
Enjoy your trip, wishing you a smooth ride and a fun trip!

 

[cthrash1]

My DD was born in Sept 1990...In June 1992 we took a road trip cross country to Calif with stops in Utah, N. Ca and S. Ca to visit family. My DD was easily occupied back then, just put in the Disney For Our Children tape and she was happy. But for this long of a trip I asked her Ped. what we could give her to help her relax for the trip and he said we could give her 1/4 of a Dramamine Every 8 hrs if needed. Well we didn't do every 8 hrs but 1/4 each day of all day road driving only, after lunch, and it did her in for about six hours off and on. She'd wake up, sing to her tape, eat/drink then go back to sleep. It kept her relaxed enough so she wasn't sore and cranky when we'd get to the motels at night and our destinations.
I wouldn't do that for the shorter day trips only the two day cross country ones.

 

[Backyard Buddies]

You've already received so much good advice but as we've traveled that same route numerous times, perhaps I can provide some additional information.

We first began taking road trips between So. Cal and Washington (my inlaws live up in WA) when my kids were 5 and 2.5 and have made more than a half dozen of them in the 8 years since, the most recent less than 2 months ago.

If your 2 year old is still in diapers, this may actually be easier than if he is not since there are loooong stretches of the 5 fwy without places to stop. If your child is already potty trained, I highly recommend a porta potty and a roll of toilet paper packed in the car.

We found it easiest to leave very early in the morning. We'd pull the kids out of bed, and let them sleep for another couple of hours. By then, it was time for a gas stop and break for breakfast (even if it's just food you've brought with you). Then, when you get going in the car again, start out by playing and discussing things along the way. Play some car games, find the item along the way (there are some online picture based games you can print), etc. Bring out the DVD player when the boredom sets in. By the time you finish the first show or two, it's time to stop for gas and lunch. Once in the car again, at the point when the child will be getting toward his tipping point, put on some quiet music, preferably music that he associates with naptime and let him settle down for his afternoon nap. By the time he wakes from that, you're getting near the end of your trip and should be able to occupy him for the last bit, either through a story, more car games, or another DVD.

The key is to mix it up - a LOT. The suggestion of bringing along a few new things is a great one, especially new DVDs or hands on toys that he'll play with for some period of time. I always kept a big bag of things and would pull out a new one here and there amongst the favorites. Coloring is a great suggestion but make sure that the crayons aren't left out to sit on a seat. Be aware that the weather down here in So. Cal is still quite warm during the day at this time of the year but can be a little cooler at night, though probably still warmer than you get up your way. Sometimes we get the Santa Ana Winds in the fall, which can be warm and unpleasant. D-land wouldn't be fun at all on a SA winds day.

A couple of suggestions -
The lowest gas price we've found along the way is the Costco in Wilsonville, OR, just south of Portland. There are plenty of restaurants right there as well. Southern Oregon can be hit or miss, so watch the billboards. Avoid the stops in the mountains near Lake Shasta. Lathrop, CA (south of Sacramento) has a couple of Arco stations with good gas prices. There's a Pilot gas station in Dunnigan, CA (the second exit if you're heading south) that has good prices, plus all of the Pilot gas stations will allow you to refill your own thermos of coffee for just over a $1. In the Central Valley, Lost Hills and Buttonwillow are pretty good stops. If you fill your tank at the south end of the valley, you won't likely have to stop again in the busy LA area.

If you're a AAA member, get a WA/OR and a CA map with the rest stops marked. One of our favorites is the Rogue River one near the OR/CA border.

Once you hit the LA mountains, the traffic can get bad if you hit it at the wrong time. However, having made that trek nearly a dozen times over the years, I can tell you that the traffic is waaaay down with the high gas prices and we had zero problems last early last month.

Speaking of mountains, you'll pass through two mountain ranges along the way and little ears can get uncomfortable. Bring along a snack that is chewy and some water to drink and it'll help him with that. I also found that if I warned my kids ahead of time that "sometimes when you go up mountains your ears can feel 'funny'" it helped them to not freak out when it happened.

Watch along the roadside in Nor Cal just south of the OR border for the large metal animal sculptures. My kids always liked keeping their eyes open for those. At 13 and 10, they still do!

Enjoy your trip!

 

[ams3651]

a dvd player is nice when he wants to sit back and watch. I bought my son a Leapster when we went on vacation this year and something to do with his hands and engage him was a great thing. He also has a Magnadoodle in the car that is a great distraction. If he hasnt been on any long trips are there places you can go close by, maybe an hour to give him and you a little preview. My kids have always traveled well but both have been on 1-2 hour trips regularly. We took the youngest 6 hours to Boston when he was 3, he slept alot and the oldest had to sit in the back with him lots. Take a small trip and see how he does. And the suggestion to bring along his own stuff is a good one. I brought my sons pillow and blanket along and a bag of toys I didnt bring out till we got to the hotel.