It's not the most calming experience, and if you have ever had to strap your baby into a car seat for a trip, even to the grocery store, you understand why parents everywhere fear road trips with infants. Sometimes all I want to do is turn the music up a little louder and pretend I don't hear the screaming... but I don't. Because ya know, mom guilt.
I have a 10 month old daughter who is the light of my life, and I have one goal as I raise her (well several, but we will focus on just this one for now). I want her to understand that there is more to this world than just the small town she lives in. I know that seems extreme for a baby so young, but it's a great big world with a lot to see, so we have to get started early.
After driving more than 2,000 miles this month I feel like I am pretty much an expert in the art of travel with an infant, so I have some tips to help you keep at least a little piece of your sanity.
Tips for Traveling with an Infant:
1.) Car Organization
This is a big one. There is nothing more frustrating than trying to soothe an upset babe, and not being able to find the specific pacifier (you know the ONLY ONE they will take?) or trying to make a bottle. To start the packing process, I have a couple of fold out storage baskets in the floor space below the car seat behind the driver's seat. This would normally be unused, wasted space where the diaper bag may get stuffed, but not anymore. In one of the baskets I keep baby items that I know I will need to be able to reach quickly, without rifling through a bag and undoing all of my tedious packing. This includes: 1 freshly made up bottle, a blanket, teething toys, pacifiers, a couple small toys, wipes, a few diapers, formula, a onesie for a possible quick change and a few water bottles. In the other basket, I keep some snacks and water for my older step-daughter, and whatever items my husband and I may need during the trip that we don't necessarily want cluttering the front seats (i.e. tablet, chargers, small pillow). Having the baby basket also allows me to use the diaper bag for packing items that she will need during the stay, clothes, lotions, more diapers, etc. This saves overall room in the hatch because baby only takes one bag.
2.) Prepped Bottles
We try to make a bottle that is ready to drink before we ever get in the car. This saves precious moments when we start to see the first signs of hunger, because it is easier to keep a baby calm than to calm an upset baby down. We usually take a cooler with us for bottled waters, or snacks so that we make less gas station/fast food stops. So we may even have a second bottle made in the cooler. As she finishes one, they are rotated and a new bottle is made and ready to go.
3.) Sun Shade
My daughter will not sleep if there is any form of light shining on her, and she gets exceptionally fussy if the sun is shining in and she can't escape it. In comes a sun shade. It helps baby escape UV rays, and gives her something to reach for and play with when she's awake.
4.) Car Temp
Another important calm/sleep factor to my (spoiled) little angel is a comfortable temperature. She likes to be cool when she sleeps and doesn't sleep well at all if she's even a little warm. (Same tho.) But have you ever thought that the temp was pretty nice in your car, then when you take the little one out of the car seat, realized they had a little sweaty back? If you're sitting up front, of course your quickly cooled off with the vents of A/C blasting straight at you, but your baby is (hopefully) rear-facing and isn't getting that same air flow. Turn the vents towards the back and kick it up. A hot baby, is a mad baby.
5.) Improvise to Stay Sane
This one is a little funny to witness, and maybe frowned upon by a few up-tight people.... No baby is going to stay calm for an entire 12 hour drive, they don't understand why they have been strapped in and can't move. Sometimes a teething toy that they have seen 15 times today is just not going to cut it. And if you have never driven in a major city with a screaming baby in the back, YOU HAVE NOT LIVED. Start digging mama. Have you ever noticed that baby would rather play with the remote or your keys more often than a brightly colored toy? Same rules go in the car. Have a bottle of ibuprofen with a child proof cap? It's a neat rattler now. A hair brush in your console for especially windy days? That's a brand new toy to hit the window with. Just please make sure the new "toys" are clean and that any bottles are securely closed and baby can not get them open!
I hope some of these tips help you conquer travelling with a baby! It can be extremely stressful, but it is also extremely rewarding. Well maybe not extremely rewarding when you look at the work it takes, but a little rewarding. Right? At least the pics are cute? The one out of 50 where she's actually looking at the camera...
What were we thinking??
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