Mid July, our family took a road trip with my in laws to Wisconsin for a little family reunion. We originally planned on flying but with COVID-19 and it’s ongoing uncertainty, we decided it would be safer to drive, especially with a 5 month old. I actually love a good road trip and all of the fun stops + sights in between. Webster, Wisconsin (the final meeting point for the reunion) is about 16 hours from Dallas, TX and I know what you may be thinking – “16 hours in the car….with a baby? You’re crazy.” But it was a really fun experience, we learned a lot and most importantly, we made it 🙂
I knew we would be stopping multiple times each way and we would have extra help with John’s parents, but tried to be prepared for any challenge we faced. Overall, the drive itself went very smoothly and Jack handled the long days like a champ. The longest day was about 9 hours and we always stopped every 3-4 hours at most throughout our trip to stretch, eat, feed/change Jack + get some fresh air.
Below I have put together our ‘traveling with a baby’ checklist + 10 tips that I found to be extremely helpful!
1. Leave right after baby’s first feed – a fed baby is the happiest baby! Jack usually takes a nap shortly after his first bottle and he did just that about 15 minutes into our car ride.
2. Bring baby blankets for shielding sunlight coming through the windows. We draped one end over Jack’s car seat like a tent and the other end we tucked into the seat’s headrest – worked so well!
3. Bring milk in pre-made bottles (if your baby is bottle fed) and keep them in a cooler. We brought a breast milk cooler we were gifted but any cooler will do! We brought 4 bottles total on our trip and I feel like it was plenty. The formula Jack uses can be stored in a fridge for up to 24 hours and room temperature for 2 hours max. Luckily, Jack has never been bothered by cold milk so I would just take a bottle out of the cooler when he became hungry but if I could remember, I would take one out about an hour or so before I knew it was feeding time so it would be a little more room temperature. Jack currently eats about 5 oz every 2-3 hours so 4 full bottles got us through the longest day (9 hours). Pre-filling the bottles was way more convenient than stopping, scooping the formula, measuring the bottle with water, etc.
4. Bring 2-3 extra outfits and clean burp cloths for each car ride – nothing like a blowout or spit up with no back ups!
5. Portable sound machine – a must have! Ours has a clip on the top where we were able to fasten it to the top of his car seat
6. Multiple toys/teethers + any books they like – we brought some crinkly books Jack loves
7. Stop often to stretch/eat/feed/change! We stopped every 3-4 hours at most.
8. Portable changing pad pre-filled with diapers/wipes – so important! I never took Jack inside any gas station, we just changed him in the back seat and it was so easy + convenient.
9. If your destination is 10+ hours, I recommend staying overnight somewhere on the way if you are able to! Our longest day was about 9 hours long and it was very doable.
- If you decide to stop at a hotel on the way, these are a few items we brought and highly recommend: Pack-n-Play + extra sheets, Hatch night light/sound machine, and baby wash rags + baby soap. Jack definitely needed a nice long bath after being in the car all day and it helped to have the items we already use for him at home.
10. Don’t stress and be prepared for anything! Whether you have a calm or fussy baby, things can be different during a long trip that you + your baby are not used to. It’s impossible to know how things will go so take breaks, pre-plan your days, rotate shifts on feeds/changes with your spouse/driving partner and try to make the best of it! You will eventually get there 🙂
I am so so happy we decided to go on this trip and Jack was able to meet so many people – his great grandparents, aunts, uncles + cousins. We also were able to stop in a few fun cities such as Belmond, Iowa to visit family and Duluth, Minnesota to see Lake Superior. Due to quarantine and not being able to go out as much as we thought we’d get to this year, it was so nice to get out and travel but in a way I felt safe doing so. First family road trip and so many memories I will always remember! Here are a few favorite pictures from our trip:)
Below I have posted and linked the items I found helpful during our trip + hotel stays and I hope this post helps with anyone who is traveling with a baby anytime soon!
