How to Remain Sane While Traveling With The Kids On the Road

Now traveling on a long road trip with your children might sound a bit hectic, but families should view trips like this as rare opportunities to make memories with the little ones without the interruption of television, homework, internet, phone calls and texts, and their friends.  

Here are a few helpful tips to ensure a fun-filled road trip for you and your brood.

 Babies and Toddlers-

•  ·         Prepare yourself. Make sure to keep a lot of wet wipes handy, diapers of course, paper towels, and trash bags. Make sure extra clothes are within reach. We all know babies can make quite the mess of themselves.
• ·         Know your family’s road trip patterns. Each family differs from the way they react on road trips. Many families decide to dress their little ones in pajamas and begin their journeys after dinner once traffic dies down and when it’s bed time for the kiddos to sleep on the way. Other families prefer an early morning departure to enable they arrive to their destination prior to their children’s cranky afternoon hours.
• ·         Dress appropriately for the drive.  It would be wise to dress you baby in clothing that is comfortable, and easy to undo. Save the frilly little dress from grandma until you arrive to your destination.
• ·         Water is best for road trips. Fill those sippy cups or bottles with plain ol’ h2o. Some children can down a bottle of juice of milk on the road, and then throw it up not even half way through the trip. It’d be best to give the thirsty babes only water at least until you hit a rest stop.
• ·          Don’t work against a tot’s schedule, work with it.  Drive during nap time, and stop for meals when they’re hungry. Try to avoid going to see sites during the nap time period it’ll be no surprise that your three-year-old is tired while you’re trying to tour the children’s museum during his/her usual napping hours. 

Grade-Schoolers-

•  ·         Keep them entertained. Bring along some of their favorite toys and games. Their favorite movies. Make sure that you bring the hi-tech toys as well as some of the low-tech ones. You can never go wrong with coloring books and crayons! Make it extra special by surprising them with a few brand new toys.
• ·         Avoid squabbles at all costs. If you’re driving with multiple children in the car, try to manage a meltdown by keeping them separate for most of the trip. If you have a child who is old enough to sit in the front, make him/her trade places with the adult passenger (if there is one). Have the adult ride in the rear with the other child. This will give each child important one-on-one time with each parent or relative.
• ·         Make a border, use the baby. If you’re a parent of three, place the littlest child in between the older ones. This will create sort of a buffer between the older ones to curb any fighting, and gives them both a chance to play with the youngest one.
• ·          Have a picnic. Instead of passing through a drive-thru on the way, opt to pack lunches and stop at a local or state park. Bring a Frisbee, and pause for a game or two.
• ·         A late afternoon arrival is optimal. Try your best to make it to your destination before dinner. Everyone will be looking forward to an out-of-car experience after a long day on the road. Arriving before dinner will allow you and the kids to take advantage of the swimming pool or play area. 

Tweens and Teens-

• ·         Share music. Music soothes the soul. Hook up your teen’s personal iPods or MP3 player to get in tune with the songs you may have in common. Music surely soothes the soul.
• ·         Let your teenager pick sites to see during your trip. Knowing how much teens can procrastinate, they probably didn’t put much thought into your trip; even though they will more than likely express strong opinions about it. When you make your way to the highway, let your teens take over the guidebook and travel apps so they can choose the sites to see and places to eat.
• ·         Listen and talk to them. Let your teens know about the stories you have about when you were their age. Kids love to hear about what you were up to when you were at point in time that you were their age. The car is an ideal place to let loose and allow your teens to express themselves as you look ahead. This allows them to feel judged less than an eye-to-eye conversation. You’ll learn a lot about your son/daughter on the open road. 

While you are stuck stressed out and worried about your timeshare expenses, you could be out enjoying the scenery with your children and making better memories with them. Don’t waste another minute of your time being stuck in an unruly and unfair timeshare contract. Get out now with Transfer on the Spot.