Traveling is supposed to be such a joyous time and experience, but traveling with your little one brings up a lot of questions, concerns and problems that you wouldn’t have to normally endure. I recently took a trip with a family I am working with. Many things came up that we could have done better or planned better for. To be honest though it was a good trip, even with a few hiccups and one crazy squirrel (more on him later)!
We are experiencing a new world, travel will forever be different because of this pandemic. More people will be driving and staying in places along the way. I suggest AirBnBs because you’ll get a private entry and less possible contamination from outside sources. But dive deep into the description. Does it have an actual kitchen or a kitchenette? Is it conducive to sleep for a baby? Are there blackout curtains? Is the street extremely noisy? Is there room for a travel crib? Don’t get me wrong, most of these places are cute and definitely worth the money versus paying for a hotel, but to ensure less stress more digging needs to be done.
In the near future I plan to work with AirBnB or developing a Maggi Poppins’ Stamp of Approval for places I have verified are appropriate for children (more on Maggi Poppins later too).
While on the road it will be inevitable to have to stop to let a baby out of their car seat. Where are the best places to stop? Rest stops are a good first choice so that the entire family can enjoy facilities and being out of the car, but you won’t always have one on your route. We found that churches were a good place to stop, they have older trees providing protection from the summer sun and don’t mind us on their property while we feed the baby and change her (or at least didn’t say anything to us about it). We even stopped at a vacant restaurant off the highway once. Sometimes you just have to make something work. Here they had shade and we were able to not have to worry about someone getting to close, or so we thought.
When stopping at places that aren’t usually used for what you are trying to use them for, you have to improvise. Sometimes that means that you have to have someone stand guard to detour a crazy squirrel from trying to steal your bag of baby food. Y’all this was a big bag of food, like a tote, and Mr. Squirrel would not leave us alone. That thing was not scared of us either. Even though we had an unusual encounter it was a good place for us to stop and take a break.
So on the road I suggest that you have plenty of activities to keep your little one entertained, plenty of snacks and a plan on where to stop along the way. Remember to bring your patience for your partner and for whatever obstacles might pop up too.
Remember you can always contact me with questions. Have fun and stay safe out there!