At the end of the school year, we packed everyone up and drove out on our 13-hour road trip back to Winnipeg. I had been planning for months to come up with an extensive list of things to do to keep everyone busy, but in the end, what kept everyone in the car, and moving along were the necessities, not the fun extras.
8photo credit: © khomich – Fotolia.com
Since most road trips are in the same country as your home, there aren’t many items that you really need. There are some, however, that save so much time, but often they aren’t missed until that moment when you really need them. Forgetting those few important items that make your kids comfortable can mean a lot of tears in the car (mostly yours).
Training Potty
Even if your child is done with learning this, but is still young, it is still a life-saver to have. We had two instances where we just passed a town, asked if anyone had to pee, got adamant ‘no’s’, and got about 10 minutes out when those dreaded words were shouted from the back. With no other town for the next hour and a half, this was great to be able to pull out.
Wipes
Partly for the reason above, but also because they were so easy to pass into the back to deal with sticky fingers on the go. We had fruit packed away for a snack and this made clean up quick and easy and no stopping was necessary.
Children’s Gravol
Our youngest gets carsick and this helped ease her stomach. We have always had at least one big incident during our holidays, but she took the Gravol for Kids liquid before we drove (as per the instructions), and we were incident-free for the first time since traveling with her. You can also pack the Gravol Quick Dissolve Chewables.
Gravol™ Quick Dissolve Chewables, available for both children and adults, to prevent and treat nausea, vomiting and dizziness due to motion sickness. Chewables are easy to take while in the car and also come in delicious flavours, orange for adults and cherry for kids, to satisfy even the pickiest of tastes.
You can check out the gravol.ca website for additional travel tips that are not covered here.
Medications
If your child has been dealing with anything in the few months before travel, make sure you take it with you on your trip just in case, especially if it is a prescription. If you have any recurrences, it is easy to just start back on the medication versus trying to locate someone to get you a new prescription while you should be enjoying your holiday.
Water and Healthy Food
Driving, especially for longer trips, can take its toll on kids too. Keeping them hydrated and having healthy food on hand can lessen the amount of stops you need to make.
Optional Item: Stroller
Depending on your activities while you are on vacation, you may need a stroller to minimize the amount of carry-time if you have younger children. We spent a lot of our time just visiting, and playing on the beach, but we did have a side trip down to the United States to do some shopping. The stroller was handy when we hit the mall. Know what you will be doing before deciding to pack a stoller.
Tip: pack a stroller that folds well and is light since you are already traveling with so much. We took along the Joovy Groove Ultralight and it was extremely light.
After that, all of the fun stuff is gravy. We saved a lot of travel-time because we had these items in the car with us. Make some time for scheduled stretch-breaks along the way as well to give everyone a chance to recharge.
Disclosure: I am an ambassador with Church & Dwigth and receive products and compensation for my articles. My opinions are my own and are not influenced.
I also received the Joovy Groove Ultralight to feature in an upcoming article. This post is not a requirement.
Sheri publishes, and writes at This Bird’s Day where she shares all of the thoughts in her head without the voices. Sticking mainly with content for Canadians, Sheri shares family stories, product information and anything that fits into her (and her family’s) daily activities.
