travel for two, two for travel: by car

By Rachel Ostlie

Traveling with two toddlers is a Herculean labor. Traveling with two toddlers in our post-9/11 world is even worse.

I had the problem privilege of multiple trips with my bunch this summer and early fall, and I'd love to share my stories with anyone who will listen. After all . . . it's always fun to laugh at another mom's trials.

The first, and most painful, was a weekend car trip. My husband had work, so he couldn't make the 850-mile trip to a college friend's wedding. Thankfully, since I live in a major city (Chicago), my friend had another friend in the area willing to drive. So after a play date and numerous emails to hammer out the details, two moms and three kids (ages 30 months, 13 months and 9 months) left at 5 a.m. to the Deep South. Now, I had spoken to this mom-acquaintance and suggested an early start, saying,“This way the kids will sleep for the first three or four hours of the trip, and it will make things go much easier.” But after moving my kids from their beds to our car and to her car, they were less than drowsy. And her daughter wakes up at 5 am EVERY DAY. You have to wonder why she didn't share this with me!?! The end result was three kids wide awake at 5am, and two moms hitting the road with even less sleep than usual.

We tried to be wise, stopping every so often for diaper/potty breaks, and taking long lunches (curse you, McDonald's, for having an outdoor play place with searingly-hot rubber flooring!). But the trip dragged on and on. Each traveler contributed to the problem. 10-month-old darling was as sweet as can be when my older ones were awake, as she was not much of a crawler and used to sitting around. In fact, she was really entertained by the big babies. But if they were asleep, she began to whine and scream out of boredom, waking everyone else up. My rambunctious and adventurous 13-month-old, already a strong walker, was dying to get out of his car seat in the first thirty minutes. No amount of singing, toys, cheerios, or fruit snacks could placate him for long. My toddler girl, used to having a space of her own, was ready to start a nuclear war after her brother's repeated incursions into her car seat territory. I was in the passenger seat, twisted around like an acrobat, trying to keep everyone happy. Which meant that my fellow mom had to drive. And drive. And drive. Midnight approached and we hit construction traffic in Atlanta . . . and then we finally arrived at our final destination around 1 a.m.

On the way home, less than 48 hours later, my mom-acquaintance strongly suggested that we break the trip in two. A reasonable request, given that I drove less than an hour on the way there (due to baby demands and bleary night vision from glasses I never wear). So I bit the bullet and agreed. She had a restful night in a hotel room with her daughter. I was up most of the night, bouncing between my toddlers who were amused by the new location, each other's noises, and mommy's determination to get them both to sleep. But the return trip was much more tolerable, and I am grateful that I got to see my friend get married.

Lessons learned:

1. Get a portable DVD player/iPad/something. I borrowed one from a friend the night before, and it didn't work!

2. Be as open as possible about expectations when traveling with non-family. 

3. Have plenty of snacks and toys, especially new toys or toys you hid from your children for the past month.

4. If stuck with two babies in one motel room, consider using the bathroom as a second “bedroom.” 

5. Be flexible with others in the same high-stress situation as you.

6. Be creative when it comes to caring for your kids.

Stay tuned for Part 2 of Rachel's adventure.....

Comments

[kelly]

staying by myself in a hotel room with my 2 kids (17 months and 3) is pretty much my idea of hell. I did it once this summer and it was so horrific that I refuse to even consider doing it again, ever. :)

great tips!

[Andrea]

When we road tripped this summer, my newly sleeping-through-the-night 10 month old slept in a pack n play in the bathroom and my 31 month old slept in a PeaPod under the table in the corner of the room with a fan pointed right at her for white noise. No problems at all!