Taking Infant on a Trip

My son was almost 4 months and my husband and I drove from california to lawton hes sleep schedule was a little messed up but he did really good, i thought it was going to be horrible but really it wasnt.

T.

It shouldn't be a big deal to road trip with your son. I've been doing it with mine since he was just a few months old. Our trip home to WV is 12 hours and he's always done it wonderfully. Just remember to get him out every so often and let him move around. We've also done a several flights to the west coast and Hawaii, no problem. It helps to have toys that will keep him entertained, and as other moms mentioned, a portable DVD Player. He will be fine without his daddy for a week, and if you're worried, you can always let them talk on the phone so he can hear his daddy's voice. I hope you have a fantastic trip!

Little ones are ususally a lot more resiliant than we give them credit for. I've driven for 2 solid days with my kids and they've also been on numerous cross-country flights, even as early as 4 months. Are you able to take someone with you to sit in the back with him and feed him/entertain him when he needs attention? That would help a bunch. Pack soothing music (my kids, even at 4 and 6, love the Baby Einstein CDs) and lots of finger food - for a 9 month old, one of my faves was Pirate's Booty and Veggie/Fruit Booty. You can find it at your local health food store - but it's super simple for the little ones to eat because it dissolves quickly in their mouth and it is a unique texture. Also, buy some new toys and hide them away...when the going gets rough, pull out a new toy. Stop every 3 hours or so - and just letting him play on an old blanket laid out on the grass at a rest stop for 10 minutes can do wonders. Any other questions, feel free to contact me anytime. My phone and email are on the bottom of my website page at www.healthyhome4family.com
GOOD LUCK TO YOU!

Honestly I have been doing it since my babies were babies now they are 4 and 2. Take the best snacks and the best toys and make everything a game! Like all the animals you'll see and tractors and construstion to them all bright colors are great! On the daddy issue take pics or something of that meaning to him. Every chance you get let daddy and son talk on the phone so baby can hear daddies voice. Most likely though he'll sleep for the good part of the trip. I do advise to take some minor hourly trips first so you and he can get the feel of what it will really be like. But thats kinda short notice i guess, lol. Have fun and stay positive I bet you both will do great. And maybe even want to do many more... I hope you arn't doing this first trip by yourself?!

I think in instances like this it all depends on the child, how does he normall ride in the car? We have made the drive to Louisiana from Kansas with 3 kids and we did it over night and the kids ended up sleeping and did just fine they were 3 and 4 at the time. It sounds like there will be enough of you in there to entertain him, maybe make sure to alternate who sits with him this will make a change of scenery for him. Have plenty of snacks and toys and things for him to do, stop every few hours and let him run around and get out of the car.

Have a nice trip!

My husband and I took my son to Arkansas(4 1/2 hour drive) when he was 6 months old. We waited until almost bedtime and then headed out. Sure it made it hard to drive at night, and getting there late, but it was so much easier because he fell asleep about 10 minutes from home and slept the whole way. Thats better than him screaming the entire way. He'll be fine. Kids are resiliant. Like mentioned take advantage of rest stops and let him get out to play on a blanket for a short amount of time! Good luck and have a great trip!

Hi A.,

Taking trips with your son will be great - a lot of work, but fun. We drove cross country with our daughter when she was young like that. We had to stop a lot you know to feed her and change her and to just play with her and he first night sleeping in a bed that wasn't her own was tough. But you have to break them in sometime if you like to travel a lot. Now my daughter is 3 and LOVES to travel and does it with ease. She always asking me where are we going next. So it will be work - but it will be worth it and memerable. Good luck!

I know a lot of people are saying don't feed them in the car but we found a technique where that was a big help. We drove from Kansas to New York with my son when he was one year old. We made sure whenever we stopped for gas or food we let him out and let him crawl around while we were eating. Just keep lots of sanitizer on hand. Most kids won't eat much on a car trip because it upsets thier tummies. So we kept lots of finger foods on hand to keep him satisfied. By letting him exercise at stops he was a lot less fussy when he was in the seat. We also took turns sitting with him and reading him stories and playing games. He handled it all very well and we drove for well over 24 hours. The evry best was when we found an indoor playland. He was too small to do much but he loved exploring the colorful jungle gym. good luck

Hi Asheley,
Like everyone else has said you and him will be fine. I would either leave early in the morning like 5 am or late in the evening around bedtime or like 7 pm or so. If you leave in the morning don't stop till he wakes up, when you get ready to leave give him a quick diaper change and put him in the carseat, I wouldn't even worry about changing his clothes, leave him in his pajamas and go you figure by the time he wakes up and is ready for breakfast you guys will be 4 hours away (if you left at 5 am, 4 hours from here would put in springfield or even a little farther south, that would be around 9 am or so). Then after you eat breakfast you could change his clothes and his diaper and be on the road again and then he may be awake for an hour or so in the car and fall asleep again and then here again don't stop until he wakes up by this time you could drive maybe another 3 hours or so maybe even longer, eat could eat a late lunch around 1 or 2 pm (this would be 4 hours) and then do the same when you eat lunch diaper change and a change of clothes if he needs it. If you eat lunch at 2 then you could have dinner around 6 or so, take an hour out for eating each time, by the time you eat dinner you would only have 5 hours oe so more to go. He would also probably stay up during this last few hours of driving for awhile, Also after you eat dinner Put him in his pajamas this way if he does fall asleep as you start to arrive he is ready for bed and you just have to give him a diaper change and lay him down.
Also so helpfull hints take a big supply of bottled water and close by in the car, this way if you need to make him a bottle you don't have to stop, also pack him a little bag kind of like a carry on bag a couple changes of clothes and some toys, also some snacks, non-messy like cheerios things like that and plenty of wipes. Also easy outfits like the ones that snap between the legs give yourself enough room that if you have to change a messy diaper you can lay him in the seat change him and on the road again. Also take plenty of bottles a couple with juice/water in them.
Hope this helps and have fun on your trip, W. mom of 4

I have taken both of my boys on a long trip around that age.
They did fine, you will have to stop a few times just to get him out of the car seat hold him, feed him,
Bring some finger foods he likes any toys he may really like and maybe a shirt or something that smells like dad.
Just be sure to have everything you need for him on hand.
We are actaully from New Orleans and might be going back for a visit second week in June.
It takes about 11-13 hours depending on how many times you have to stop and the worse part of trip will be passing thru Dallas.
Enjoy it, enjoy seeing this beautifun country we live in.
And enjoy your time with your parents and your son.
Be sure to have his car seat safely in the car and wear your seat belt and resist the urge to take him out and hold him while driving down the interstate.
Have fun and be sure to go to Cafe Du Monde(spelling) in the french quater.

I wouldn't worry too much, kids are so adaptive. I travel every year from Oklahoma to N.C. with my kids and they always do fine. Just make sure to stop regularly and let him stretch his legs and play a little. My daughter was only 6 months when I took her on the trip for the first time and I was worried how she would do but she surprised me and slept alot of the way. I also will be making the trip this year with our newest addition and he will be 6 months old. Our trip is two days so it really is kinda rough driving 11 hours each day but like I said, kids will surprise you.......just make an adventure out of it. Good Luck!!!

I say go have a good time. I am not sure what part of Louisiana you are going to. But I lived there for 10 years the weather this time of the year is nice. The most that will happen is you will need to get out every so often so your butt will not go numm. :) You and your son will be gone only a week your husband will ok. The ride is not that bad look at the beautiful country side as you ride. There is nothing to be scared of. Your son is going to experience new places all the time. Have a good time........

I am a mother of two children that are now ages 8 & 7. Don't stress about the trip, he will be fine. One trick that I used for an airplane ride with my son (he was only about 9 months old) is giving him Bendadryl. That helped for his ears too, but the key was to get him to sleep most of the trip. You could also make sure to keep him awake many hours before you pull out of the driveway, that way he will sleep longer. A car ride has always been good to for long naps when mine were babies like that. Good luck!

If your parents don't mind, the best thing to do is to drive through the night when the child is usually sleeping. My family took a trip to Colorado one spring break when my son was only 6 months old. On the way out, we drove through the night and had no problems. On the way home, we did return during the day and found that it was much harder and longer because our son was needing constant entertainment and breaks from his car seat. It added 3 more hours to our trip home.

My parents live just over 1,000mi out of state and it's about an 18hr drive. We did it with my first son when he was about 18mo. We're planning on another trip out there with our second son who will be 9mo. I'm not sure how flexible you are, but it's definately easier if you can drive at night. If not, take advantage of rest stops to stretch your legs and get some fresh air. A portable dvd player is nice, even if you're only listening to it since radio stations go in/out over long distances. I stayed with my parent for 3wks over xmas and the boys did fine without daddy and madegreat connections with their grandparents and relatives. If you need anything else my email is ____@____.com! Have fun!

Hey A.! My husband and I took our 2 yr. old and 1 yr. old babies on a trip to Colorado. It was a 14 hour drive BEFORE you factor in the "baby stops"! Our lifesaver was a DVD player that we borrowed from a friend, and we bought three new movies that they had never seen before. I do not let my children watch a lot of TV at home, so this was a real treat for them, and it wasn't very expensive since we borrowed the DVD player! I hope that you will pack a lot of healthy snacks, because they are really hard to find on the road. You should proably keep a box of toys, books, snacks and sippy cups in the front seat beside you so that you don't have to turn around as much while you're driving! Good luck, and I hope that you stay safe!

I took my first 16 hour car ride to Wisconsin with my daughter when she was 4 months old. The second was when she was 6 months old. The thing that saved me on both trips was a mirror that I found at Wal-Mart. It came with a remote that I could use to turn it on. It lights up around the outside of the mirror and plays music. My daughter loved it. And I didn't think the batteries were going to make it, so I brought lots of extras. But it made it the whole way, and I had it turned on almost the whole ride. If you're driving, make sure you have plenty of his toys within your arms reach, so you can grab one and give it to him until it's time to stop. We try to only stop when it's time to fill up with gas, then you get the feeding, diaper changes, and stretching out of the way. Good luck on your trip! And drive safe!

We have family in Louisiana too, so we've driven it twice now. We did it when our daughter was 3 and 4 and the first one was pretty tough. We drove down at night most of the way so that helped, I really recommend doing that if at all possible. You have to be prepared for stops for diapering and feeding. Don't try to feed him in the car, because he won't be able to burp. Also, they get very hot and sweaty in the car seats and that gets uncomfortable for them. If it's an option try and put the car seat in a reclining seat so you can lean him back a little bit when you are ready for him to sleep.
Also, I'll just forewarn you, if you are going south of Shreveport, there are not a lot of gas stations/restrooms on that interstate from there to LaFayette. So make sure and do a good pit stop there.
Good luck!!

Hey don't stress out. Everything will be fine. Take it from a mother of 3 who has been on an 8 hour plane ride with one and then two while being pregnant, Take it from a mother who has taken a 10 hour road trip by herself with three ( the baby being only 6 months old at the time with the 3 hour feedings and everything). All you need to do is come prepared. It will be easy with just the one baby. make sure you get a tote to carry your sterilized bottles. Carry distilled water jug with you so that you don't have to worry about heating bottles up after they have sat in a cooler or so that you don't have to worry about the ice melting in the cooler and bottles going bad. When it get almost time for him to eat make his bottle up as you go. Or if you have a portable bottle warmer you don't have to be concerned about heating the bottles up if you feel more comfortable making them ahead of time. Make sure you bring lots of baby toys too. I would not be too concerned with him missing his daddy. He will be in a new environment and there will be plenty of new things for him to take in if you keep things fun he will be fine. It is only for a week. Have fun and take care

We have always done lots of travel and road trips and never slowed down when I had our son. The key is to have familiar items like his favorite blankie, toys and books. A very helpful item for us was the portable DVD player with movies like the Wizard of Oz and the Veggie Tales. It's actually easier when your child is still in diapers because they don't need to make as frequent stops as the rest of us. Enjoy your trip and take lots of pictures. I'm amazed at how much my son loves going through all the photos of places he went when he was little.