Thanksgiving plans

So I made a nutty decision - to drive 10 hours to spend Thanksgiving with my brother....so I'm banking that it'll be a 14 hour trip with the twins.... :blink:

So...any advice, sanity saving tips, ideas for survival, etc would be much appreciated.

 

Wish I could give you some, but I need it too...we are driving for 24 hours each way LOL

Dianna

 

I think you will be fine. They will sleep a lot in the car. Just plan extra time for breaks to feed them, change them and get them some fresh air. GL!

 

Are you doing this by yourself? If not, one great tip is to feed them in the car and then stop for diaper changes and burping. This way the babies actually get some movement during those rest stops instead of spending the whole stop eating.

Also, if you are going over any mountains make sure the babies are sucking on something so their ears will pop.

A good atlas will have all the rest areas labeled and you'll also be able to see the towns coming up so you can plan your stops. State and national parks that are located on your route also make interesting stops.

If the babies use bottles, try to wean them to room temp formula before the trip. This will save a ton of hassle.

Little things for the babies to look at can help keep them entertained during waking hours. My girls loved black & white patterns, rattles, little colorful toys, and watching our hands count up to 5 and back to 0.

 

QUOTE(mamanasvik @ Nov 13 2008, 10:58 AM) [snapback]1068756[/snapback]
So I made a nutty decision - to drive 10 hours to spend Thanksgiving with my brother....so I'm banking that it'll be a 14 hour trip with the twins.... :blink:

So...any advice, sanity saving tips, ideas for survival, etc would be much appreciated.

When my guys were the same age as yours we traveled from NYC to southern Ohio, which should be an 11-12 hour trip. They way there took us 14 hours, and the way back was about 13.

The good news is at that age they will sleep in the car pretty easily. The bad news is that they need to eat every 3 hours., which means you'll have to stop and each one of you will have to feed them. I was breastfeeding and that made a difference. We had some of those mini-bottle of formula bottle that you can throw out (like the ones on the hospital), and I pumped while we drove, and we would feed them whatever I pumped + mini-formula bottles. Then we threw out the bottles. I had to stop a few times and clean the breast pump equipment.

 

Good luck!
We took a 12 hour drive (that ACTUALLY TOOK 17 hours) when the twins were 4 months old. They did pretty well, but we had to stop for them to eat every 3 hours. It took forever, but other than that it was bearable. Your babies will probably sleep a bit more than mine did (as they are younger), too. We just took our time and I enjoyed any coffee break I could get. We also stopped at a park for a Chick Fil A picnic-dinner which really helped our oldest burn some energy for 30 minutes.

 

QUOTE(Dianna @ Nov 13 2008, 12:11 PM) [snapback]1068776[/snapback]
Wish I could give you some, but I need it too...we are driving for 24 hours each way LOL

Dianna

Oh good Lord...good luck with that!

 

We drove with ours who were not quite 8 weeks old at the time. It was pretty tough because we did have to stop frequently. I brought an extra set of hands so that my husband could stay in the drivers seat when we had to make quick stops or he could run into restaurants, etc...

We broke up a 8 hour trip into two days. Each day it was about 9 hours to go 4+ hours.

We also bought walkie talkies that were useful when one person had to sit in the car and the other went inside of somewhere. Then you could radio for help if you need it. This came in handy in the early days when we had to go into the grocery store. The cell phones did not always work, etc..

 

Yikes! Our three hour trip was a pain. But, we were breastfeeding and that was pretty impossible to do while moving. Plan on stops. I'd leave right before a nap, or at bedtime. Good luck!

 

We leave for our 16 hour drive on Tuesday. Be organized and have everything you might need handy. I will pray for you all if you do the same for me!

(I am going to need it! Traveling to the mall with 5 kids can be an ordeal...)

 

we're not traveling til xmas, but its a 16hour trip. im already having anxiety about the whole thing! good luck!

 

We did a 20 hour drive when ours were 5 months old. It really wasn't that bad it is typically a 19 hour drive, so we only added an hour to the trip with stops. We left at night, but with yours are still young enough that they are likely eating every three hours, so doesn't really matter when you leave.

Tips
If possible leave room in the back seat, so one of you can sit there part of the drive to calm babies makes for less stops.
We feed them while driving and stop to burp and change them
know your route and were there are good spots to stop at about the time you think they will want to eat
Pack snacks and possible meal for yourself to avoid stopping less chance of them waking up
Be prepared for it to take longer then you think

good luck