Category Archives: road trip

Packing for a Road Trip

As I’m sure you know, my family and I recently drove to Florida and back. Yes, we drove from Texas! With a 19 month old! Overnight! The idea looks as scary as the pictures… but looks can be deceiving!

Honestly, let me tell you it wasn’t bad at all! I did a lot of organizing and planning ahead of time, and it all panned out quite smoothly. Now, you should know this was our first attempt at a road trip (aka longer than 1 hour in the car) with our little man. We had no idea what to expect. We decided to go at night with the hope that he would sleep through. The plan was for my husband and I to switch off so that we could each get a little rest, and share the burden of night-time driving.

The first thing I did was grab the largest basket we own. This fit nicely in the middle of the back seat of the car (in between the little man and the cooler). I packed toys, sunglasses, books and snacks for the journey.

We each got to bring a “carry on” as well. My purse carried important documents (like maps and cash) while both back packs held toys. I think D was left out of the carry on game and little man ended up with two. But I guess that’s life, yes?

We also brought a cooler along with drinks, bread, cheese & sandwich meat. There’s no point stopping if you don’t have to use the restroom or get gas!

I planned ahead for any messes (spit up, drool, runny noses, spilled milk) by packing all our Braden’s rags. I put them in a fabric bin I made and they all fit nicely. It was so convenient to have them all together when accidents happened on the road.

The other big addition to the car was something I whipped up that morning – a trash bag and bag holder. The bag has snaps on it to hold a grocery bag liner in place. It’s attached to a cylinder of fabric that holds all the extra grocery bags. This was a pretty simple project, but it’s definitely my favorite so far! I still have it in my car and it just looks so much better having a place to put the trash. Yes, I know this is obvious, but I suffer from slobbish tendencies so cut me a break please!

These other shots are just how I keep my car. There’s an umbrella in the door, and anything electronic in the center console (this is more so nobody is tempted to break in to the car, because I think a blue tooth headset may be worth it? idk I’m weird) where it’s out of sight.

I also packed one of each of these: