Driving 2000 Miles in Two Days with a Four Year Old in the Back Seat

We recently moved from Illinois to the state of Washington. With this move came a drive of nearly 2000 miles. Many people might find that loading up the family vehicle and making this drive would be exciting, but adding our four-year-old son to the mix, made it a true adventure.

This didn't deter us in our preparations though. Rather, it had us preparing better than we might have otherwise, and making the trip in just two days without any major issues.

Wonder how we did it?

Packing

Packing was probably the most difficult aspect of our trip preparation. Since we were leaving the majority of our possessions behind in storage in Chicago, it meant we had to pack our SUV with enough stuff for last for a significant duration (at least several months), not only my wife and myself, but for our son and the family cat as well.

This meant that the packing process came down to a fine art by the time we were done with it and just about every spare inch of our car was filled. However, among all the chaos and cramming, I had the wherewithal to ensure we properly executed a packing strategy for my son as well. 2000 miles is a long way to keep a four-year-old entertained.

Therefore, we of course had his favorite security blanket, snacks (lovingly provided by grandma), books, binoculars, toy cars (his favorite toys), and as much as I hate them and hate to admit it, handheld video games and a portable DVD player.

Snacks and Stops…but Mostly Snacks

Surprisingly, it wasn't the video games that kept him most satisfied, but rather the snacks. I found that if we correlated our stops with potty breaks and food, we cut our stopping time dramatically.

Rather than a stop for gas, then 100 miles later a stop for food, then another 100 miles later a stop for a potty break, I was able to get everyone on the same "break" page. This meant that we were able to stop about every 300 miles (with the exception of one time when the little guy just couldn't hold it any longer).

At our stops, we picked up our food and took it on the road with us rather than eating at the restaurant, which provided something to keep our son entertained. A burger, a shake, and a few cereal niblets -- whatever kept him busily munching for long durations of travel time -- often led to a…yep, you guessed it…nap, soon thereafter.

Hotel With a Pool

As we neared the end of our first day of travel, having traveled nearly 1000 miles, and with my eyes dried to the consistency of potato chips, I decided to cut to the chase when it came to a hotel. I skipped the cheaper options and spent the extra $20 for the newer spot with the nice indoor pool, complete with water slide.

It proved a good move (not for my eyes of course since the chlorine was the nail in the coffin) because it made my son's day, got the excess energy out him, and was the hit of the trip in his eyes (which weren't as dried out as mine).

Keep Him on His Toes

I think that one of the things some parents tend to forget (and I'm not saying we don't as well from time to time) is to include their little ones in the conversation during their travels. Not only is this just a nice thing to do, but it can make children feel more a part of things and keep them from finding other, possibly more annoying ways to entertain themselves during the trip.

We made a conscious effort to talk to our son, sing songs, point out various items of interest, and ask him questions so that he didn't feel neglected all alone there in the backseat.

Sightseeing

We didn't have much time for stopping along our journey, but amazingly enough, we did take time out during our two day trek to stop at the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument.

Most of the items we passed in the eight states through which we drove would have made interesting stops for my wife and I, but would have held little interest for a four-year-old. However, being able to make a brief stop at a battlefield where "cowboys and Indians" once fought, was something else altogether.

While it didn't necessarily top my list of things to see along the way, I figured we quite possibly might never be there again, plus it gave us all a chance to stretch our legs, broke up the incredibly long drive through Montana, and gave my son something to talk about for the rest of the trip. Making at least one such stop can give your little one something to look forward to and be excited about during the trip, as well as break up the great monotony of such a long drive.

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