Road Trip

I have come to the conclusion that a successful road trip with kids is all about timing!  And planning.  We really didn’t have to make all that many stops to keep them happy, as long as we timed it right.  We found out they could go from wake up to lunch with only a 10 or 15 minute stop as long as they got to play a little when we did stop.  We got good at finding little parks along our route.

Here is one park we found.  I don’t even remember what town (or even state) this was in.

But they enjoyed it and it was just enough to stretch their legs and take them through till lunch. 

We also discovered the beauty of timing our “movie” watching.  Most of K’s videos are 30-45 minutes so I would let her pick one out early in the morning.  Then, using the TomTom, we would figure out exactly what time we would be stopping for lunch and we would start the movie so that it would end just as we were pulling into our lunch stop.

We also never ate in any restaurants.  When we would stop we would always try to find a McDonalds (with a playset) or a park.  I would drop mom and the girls off to play while I went and got gas and usually lunch for myself (I got tired of McD’s after about one day).  Haha :)  Then I would go back to McDonalds and get in line for Happy Meals and by that time 30 minutes would have passed and the girls were ready to get back in the car.  I bought them car trays and since Boo is SUCH a slow eater by the time she was done with her lunch it was time for a nap.  Napping definitely didn’t go as well as at home, but most days she did manage to get 1-2 hours. (as opposed to her usual 2.5-3)

K didn’t sleep well in the car at all.  Most of her naps were a short 30 min.  I think she got an hour once.  But she was really good at playing quietly and not waking up her sister.

We did have to stop and eat at a Fuddruckers one evening before checking into our hotel.  It has always been one of mom and mines’ favorites and we don’t have one anywhere around here.  There was a kid going around doing balloon animals for all the kids.  K got a flower and S got a pink and orange bee.

At night we spent our time getting more energy out before bedtime.  They loved swimming!

Boo was a little nut!  She kept wanting to jump into the pool and when she did she wanted to go all they way under even though she would come up sputtering and coughing every single time!  But she would squirm and wiggle until she could get under water.  What a goof.

A few bedtime books with Noni and they settled down enough to go to sleep.

Here’s K helping me load up after a good night’s sleep.  (that hotel seriously had the most comfortable mattresses I have ever slept on.  They were amazing.  I wrote it down “overstuffed pillowtop”.  That is what we are getting the next time we need mattresses!)

At one Sonic stop the carhop told us there was a nice playground just down the street.  We were so glad she did!  K loved it!  The perfect place for a good game of Rapunzel. :)

Boo just loved climbing all the steps.

Whee! This was a weird swing that they thought was hilarious!

I know I said it yesterday, but they really did such an amazing job on the trip!  They were little angels (most of the time).  haha :) 

Up next: Colorado!