Mummy Milli

We recently finished 2 and a half weeks in a van with a 2.5 year old not just driving but most nights we slept in our converted Toyota Estima. These are some of the tips we found useful on our journey

Lots and lots of interactive books 

There are so many options these days and at such reasonable prices too, I have had less luck at second hand stores which I believe to be a condition  of both how loved and well used they are and how destructive toddlers can be. We like the ‘Busy…’ books by Campbell Books. We would pack 6 – 10 books but only bring out three every few days so this kept them new and interesting for Monkey.

A friend of mine knew they were going to drive Adelaide to Melbourne in one day with their 20 month old in March so she kept books and toys from Christmas gifts so that they were new on the road. That is planning I aspire too! and a great idea if there are any holidays or birthdays around the time of your trip.

Start drive days early

On our recent trip we left home at 5am and Monkey while normally waking up at 6:30 slept till 7:30 on the road which was our first stop. It was only a 5.5 hour drive so we completed half of it while he was asleep, it was nice to not have to entertain a child the entire drive.

My family would do this on our long car drives. We would take 2 weeks to drive from Adelaide to Darwin but make it back in three days, of 12 hours drive time. For those nights we would stay in cabins and mum would pack a bag with three days clothes for everyone, this meant not having to take in 4 bags, unpack and repack those bags before getting in the car, sometimes as early as 4am. Those 3- 4 hours of quiet would probably be the only peace my parents would get when driving with three young children. 

Another tip my Mum had, would be to dress us for bed in the clothes of the next day, firstly you don’t have to bring Pyjamas, 5 less sets of clothes and secondly then we went into the car completely ready for the day and they didn’t even have to wake us up. 

Plan your stops around playgrounds or at least wide open spaces and have a ball. 

Getting the energy out of your toddler is very important during long drive days, especially if they still nap and you want to make sure you get as many sleeping hours in as possible on the drive. We try to organise a playground stop, sometimes as short as 10 mins every 2 – 3 hours. This also gives you the opportunity to stretch your legs, head to the bathroom and make some healthier snacks or lunch foods.

Pack plenty of snacks – but try to have snacks with less sugar

This doesn’t always work, as we all know toddlers are finicky beasts! For our recent trip I had made some quinoa bites a few days before the trip that Monkey was so happy to eat but once we started driving they were no longer of interest at all, he simply refused. So instead for snacks on travel days we relied on cut up cucumber, cheese and rice crackers, no added sugar yogurt pouches (Tamar Valley are our favourites), fresh fruit and one fruit and oat bar (again no added sugar) a day. Our fall back for lunches were wraps with veggies and falafel bites (Yumi’s is our go to as they are GF and they have plenty of different Veggie options) and Quinoa salads. 

Curate your podcasts and music

This is a trip for all of you! I personally don’t want to hear ‘Hot Potato’ on a loop my whole trip. Don’t get me wrong, we would absolutely have mini dance parties in the car with Monkey’s choices for 15 mins – 30 mins but otherwise we would often listen to podcasts. Monkey has been training for this his entire life, I almost always listen to podcasts in the car anyway so this is nothing new for him, in fact I think it helps his vocabulary. 

Make sure you download some music and podcasts to your phone, particularly in Australia as there are long stretches where there is no reception. I have another post which has my Top 5 Podcasts to listen too.

I also find that podcasts can help put Monkey to sleep, so after a short dance party, getting some energy out, we can put on a podcast with a slightly more droning host and he may doze off. Of course, make sure the content is relatively child appropriate, we often listen to Family travel podcasts, parenting podcasts and random topic podcasts like radio lab and 99% invisible.

Practice before a long drive

We drive a lot and have family about an hour away from home, so Monkey is used to those lengths of trips, however before our two and a half week trip we went on four, one night only camping trips to test everything out but to also make sure Monkey was okay with the longer drives (we only went about 2.5 – 3 hours away).

He barely used books for that amount of time, he was happy staring out of the window so we knew we would be fine for the most part. Your child might need distractions and this also give you the opportunity to try out different styles of distractions, eg books, toys, music, food or maybe naps are your only option. Naps were our main option when Monkey was very little as he would scream at almost all other times when driving, under 8 months old.

Adjust your expectations and drive time

As anyone with children would know, everything takes longer and there are no exceptions for travel.

Even though we would regularly be up early, because changes take a long time and breakfast before we leave is a must (which also means clean up) it takes us about an hour and a half from waking up to leaving the campsite, we could rush it too an hour but that wouldn’t be enjoyable for anyone. When it was just Hubby and I, we could roll out of bed and be on the road in 5 minutes if we needed too. It’s a big change to get used to!

Scheduling in all the stops also adds a lot of time to the drive days, where it used to be eating on the road and 5 minute toilet stops while getting petrol, it is now lunch at a playground with 10 – 20 minute stops every 2 – 3 hours, sudden nappy changes happen and occasionally an extra stop is needed depending on how Monkey is going. It really can add an extra two hours to your daily drive time. While your child may be able to do this quicker, its always best to plan for the worst and be pleasantly surprised.

Use pyjamas only for night

This is more of a car camping tip: It is so easy in the mornings to leave your toddler in their pyjamas until they are ready to get out, especially as the weather cools down but for a few reasons we make sure to keep them only for night time.

One is that this kept them clean, as we only packed 3 pairs on our recent trip (of 14 nights) and ensured that Monkey was always in his warm flannelettes in case the blanket came off overnight. The days can get really dirty and with such a limited number of clothing options its nice to always have something clean to get into before bed.

It is also part of the bedtime ritual that we could bring with us to symbolise we were getting ready for bed, and we tried to keep that routine as similar as possible to home. Whether this actually helped or not in such a different environment, or it was the sleeping next to us which was the biggest help, I don’t know.

Plan in showers or pools, and moderate your feelings/ expectations around cleanliness

As we were staying at free camps and national parks, showers were not included. We had to get a little bit inventive as there were no showers for the entire first week of our last trip. Monkey has been taking swimming lessons for the last year and has made a lot of progress, Hubby doesn’t often get to see Monkey swim as our lessons are during the week. Going to a public pool was a great day activity, it gave Hubby the chance to see just how far Monkey has come and they include showers in the cheap entry ticket.

What are the things that worked for you? We plan on taking plenty more trips – next time with two! So let me know your tips as well.