At this point in our family life, we have tackled quite a few road trips.  Our first road trip as a family was when my son was 6 months old.  We drove 12 hours to visit family in Florida.  All I can say about that road trip is…wow!  That trip was a doozy!  However, with each and every road trip things get a little bit easier (plus your kids are always a bit older, which makes things easier too).

One thing I’ve learned through the years is to really be thoughtful about the things you bring.  At first, I would try to think of every possible scenario and pack accordingly.  However, that usually resulted in me packing way too much stuff.  The thing with packing too many things is that it’s difficult to stay organized, which results in an extra messy car.  Also, the kids can be overwhelmed if they have too many options to choose from.  So, be strategic about what you bring.  

I posted a while back about my tips for traveling with kids (which you can check out in full here), but the gist of it goes like this: