Up until we left for our road trip to New England, I thought we’d planned things out pretty well. We would spend two days in Vermont visiting friends, two days in Boston doing all of the things that we missed from when my husband and I lived there {before kids!}, and four relaxing days on Cape Cod, before going to another friend’s wedding.
This particular trip was our three-year-old’s first road trip after being potty trained. Although she did great last summer when we spent several days in the car on our way to Yellowstone, this was a new set of skills. So, we packed the potty chair, extra hand sanitizer {for when she would inevitably refuse to wash her hands in a bathroom that only has those noisy hand dryers}, some extra pull-ups, and hoped for the best.
Of course, the lead-up to the trip was fairly typical. Despite all of our well-intentioned plans to plan, we got busy, didn’t make the to-do list until Thursday night, and didn’t finish packing until 
about an hour before we planned to be out the door on Saturday. Still, we managed to get everything packed into our tiny hatchback {they call it a Honda Fit for a reason!}, including the potty chair, and could still see out the back window. Success! …And the first six-hour leg of our drive ahead.
As it turns out, the worrying was unnecessary. No accidents?! A dream come true — especially since she’d had a few the week before we left.
But slowly, we began to realize there were a handful of things that we hadn’t thought to pack:
- A step stool. Who could predict that our bathroom sink would be six inches taller than standard?
- Outlet covers {or at least a roll of masking tape} especially once we got to our Airbnb rental in the city.
- Room-darkening curtains so that we might have a chance of sleeping through some of those 5am east coast sunrises.
- The exact right kind of Doc McStuffins bandaids that are the only acceptable ones to cover the booboo on her elbow.
- Our cat. {“I really love her and miss her!”}
- Four extra hours per day to cover the fact that it’s impossible to include a dedicated midday nap while traveling.
Clearly, some of these things are trickier to pack than others.
Road tripping is about going with the flow. There are all kinds of situations and contingencies to plan for {especially if you can dedicate more time to planning ahead!}. You can download checklists of what to pack, make sure to have favorite books and toys, and plan each day around your ideal schedule, but inevitably something’s going to get mixed up and thrown off. Your drive will take hours longer than you planned, because of those extra bathroom stops. Or your kiddo is going to refuse to take her sweatshirt off because of her boo boo, and because she didn’t nap all day, she will snooze and sweat on you for an hour-long train ride.
And that’s okay.
Ultimately, the things you forget don’t really matter. If they’re essentials, you can pick them up somewhere, but the rest might carry lessons of their own. How to wake up early and find a great playground at 6am. The fact that the cat will be just fine with Nana and Papa. And the reality that life, and childhood, are short, and you won’t be boosting her up to the sink or rocking her to sleep on a train forever.
So, here’s my updated list of road trip {or family vacation} must-haves, which I tried to remember every day of our trip:
- Take pictures. Of EVERYTHING. Silly selfies in restaurants or in front of monuments. A tired-mama selfie with a sweaty, sleepy child in your lap.
- Find a good road trip game, and help the time pass more quickly than endless games of I Spy (which doesn’t work great in a moving vehicle).
- Bring a plan — but don’t overplan. Sometimes you’re going to want to discover something new, and sometimes you have to squeeze in a quick nap somewhere.
- Don’t worry about the scheduling mishaps. They will happen. Your kid will probably be overtired and screaming in the aquarium. Breathe, redirect, don’t be afraid to walk away if something’s just not working… and, if you’re trying to get your money’s worth out of the aquarium, a tiny bit of bribery doesn’t necessarily hurt. Sometimes two Starbursts on the way back to the hotel is enough. After all, it’s vacation.
And also the Doc McStuffins bandaids. And the outlet covers. They’re really great for peace of mind, and don’t take up that much space in your suitcase.
What else am I missing? Let me know in the comments!
