how to make them comefortable

[mistee]

all our wdw plans for sept have been finalized

we live in delaware and plan on driving,, 16 hours and we don't plan on stopping overnight.

we will be leaving here around 4 in the evening in hopes that the kids will sleep most of the night.

kids age are 11, 4 and 1. i am worried about the 4 and 1 year old being comefortabe in their seat. the 1 year old is in a car seat and the 4 year old is in a booster.

i feel soooo bad when they fall asleep and their heads and up on their shoulders all uncomefortable like...

what can i do to make them more comefortable?
is there a way to tilt the 1 year olds car seat back a bit so he is a bit of a reclined position when sleeping?

thanks for the help,, really worrried about them not being miserable

 

[allyphoe]

My DD has slept through the night in her carseat and booster on long trips. She's never complained of being uncomfortable, and she's not the kind of kid who keeps her complaints to herself.

Speaking from my own experience, it's far more likely to be the 11yo who has a miserable night, and your 4yo in the booster is less likely to be comfortable (because the seatbelt would allow flopping around that the harness prevents) than the 1yo is. My DD has slept in the booster without complaint, though, and has commented that her booster has a better-padded seat than the cheaper of her harnessed carseats did, so is nicer for longer trips.

Installing your 1yos carseat incorrectly is more likely to cause injury than it is to ensure a comfortable ride.

 

[momma_mouse]

If you one year old is under the weight limit, I would turn his/her seat rear facing. With the seat rear facing you can recline it where as you can't with it forward facing. Extended rear facing is actually recomended now so that's the upside to it. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions. Just let me know what kind of seat you have and hoe much s/he weighs and I'll try to help you out.

 

[CyndiLooWho]

I think the 1 yo will be just fine sleeping in her carseat.

For the child in the booster, check the amount of padding. I know the padding in our boosters was never enough to be comfy on a long trip. You can add some 1" foam underneath or look for a booster that w/b more comfortable.

We just did the drive straight thru on the way back this weekend. We left at hotel checkout time (10:00) and were in the car until after 1:00am. Our 10 yo could not get to sleep in the car, even though he was in the comfy seat (no boosters anymore!), and had a pillow and a blanket. So, I would suggest a portable cd player or ipod for your older son, so he has something to do while his sibs sleep (and the music might make it easier for him to drift off).

 

[james'mommy]

We usually let our DS recline in the seat as far as his booster seat will allow. Plus we put something like a cooler under his feet so they are propped up. DS has never complained about being uncomfortable and he usually falls asleep with no problem.

 

[minniebeth]

We have the little neck rest pillows curved in a u-shape that are kind of like stuffed animals. They are cute, and prevent kids' heads tilting over and scrunching their necks. They double as my kids' stuffed animals too! We always have fleece blankets too, they are lightweight, fold up easily but are warm and cuddly.
I agree with the cd player, or ipod or the like with some fun and soothing music, or even stories on cd, etc.

 

[dopeysgirl01]

When my kids were little they would fall asleep in their car seats/ booster on our three hour trips to my inlaws. I think it bothered my husband to look at them more than the sleeping position bothered them. They never complained, only dh did! You could try those travel neck pillows for them. It would help to rest their heads. Good Luck!

 

[MSSANDRA]

I agree that I would RF your one year old for sure. Seat can recline more and she is much safer.

What type of booster does your four year old have??? I would consider putting him back in a 5-point harness if he is not already in one. In order to be safe with a selt, they must sit correctly at all times, hard to do asleep!

DS had one of those neck things when we was little but he did not like it and seemed to sleep fine in his car seat and then his 5-point harness booster.

Don't forget blankets or stuffed animals to help them go to sleep.

 

[DisneyMomx7]

My kids are out of booster and car seats but just wanted to say that we're making the straight through drive from NJ Friday night. We're leaving around 9:00 pm. I've got lots of new dvds for the kids to watch and I figure the initial excitement will die out, they'll watch the dvds for awhile and hopefully fall asleep.

It's our first time driving.

Wishing both of us luck!

 

[ireland_nicole]

We drive 18-20 hours straight through every year, and both of our kiddos are in car seats. I will say, though that their car seats are extremely comfortable; we have the Britax Regent and it keeps them in 5 point harness to 80 lbs, so it's a lot safer. FWIW, we leave about the same time, watch videos until dark, and then the grownups listen to ipods on headphones while the lil' uns fall asleep. They usually sleep through except maybe bathroom breaks until 6 or 7 am.

 

[3boymthr]

We do LOTS of driving vacations (we have 2 or 3 long distance driving trips/year for the last 13 years including a 28 day 7,000 mile cross country trip).

Some suggestions:

Make sure you stop for a potty break around their regular bed time.

Brush their teeth and at the same time change the younger two into their jammies. This will help put them in the sleep mode. Have the 11 yo wear sleep type clothes for the trip (soft sweat type shorts and T).

Bring a blanket and small pillow for each kid, even the 11 yo.

Even though you are driving thru the night bring books, small toys, and if you can, a portable DVD player. If this would be the first time using the DVD play make sure to test it in the car before the trip. We found out ours doesn't play loudly enough to be heard over the road noise, we had to buy an FM booster for it ($25 a radio shack).

We found that the younger kids sleep just fine in their car seats/booster seats. The oldest is the one who has trouble. If you can put the 11 yo in a seat that reclines it will be better.

 

[Bren's Mom]

I concur with some of the previous posters:

Install your 1 yo's car seat rear-facing assuming she is less than the rear-facing weight limit on it (for convertibles this is between 30-35lbs.). This is good not just for the trip but for every day as well, babies should rear-face much, much longer than 1 year...they are significantly safer that way.

Purchase a forward facing higher weight harnessing seat for your 4 year old such as a Graco Nautilus, Britax Regent or Frontier or an Apex 65. All harness to 65lbs or higher.

Coleen
Child Passenger Safety Technician

 

[kckmom]

We have driven twice from NJ, once leaving at 10pm at night and once around 4pm. Earlier, traffic is crazy due to rush hour, so it gets stressful from the start of the trip especially around DC. Leaving later can be hard if you have trouble driving at night, but traffic isn't as bad (usually)

When we left at bedtime, we got the girls in pj's, then put on some soothing music in the car and drove them until someone needed a potty break. They conked out pretty quickly as they were tired from the day anyway, and this made it easier for us adults. When the girls were trying to fall asleep after leaving at dinnertime, they had a harder time getting comfortable, and didn't stay asleep as long.

My older daughter is the one who is the more difficult to manage for these trips, she is not used to sleeping upright, so am going to look into the neck pillows for her and her sisters for the trip, plus maybe give them all a good run at the park to wear them out!

 

[sk!mom]

How do you handle getting to WDW exhausted from driving all night while your kids are rested and raring to go from sleeping all night?


To me WDW is a fun but exhausting vacation- isn't it hard to start it tired?

I'm not sure that I could drive all night.

 

[ireland_nicole]

My DH and I switch off at 3 hour intervals through the night. That way, we're both rested the next day, between the sleep we did get and the adrenaline. It also keeps us from getting sleepy while driving.