Suggestions for 12 hour drive with a 15 month old.

[RadioFanatic]

So dh and I are driving in July to my parents who live about 12 hours away. I'm very nervous about the trip b/c I'm afraid our 15 month old DS will be VERY unhappy about being in his car seat for that amount of time - any recommendations from those who have done a similarly long trip with a youngun? thanks!

 

[BrooklynnsMommy]

I drove 11 and a half hours with my oldest to Disney World. We left at about 3:00 in the afternoon. She hadn't taken her nap yet so she slept for about 2 hours. When she woke up it was time to eat so we stopped at a McDonald's that had an indoor playground and let her play while we ate. When we got back into the car she ate her happy meal while we continued to drive. She watched a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse DVD on our portable player and then I changed her into her pajamas at a rest stop and we drove through the night. We have also done it where we have stopped at a hotel around 11:00 and then gotten up and checked out around 5:00. We got some sleep and since it was still dark when we checked out she fell right back to sleep after being buckled in. Hope this helps!

 

[growinupdisney]

when we last went to Disney my dd was 9 months old and hated a car seat or to go anywhere for very long we decided to leave in the middle of the night for our 10 hr drive. My DH laid down about 6:30/7:00 pm and slept til about 11:00pm when he woke up he got a shower I loaded up all the kids (I also had a DD12 & DD10) at the time who also preferred it this way too! They all slept the entire way except the baby woke up about 7am I fed her then she went back to sleep til we were there. Definitely try it this way, you stop less on the road traffc is slow and get there much faster and no fighting, crying kids

 

[Drewsmommybear]

We've done the almost eighteen hour ride twice now and both times, we deprived DS4 of a nap and ran him around as much as possible. When his bedtime came, we put him in the carseat with his favorite blanket and started off to WDW. For the bulk of the trip both times, he slept without so much as a peep. He did wake up once around 2AM as we were getting gas to ask if bright lights were "Mickey's House." Then he quickly went back to sleep. There was no need for DVD's or games or anything and when we got there, he was well rested and ready to go.

 

[la79al]

We did 12 hours with DD last week. I was having serious anxiety about it. We left at bedtime, stopped only for gas/potty and I nursed her then (she does not STTN). She woke up 10 minutes before we arrived. On the way home, we left at 2 then stopped at 4 for 2 hours of walking around. We stopped again at 7:30 for dinner and by the time we were done, stuck her back in the carseat and she was out til we got home. The whole week went SOOOO much better than I thought it would. And once we got to FL, we were about 2 hours from everything so she was in the carseat a decnt amount everyday (won't happen at home). If your DS watches TV, take along a DVD player, otherwise new toys and snacks. Good luck. Also, I spent a lot of the ride sitting next to DD.

 

[vettechick99]

Driving with DD the 5 hours to WDW is a pain, so I can't imagine 12 hours in the car! I would also leave at night, and even dope him up with a little Benadryl.