Thirteen Ways to Make Car Trips Less Painful
Thirteen Ways to Make Car Trips Less Painful
Driving with your baby in the car can be a trial sometimes. Even if your baby seems to love car rides, there may come a day when there’s incessant crying or screaming.
Here are some tips to make the trips a little less bumpy.
1. Make sure your baby isn’t hungry or thirsty before going for a drive.
2. If you can’t avoid having a hungry or thirsty baby, be prepared to pull over to feed the baby, or have nourishment ready as soon as you reach your destination.
3. Equip the car seat with toys (safely attached according to the manufacturer’s directions). Change the toys frequently if you can.
4. Talk to your baby. Tell him about your day, where you’re going, or where you’ve been.
5. Sing lots of songs. Whether it’s songs you make up as you go along, children’s songs, or your favorite tunes, just sing. Don’t worry if you have a horrible voice. Your baby loves it just the same.
6. Play the radio or a CD (not too loudly). You may want to play the same CD every time, and only play it in your car, so your baby starts to look forward to riding in the car.
7. Whenever possible, have a passenger sit in the backseat with the baby.
8. Dress your baby properly for the car’s temperature. Sure, it may be freezing outside, but a snowsuit may get to warm in a long car trip. At least turn down the heat.
9. Make sure the straps are adjusted correctly. Straps that are too tight can be very uncomfortable. But follow the instructions or get the seat checked out. You don’t want to make them too loose either.
10. Touch your baby when you can. At stoplights, in parking lots, or wherever you have a chance. Touch is a powerful soothing device.
11. Keep your errands short, if possible. Taking your baby out of the car seat to go on errand adventures helps break up the monotony.
12. Put a clean diaper on the baby before you get in the car.
13. Use a sun shield on the back and side windows. Sun in the eyes can make for an unhappy baby.
What tips do you have for pleasant car trips?
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