Car Seat Sale

Travel with your baby.You should planning your travel time to coincide with a nap or bedtime so your baby can sleep through part of the journey. Or plan to leave immediately after a nap or upon waking in the morning.

The longer trip will make your baby is strapped in the carseat, the more likely he’ll become fussy. Planning break it up with stops along the trip. A few breaks can keep everyone in a better frame of mind.

Some of this item will make the trip pleasant:

• Baby-friendly music on tape or CD.
• A rear-view baby mirror to keep on eye on baby (unless a second person will be sitting with your little one)
• Books to read to your baby. Preparing the car
• Window shades to protect your baby from the sun and create a darker, nap-inducing atmosphere.
• A cooler for cold drinks; a bottle warmer if needed.
• Plenty of toys that are new or forgotten favorites saved just for the trip.

Take plenty of time to get the car ready for your trip. If two adults are traveling, consider yourself lucky and arrange for one person to sit in the backseat next to the baby. If you are traveling alone with your little one, you’ll need to be more creative in setting up the car, and you’ll need to plan for more frequent stops along the way.

Here are a few tips for making the car a traveling entertainment center for your baby:

Use ribbon or yarn and safety pins or tape to hang an array of lightweight toys from the ceiling of the car to hang over your baby. An alternative is to string a line from one side of the car to the other with an array of toys attached by ribbons. Bring along an assortment of new toys that can be exchanged when you stop the car for a rest. Just be sure to use small toys and keep them out of the driver’s line of view.

Tape brightly colored pictures of toys on the back of the seat that your baby will be facing.

If no one will be sitting next to your baby and your child is old enough to reach for toys, set up an upside-down box next to the car seat with a shallow box or a tray with ledges on top of it. Fill this with toys that your baby can reach for by himself. You might also shop around for a baby activity center that attaches directly to the carseat.

If you plan to have someone sitting next to baby, then provide that person with a gigantic box of toys with which to entertain the little one. Distraction works wonders to keep a baby happy in the car. One of the best activities for long car rides is book reading. Check your library’s early reading section; it typically features a large collection of baby-pleasing titles in paperback that are easier to tote along than board books.

Bring along an assortment of snacks and drinks for your older baby who’s regularly eating solids, and remember to bring food for yourself, too. Even if you plan to stop for meals, you may decide to drive on through if your baby is sleeping or content, saving the stops for fussy times.

Bring books on tape or quiet music for the adults for times when your baby is sleeping. The voice on tape may help keep your baby relaxed, and it will be something you can enjoy.

If you’ll be traveling in the dark, bring along a battery-operated nightlight or flashlight.

Credit: Babiesonline