5-6 hr trip with 4 month old?

DH wants to go up to our families house in vermont for labor day with DS, just the 3 of us.

I'm a little nervous about the ride, especially if we hit traffic because of the holiday weekend.

Would you go?

Re: 5-6 hr trip with 4 month old?

I went on a 3 hour trip to my parents summer home Memorial day weekend..now that I look back my heart was in my throat the whole way there.....I dont know why...but he was totally fine ..he slept the whole way up..and he was only 2 months...We will be going again this weekend..he is now 5 months..I;m fine with it! Go and enjoy!!

Re: 5-6 hr trip with 4 month old?

I've done a couple 3 hour trips with DD at 3, 4, and 5 months. They have been fine except they take longer because we had to stop more often. I also sit in the back because I felt I could gauge her needs better (i.e., crying when she is tired vs dirty diaper vs hunger). I also found that in general she does better earlier in the day than later because she is better rested.

Re: 5-6 hr trip with 4 month old?

We drove from California to Idaho, which is an 18 hour trip, when DS was 6 months. It wasn't bad at all. We left just before it would have been his bedtime and he slept for the whole night, and woke up in the morning like he normally would. Once he woke up we stopped to feed and change him, and then we drove the rest of the way with no problems.

Re: 5-6 hr trip with 4 month old?

We have done three 7 hour trips with DS, sometimes it takes a little longer to stop to feed him (I BF), but overall its doable---we always try to plan it so we travel during a nap to start with, then bring plenty of things for him to play with/look at and I always sit in the back with him. GL!

Re: 5-6 hr trip with 4 month old?

Sure...4 months old is a piece of cake...it just may require more stops than normal.
If you said 4 years old, I'd say to bring cash b/c you will be paying them to stop talking. We are getting near that with DD who is 3.5 years old...she just chatters incessantly. One of these days I'll break down and get a travel dvd player. Safe travels!

Re: 5-6 hr trip with 4 month old?

That age sounds perfect for a long trip. They still sleep a fair amount, and children that age can't move around much yet, so unless DC can't stand being in the car, it should be fine.

Enjoy!

Re: 5-6 hr trip with 4 month old?

We just went to Lancaster PA w/ a 4 yo and a 4 mo. We were told the trip should have taken about 4 hours but it took us 7 hours to get there and 6 hours to get home. It really wasn't that bad, we just had to stop a lot to feed and give the kids a break from the car seats.

My advice would be to try to leave around nap time so that DC can fall asleep for some of the trip. Just be prepared for the trip to take longer than it would normally.

Re: 5-6 hr trip with 4 month old?

We drove to the DC area when DS was that age. It was not that bad. He actually did really well.... slept most of the way. He didn't eat much when we stopped because there were so many new things to look at. Have fun!

Re: 5-6 hr trip with 4 month old?

We have done several long drives with DS at different ages and know we are taking a 5 hour flight to CA. He was great in the car slept most of the way and if he got a little upset I jumped in the back seat for a little.

Go and have a wonderful time. Your little one will do great!!!!