Yes. You read that right. A couple of weeks ago I spoke at a conference that I’d pitched prior to finding out I was pregnant and was invited to speak at. This was also before we’d made the final decision to homeschool the girls. Well, after wanting to become a speaker and then getting the opportunity I couldn’t not take it so I packed the kids up into this awesome Kia and the four of us roadtripped to my conference.
Yes, I May Be A Bit Crazy
I think this was the consensus as I shared our trip with my friends on social media. In fact, as we packed the car up to get ready to head out I, too, thought I was a little crazy. I would be lying if I didn’t admit that I was beyond anxious for being in the car alone for a minimum of 4 hours with 3 kids–including 1 newborn.
How NOT To Go Crazy
We encountered lots of traffic and delays but we all made it with nerves in tact. These are some of the things I learned on this journey:
Take your time.
When I roadtrip I like to get there as fast as I can with minimal stops. We gas up, eat, use the potty and stretch all at the same time–no additional stops. But I had to not only change my expectations because of my body but also because of the bodies of my littles. We didn’t rush and we stopped when needed.
Travel in comfort.
Because I’m nursing BC I knew I wanted to make it easy to nurse him in what I wore. But I also wanted make sure that ALL of us were comfortable. Instead of driving our normal car that has a pretty tight back seat with all three, we roadtripped in a Kia Sedona that had a bigger backseat and a way more comfortable front seat which made nursing BC on the side of the road (yes, we did this a lot) nicer.
Set proper expectations with the kids.
The night before we left I had a conversation with Mini about how nervous I was to drive with the three of them. I also told her what I would need from her. I attribute much of the smoothness of the trip to her and this conversation.
Have snacks. A lot of them.
I laughed when one of my FB friends said food was the answer but in truth, it was lol! When they got antsy, I offered them food and don’t you know they calmed down???
Music. Make sure you have good stuff.
I’m lucky because my Kia had the Sirius XM radio so we had GREAT age appropriate music at our fingertips. But if you don’t, make sure you have Pandora or something to sing along with. My husband started car karaoke with them and it definitely makes the time pass.
Was it crazy to drive what turned 6.5 hours with 3 kids? Yes. Absolutely. But my kids made it happen so that I could rock my first speaking event at Blog Life University and I’m grateful.
