How to Guide: Cross Country Drive with Toddlers and Pets, oh my!
We survived! We moved across the country- from Alabama to California- with our two toddlers, dog and cat in 2020 during a global pandemic, civil unrest, and murder hornets. Below, is our how to guide of traveling across country: from planning, to packing, to the day to day tips we learned along the way!
First, I definitely would not recommend moving across the country with two toddlers ages 2 and 3. However, I would absolutely recommend driving across the country at least once in your life. We actually had a lot of fun and were able to see parts of the country we otherwise would never have the opportunity to visit. Surprisingly, the trip went really smooth. The kids were well behaved. The dog was absolutely amazing in the car. The cat, no surprise, was terrible. We had no issues with our cars or accommodations and did not even hit any traffic! Below, I will go through the planning process. Then, I will outline our packing list. Lastly, I will bullet point the day to day tips.
Planning:
I wanted our move across the country to be a little bit of a vacation in the sense that I wanted it to be memorable, fun, and exciting as opposed to a chore. In order to accomplish the goal, I tried to chose interesting and unique places to stay that we normally would never take the time to visit. With that in mind, we also wanted to take the shortest route possible and drive only 6-7 hours a day so we could account for stops and actually enjoy our stays in the places we stayed. Here are the steps I took in planning the trip:
Step 1: Chose the “must see” places on your trip. For us, we wanted to stay on the grounds of this really unique garden in the Louisiana bayou, check out Marfa, TX and also stop in Tucson at my mother in law’s house. With that general outline, we decided on the southern I-10 route.
Step 2: Chose accommodations that do not trail too far off of your route, but are more interesting than a typical roadside hotel/motel. If you are traveling with kids, I would definitely recommend a suite in a hotel or AirBnB. It made it so much easier for dinner and breakfast with a kitchen. The AirBnB also gave the kids space to run around outside as opposed to being cramped in a hotel room after being in a car all day. Another great option is to rent an RV through an app like Outdoorsy.
Step 3: Map it out! Yes, actually get a real map or atlas and look at it, then put it into your route into GPS to correlate and make sure the route actually makes sense on a day by day basis and is realistic with various time constraints. Be sure to build in plenty of time for comfort breaks and any interesting stops along the way.
Packing:
Step 1: Snacks, snacks, snacks. We were moving so had both of our cars. Each car had two coolers (we used this Yeti Cooler), one for food and the other for drinks. In the “drinks cooler” we had a few frozen water bottles instead of taking up space with ice packs. In the drinks cooler we had the following:
Two large liter water bottles to fill our KleanKanteen water bottles and use for dog/cat water
La Croix
Oat milk for the kids/coffee
Starbucks Iced Coffee Frappuccino
Wine and wine opener
In the food cooler we had both adult and kid snacks. For kid snacks we packed the following:
Carrots
Apple slices
For adult snacks, I definitely recommend a Bento Box Tupperware. We packed ours up each night so I had it handy the entire way and had a variety of snacks to chose from. It was like a to-go charcuterie board:
Pepperjack Cheese
Red seedless grapes
Triscuits (cracked pepper and olive oil)
Protein Bar
This had just the right amount of protein and kept me full during the ride without eating too many of the kid snacks. Then, we also had food in the cooler for breakfast/dinner just in case the restaurant situation was sketchy with COVID which included the following:
Frozen waffles
Bacon
Fruit (bananas, apples, grapes, strawberries and blueberries)
Frozen Chicken Nuggets
90 minute microwaveable rice
Step 2: Packing smarter and lighter. When you are going to be in and out of the car over the course of a week, you do not want to be wasting time packing and unpacking the car after a long day of driving.
In order to avoid this, I packed two large suitcases. One suitcase with me and little mama’s clothes, the other with hubby and little man’s clothes. Then, I brought two overnight bags (I bought the Renew Transit Weekender from Everlane and I love it). The overnight bags had all of our toiletries in it.
Each stop, I would pull out the clothes from the big suitcase and put into the overnight bags. Then, in the morning I would exchange the dirty clothes out and put in clean clothes for the next stop. This was a MAJOR helpful hack. It saved a ton of time and was really easy. Remember it is all about comfort and function. Be drive with very comfortable shoes.
Step 3: It is a pandemic, so we made sure to bring as many of our own supplies as possible, but that was still reasonable. We had a medium sized Tupperware bin that we kept in the car and brought in to each AirBnB. Below is a list of our survival bin items:
Chlorox wipes
Hand sanitizer
Hand soap
Toilet Paper
Paper towels
Regular towel (we just threw in an old beach towel)
Dish soap/sponge
Tide Pods
Extra N95 masks
Tissues
Baby wipes
Trashbags (including dog poop bags)
This survival bin was perfect because it allowed us all of the essential items in one quick go-to place. With this box, we did not have to stress out about the AirBnB having the right cleaning supplies, go on a treasure hunt to find them, or need to make any unnecessary stops. With these items, you can also clean up any mess that is sure to happen either in the car or hotel/house.
Keeping the Kids Happy
No surprise here, the easiest way to keep the kids entertained was a combination of snacks and plenty of movies pre-loaded on their Amazon Kids Fire Tablets. If you have toddlers like me, I would recommend the head set mount so they don’t keep messing around with it.
We also brought a similar bin (like the survival bin) with the kids preferred toys that included an array of easy to play with toys that didn’t have small parts to get lost. We also brought this bin of toys into the AirBnB so the kids had something to play with instead of destroying and messing up whatever they could find in the house.
Also, I probably don’t need to tell you this, but if something doesn’t smell right, they probably pooped and you should stop ASAP and change them. Diaper rash + Road Trip = disaster.
Pet Supplies
We purchased these amazing pet food Tupperware containers. The Tupperware kept the food secure and fresh and it was easy to carry in and out of the car. We brought a blanket for the dog and a little cat bed so they would have somewhere consistent and familiar to sleep in each new place. We also had their bowls in an accessible location in the car for water at pit stops and to set up right away. We brought a baby gate with a small cat door to secure a designated area for the kitty litter.
I hope these tips help! Although things are slowly returning to normal, road trips will probably be the preferred way to travel at least through the holidays. Using these simple hacks, your trip will be a lot easier and you will have more time to enjoy yourself! Part of the adventure is the way there!
Below is a little more detail of our trip across country…
Our Trip
Day 1- Alabama to New Iberia, LA: We packed up the cars the night before. Because we were moving across the country, we had to bring certain items with us that we did not trust with the movers or that we needed with us at all times like important documents, computer, jewelry etc. We placed those items in locked fire proof safes and put them in first because we knew we weren’t going to be taking them in and out of the car.
We then packed the big suitcases on top of the fire proof safes so those would remain hidden while we were parked. On top of the big suitcases was our survival bin and the overnight bags, as well as the kids diaper bags because we would be getting those in and out of the car every day.
In the back seat of the car, we kept the coolers, kids toy bin, and pet supplies for easy access.
On the first day we traveled from near Mobile, AL to Rip Van Winkle Gardens in New Iberia, LA in the heart of Acadiana - cajun country. We stayed in a small cabin on the garden grounds. The gardens were absolutely stunning and winding paths lead us to the most beautiful views Lake Peignier. We were the only ones staying on the property, except for some surprise visitors in the form of peacocks that roam the gardens. It was a little far out of the way, but it was our first night and I had been wanting to visit the gardens for the entire time I was in the South so this was our last chance to do it. Also, we absolutely had to get deep into Cajun country to get to the original authentic cajun cuisine before leaving for the west coast.
Day 2: New Iberia, LA to Fredericksburg, TX- The one mistake of staying in the cabin at Rip Van Winkle gardens is the cabin was only one bedroom. If you are traveling with toddlers it is best to have at least two bedrooms. So, needless to say we did not sleep well because Little Man and Little Mama were bouncing off the walls until all hours of the night. We still got going on time because we wanted to avoid rush hour traffic in Houston. Thankfully, because the only items we brought in were the overnight bags, survival bin, toy bin, pet supplies, and coolers it was easy to re-pack the cars and get back on the road.
We avoided any major traffic through Houston and then began our drive through Texas Hill Country, up through Austin to Fredericksburg, TX. I had never been to Austin or this area of Texas so did not know what to expect, but was pleasantly surprised with the most gorgeous rolling green hills that go on for miles and miles. The scenery of the drive was spectacular. In between the drive from Austin to Fredericksburg, I am not exaggerating I think we passed by at least 50 different wineries. Apparently, Fredericksburg and the surrounding areas is very up and coming on the wine scene. When we got to downtown Fredericksburg I could see why so many people make the trip. There were a ton of tasting rooms, cute shops, and restaurants. It was a very, very cute town that was very family friendly, but also a great place for a girls weekend. A lot of the shops were closed, but the restaurants were open for outside seating and limited indoor seating. We ate at Burger Burger and Hubby says he had had the absolute best burger of his life. I was more focused on the local wine selections which were equally amazing.
Day 3 Fredericksburg to Marfa, TX- The AirBnB in Fredericksburg was probably my favorite because it had the cutest outdoor courtyard for morning coffee and playtime for the kids before we got on the road. From Fredericksburg we began the next leg of our trip to Marfa, Texas. I have been hearing about Marfa for years and it is sort of a pilgrimage a lot of New Yorkers make to the area to stargaze, get away from it all, yet eat at the most amazing restaurants and check out unique art installations. I was really psyched to see this small little art town in the middle of no where. The drive from Fredericksburg to Marfa quickly changed from lush green hills to high desert with nothing much to look at other than dirt, palmadillos, and the Chisos Mountains in the distance.
As we got closer to Marfa, we made our way up and through the Chisos Mountains which were much bigger and prettier than I anticipated. We did not have much cell phone service and there were not a lot of places to stop during this stretch. After we made it through the mountain pass, we came to see there really was nothing, other than a small town, surrounded by desert. It reminded me of a fake western movie set. Of course, the first order of business was to visit Prada Marfa, a random art installation of a fake Prada store in the middle of the desert. Hubby didn’t really get it, but seeing the Prada store filled with authentic Prada high heels and bags (only left foot shoes and the bottoms cut out of the bags to prevent theft) do you understand the genius of the installation. In the middle of this rugged, harsh, lethal environment, the Prada high heels and hand bags seem so useless. It is a reminder that materialistic things may seem important, but they aren’t going to save your fancy butt out in the elements of the desert. It is an interesting way to provide perspective and remind ourselves what is important and truly valuable, especially to those coming from a big city to visit.
Anyway, after checking out the Prada Marfa I was pumped to see more art in the galleries and get some of this delicious food I had been reading about in Vogue and The NY Times. Well, the major art installation Chinati Foundation was closed because of COVID. All of the galleries and bookstores were closed because of COVID. Surely, the restaurants like Stellina or Cochineal would still be open, at least for take out? No. All the restaurants were keeping really weird, random hours and they had all closed because it was a Tuesday by 5pm.
After driving all over the 1 square mile town I found a window of a nondescript white building with the words “Para Llevar” written on it. I ran up to the window, only to find it had closed 2 minutes before I got there. I knocked on the window and begged for them to make us a delicious wood fired pizza. The girl at the window gave me an emphatic “sorry” and said maybe I could try to find some food in the gas station. What? NO. We just traveled 8 hours in a car to the middle of no where to get food in Marfa, Texas. So, I responded in the most reasonable, rationale way I could think of, which was to begin hysterically crying. Because that’s what happens when you’ve traveled for three days with toddlers. You hysterically cry when you can’t get pizza. Thankfully, the pizza chef took mercy on me and made me the most delicious pesto chicken, prosciutto, mozzarella wood fired pizza I think I ever ate in my whole entire life. I also gave him a very generous tip probably five times the amount of the pizza. Small favors go a long way in the world of COVID.
Apparently, the reason everything had been shut down in Marfa was because one of the staff at a local restaurant contracted coronavirus and basically got the whole town sick. Because it is so small, the nearest ICU was over an hour away and only had 11 beds. 7 of which were already occupied. Very scary, so I totally understood why nothing was open.
However, the one thing a pandemic could not take away was the view of the stars. Marfa is known for star gazing and we spent a good 30 minutes standing outside, decompressing, and gazing at the Milky Way, Little Dipper, and the clear view of millions of sparkles in the sky. It again reminded me how small we seemed out there in the middle of no where. While staring at the stars and being reminded of our smallness, all the sudden my anxiety and uncertainty of moving to a new place, embarking on this move, and navigating a pandemic shifted. These seemingly impossible tasks now seemed surmountable and I was reminded that this was just a moment in time we could conquer and move past. It was an a-ha moment that was both beautiful and humbling. I definitely would go back to Marfa once everything is back to “normal” to fully experience the quirkiness and uniqueness it has to offer.
Day 4- Marfa, TX to Tucson, AZ: With our bellies full from pizza and our minds clear, we hit the ground running to our next destination, Nonni’s house in Tucson! Before we left Marfa we had to get gas, which was right across from Para Llavar. I realized when the girl told me to get food from the gas station there was actually a taco place within the gas station called Laredo Taco Company. As fate would have it, they were open that morning and were serving fresh breakfast tacos. YUM! The tortillas were so flavorful, the chorizo was the perfect amount of spice, and this green Chile salsa was different from anything I had ever tasted before. The way to hubby’s heart is tacos, so I was happy that he was happy and we knew it was going to be a good day.
We traveled through Texas through more desert and mountains with only a small blowout incident on the highway which required a roadside emergency diaper change. We passed through the mountains of west Texas along the Mexican border, through El Paso. I had never been to El Paso before and didn’t realize the two cities fo El Paso and Juarez look like just one giant city on the moon or something. After we got through El Paso, we entered New Mexico and hit a check point. Again, I had no idea there were border patrol checkpoints on I-10 in the middle of New Mexico when we had not even left the country. Other than the random checkpoints, I enjoyed our drive through New Mexico. It was easy and uneventful.
We then entered Arizona and there were more mountains and little canyon to drive through, but nothing too treacherous. At the time were traveling, Tucson was battling some wildfires so that was a little frightening driving through the mountains that were literally on fire. Luckily, the fires were not near where we were staying, but we could smell the smoke a little bit in the mornings.
Day 5-7- Tucson: After we finally got to Nonni’s house and the kids were so excited! We played with all the toys, swam in the pool, and just enjoyed a few good nights rest and familiar surroundings. We stayed at Nonni’s house from Thursday to Sunday (which fell on Father’s Day) and it was the perfect pit stop. During this pit stop, we also restocked on Chlorox wipes, toilet paper, diapers, and snacks.
Day 8- Tucson, AZ to Joshua Tree: We left Tucson on Sunday and wanted to take the more eastern route up through California to avoid the LA Metro area and traffic. We decided to check out Joshua Tree National Park and rented an AirBnB in Joshua Tree near Flamingo Heights. The AirBnB house was called “Old Flag” and it had Joshua Trees on property and importantly, a hot tub. Driving from Tucson to California the temperature rose and the desert was expansive. It was a little eerie thinking about how desolate the drive on the back roads were through the mountains. At times, we went over a half hour without seeing another car or truck and miles and miles between small little towns. The scenery continued to impress and the western U.S. was really showing off. The big show came when we arrived in Coachella Valley and started making our way through the Palm Springs area. The mountains, palm trees, Art Deco houses and entire vibe were very cool and I can see why people love to vacation in that area and it is home to so many amazing music festivals. The Joshua Trees (named by the mormons because they reminded them of Joshua raising his hands) and giant boulders in the high desert with the mountains were really unique and almost other worldly. It is definitely something to check out. We got takeout at Pappy & Harriets with amazing BBQ slow cooked over their Mesquite wood grill. It was really crowded even with a pandemic and they highly recommend reservations if you go during COVID or non-COVID time.
Day 9- Joshua Tree to Paso Robles, CA: We originally were going to push it from Joshua Tree to San Francisco, CA… BUT it was 7 hours and we were on Day 9 so decided to break it up. I AM SO GLAD WE DID. Paso Robles (or PASO as they call it out here) was absolutely incredible. This area of central California holds itself out as the next Napa because of the amount of wineries in the area (more than 200 and growing). Also, it literally looks like Tuscany with rolling golden hills, vineyards on either side, and the cutest little homes with Spanish charm. The downtown area is bustling with tasting rooms and fabulous restaurants. We stayed out in the countryside at an AirBnB called “the cozy barn” on the property of a vineyard. It was a small remodeled barn, but had great amenities, a hot tub, free wine, and great internet service. All you can ask for after a cross country trip. This may have been my favorite just because it was so relaxing and it was just really, really pretty. I cannot wait to go back to explore more of this area of the state.
Day 10- Paso Robles to San Francisco: Even though we had never seen our house, never visited the Bay Area, and had no idea what we walking into… we were so happy to be “home.” And because of course our home goods (meaning all of our furniture, clothes, beds, everything) were late, thankfully we had already packed like survivors and had enough essentials with us to last a few days until our belongings arrived. Now that we are all settled in I would say that it is crazy, but an absolute must do for a trip at least once in your life!
