If you’ve been reading me for a while, you know that our family likes to take Road Trips when we go on vacation.  This summer we even did a huge road trip across the country from Pennsylvania to Seattle – two cars, two kids, two dogs and two crazy adults.  The benefit of road trips are you can stop and see amazing sights like Mount Rushmore:

Where else can you see crazy sights like the motor home towing a truck with a boat loaded on top of it:

And of course catching sunsets coming and going is also a benefit of the awestruck variety:

Sure, road-tripping in the summertime can be fairly easy, but can be dicey in the winter months – you know, when the holidays abound and you want to have a chance to spend those special times with family members who are far away.  You need to be prepared for situations like unexpected snowstorms:

When I lived in Portland, Oregon, I was heading ‘home’ to my parents in Seattle, Washington for the holidays – and naturally, a snow storm decided the day before Thanksgiving was the perfect time to inundate us with the white fluffy stuff.  It took quite a few hours more than normal to make that trip, and I did discover that there were still Good Samaritans around. 

As I was heading North on the freeway gripping the steering wheel like I was attempting to strangle it, I hit a slippery spot and my car spun around and ended up on the left shoulder facing the wrong direction.  I was mostly out of that lane (thank goodness) but in order to get out of the pile of snow I ended up in, I needed to put the chains on my tires. 

As I got out of my car to try to figure out how I was going to do that, a car with a family stopped and the dad jogged across the lanes of traffic to help me out.  See? Chivalry isn’t dead.  In no time he had the chains on my tires and I was back on my way to my family visit.  I bet if I was driving something like this, I never would have gotten stuck in the first place:

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Now any time we plan a long road trip anywhere, I plan ahead for the most outrageous possibilities and make sure necessary items to deal with those are packed and ready.  And I pack to make sure the expected is covered, too – like kid boredom that’s sure to rear its ugly head.

That list consists of books, DVD’s, toys, coloring books (Color Wonder is perfect so you don’t have to worry about the little ones marking up the seats out of boredom), and of course an abundance of snacks.  And for those other random things, a set of chains if we’re traveling over the mountains, a first aid kit, and a blanket for each member of the family.

We haven’t decided if we’re road-trippin’ anywhere for this particular holiday season, or if we’ll be sticking close to home.  If we do head to far away places to spend Christmas with family, you’ll be the first to know.

What are your ‘must haves’ for a road trip?  Are you planning on driving anywhere this holiday season?

 

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Note: This post was inspired by my involvement in the Kia Social Club, but as always all opinions are my own and not influenced by outside sources.  See my disclosure policy here.

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