Traveling with Tots: Gear for the Go

Have you walked into a Toy’s R Us/ Babies R Us or similar store lately? The options for products for babies is seemingly endless these days! And it is no different when you get to the aisles with products for traveling with little ones. And if you trust the merchandisers at the store, you can leave loaded down with LOTS of things you simply do not need. So, as a part of my series on Traveling with Tots, I put together a list of my must have products for traveling with little ones. Sure, there are lots more products you could buy, but these are the absolute essentials to our family.

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CAR SEAT

The one item you absolutely without a doubt need to go anywhere with your little one is a car seat! And the options for car seats can be overwhelming. We have been in the market at least 3 times with our girls and picking the right one each time was hard. But we have discovered we have a brand we are loyal to. We like our Safety 1st car seats – I mean the name says it all, right? We actually have two different models for our girls, and we like them both for different reasons. But if I had to pick just one, I would pick the Safety 1st Complete Air 65. I just cleaned our car seats (which requires breaking the seats down to the basics) and I liked the air panels on the head rest. This option also comes with a cup holder, which could come in handy for car trips.

CAR SEAT PROTECTOR

Car seats can be rough on the interior of your car no matter what type of material is on the seats. We actually have purchased two different brands of car seat protectors and prefer the Brica one. It has a hard backing to create more of a barrier between the car seat and our kid’s car seats. And it is really easy to clean!

MIRROR

When your little one is still facing backward in their car seat (now recommended for 2 years), you will want to be able to see him (especially when he is crying)! We used a very basic mirror because, let’s be real, a mirror is a mirror. We got one like this and used it with both of our girls. It is adjustable to your seat height and personal viewing angle. You can easily keep an eye on the road and an eye on your little one by simply looking in your rear-view mirror.

A TOTE

Keeping little ones occupied in the car is a constantly moving target. Sometimes they are interested in a toy for hours. And sometimes nothing interests them other than a tantrum. But I am a big advocate of changing toys and books up a lot, so they are more likely to be engaged and excited to discover what is in store for them. And we have to do this in the car a LOT. To corral all the toys and books (and set a limit on the chaos) for the car, we have a bin like this one from 3 Sprouts

SIPPY CUP

Having drinks on hand while traveling with little ones is a must (especially in the summer). But I cannot tell you how many cups we have tried with claims of being spill-proof. None of them seemed to work until we got these Sassy Grow Up cups. I was pleased to find that they are the most spill-proof cups we have found. It took a little bit of time for our youngest to get used to using them, but she is a pro now.

DIAPER BAG

It has been a while since we have officially used a diaper bag; but when we get ready to go on a road trip, I pack ours up with all the essentials. I LOVE the Skip Hop Duo diaper bag because it has lots of storage pockets and comes in tons of styles. And I kind of have a problem with wanting to have another diaper bag, so this is my latest must have!

FASHIONABLE BABY WIPES

My favorite new mom product is Huggies Clutch ‘n’ Clean wipes. They are SO cute and come in fun fashionable options. They hold our favorite Huggies wipes and are a great innovative packaging that is quiet when you use it. No more waking a sleepy baby by the crinkling of the massive bag of wipes! So fun!