When the school year ends, and The Hubster finishes his softball season; we start planning our summer break. This year, we were invited by some friends to come up and visit them in Washington and we decided that this was the year for a family road trip.
Rather than flying, we decided to make some stops along the way to share some of the US with the kids. Besides, there were many sights we either hadn’t seen since we were kids, or had never seen. After doing a little research and figuring that each night hotels would cost us on average $200, my husband came up with the idea to look into an RV.
It was around the end of March when this idea surfaced. Seemed pretty logical at the time, we’d be able to take our favorite things along with us, wouldn’t have to pack and unpack at each hotel; the best part, a traveling bathroom and kitchen – convenience!
It took us hours and hours of scouring the net, looking for specific features that we were interested in, and 3 weeks from when the hubster came up with the idea, we were driving the “Willey Mobile” off the lot.
The Willey Mobile was the perfect fit for our family. This 26 footer sleeps approximately 6, so it will grow with us. There are so many cabinets, which I was able to FILL with ease!!! It also has a slide out, where the kitchen/sofa wall slides out so there is more space for the family.
With the slide, it gives us an extra foot and a half or so extra space for the living room/kitchen area.
The fun part about having an RV is that most of the items you would put inside are items you probably have in excess – or at least I did. Extra plates, bowls, cups, pots and pans, a rice cooker (yes I had 2), tupperware for storage (I used to sell the stuff so it’s literally spilling out of my cabinets at home). We even had extra towels, old sheets and more.
However, with a new toy, I HAD to do a little shopping. A new comforter and sheets for our queen bed in the back was a requirement in my eyes. There were a few odds and ends that needed to be picked up, but thats all in the fun of stocking your second home.
When thinking about a family road trip, I kinda went a little overboard on making sure I had activities and things for the kids. If you are considering a road trip like this with young kids, here is my “go to” list of items to bring:
- Electronic Gadges – yes, when you’re desperate for the nagging and whining to stop, break out the gadgets!!!
- Books – great for the evening just before bed
- Flash lights – flashlight tag anyone?
- Bubbles – so much fun in a tiny bottle
- Kites – you never know when there will be a gust of wind
- Board Games – our current favorite “Frozen Memory Game” by Wonderforge
- Cards – Best games ever – Go Fish and WAR
- Small rubbermaid shoe boxes – this is for the kids to put their favorite “small toys” to bring along for the trip
- Favorite movies – DVDs if you have a TV/DVD player
Also, when you’re traveling across as many states, or at any time, one thing to remember, make sure you are prepared for any type of weather. In some areas, there was still snow on the ground, we went through down pours and temperatures from 40 Farenheight to 95 Farenheight. From day to day, we really didn’t know what to expect.
In the next few weeks, I’ll be sharing our favorite spots in each stop along the way – hope you enjoy our journey and it inspires you to get out and see the US.
I remember our family vacations in our pop up tent that my parents owned. They would pack it full with our gear and everything that we needed. It was so much better than sleeping in a regular tent. I would love to own one of these one day.
I love that we are creating these memories for our kids.