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Holiday Travel
Traveling with Young Children
By Patty Getz
So you are making a trip to see your Mother-in-law, you are all very excited it has been a long time since you have made this trip and a break is just what you need, but you are a little apprehensive, it is a long trip, and you are taking your 2 year old. How to keep her happy for this amount of time? And to not lose your sanity? It is time to plan ahead, with a little planning this can be a pleasurable trip for all of you.
Make a list of things your child likes to do, pack a box or tub with all their favorites, and a couple of new things that your child has never had before. Nothing like a new activity to hold a young childs attention for a long period of time. Check here for a list of toys, activities and snacks to take traveling with you.
Make a list of snacks, that you can take with that are suitable for the car, young kids cannot to go for long periods of time without food and drink so make sure you plan ahead. Pack a small cooler with drinks and snacks that need refrigeration, and fill a Tupperware container or Ziploc baggies with finger foods. Here are some Ideas.Plan to stop frequently, make that a part of your travel plan, expecting to drive 6 hours straight thru with a two year old might be a bit unrealistic. Plan to stop every couple of hours, if you have a play yard and have room bring it along, stop at the rest stop and let your child run for a bit in the play yard. We once took a 6 hour trip and set a play pen up in the back of the mini van, we stopped half way thru and let our one year play for about an hour, she got to stretch and use up some of that energy and was ready to go back in her carseat when it was time to go.
Try to plan the trip during sleeping times, during naptimes, in the evening, it can cut 2 hours or more of time that you need to keep your child occupied.
Bring their favorite music tapes and books. Music is great for soothing a child that is getting restless, and books can hold their attention for periods of time. Don't forget their favorite doll or stuffed toy and a blanket for security and comfort.
The most important thing is to realize that you have to bring a variety of activities. Don't expect to bring a couple of toys and have that keep your child busy for a long period of time. Vary the activities in small spurts and keep it fresh and keep them from getting bored and restless, and your child will learn to love traveling.
Traveling survival kit
Snacks
Some of these require an Ice chest and others can be stored at regular temps,and some of them are appropriate for certain ages, this is only a list of ideas that you can use to create your own snack kits, please use discretion when packing yours.
Obviously the contents of this kit will highly depend on the age of the child. But this gives you a few Ideas of what you can do to keep a child occupied while traveling.
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Car Rental Tips
By Shel Horowitz
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Is there a way to fly with your toiletries without them exploding all over the place?
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My job requires a great deal of travel, sometimes with not much advance notice to plan what to pack for the trip. I have made up a list of everything that I should bring along and made extra copies of this "TAKE ON TRIPS" list. When it's time to get ready for the road, I just cross off each item as I pack it in my suitcase so I am sure not to forget something important. After the list of things to pack, I have included notes of things to do before leaving such as "Turn down heat," "Notify family of telephone numbers where they can reach me," and "Water houseplants and cover with plastic bags."
I am 62 years old, and I find I'm a little more forgetful now so this list has been a real help to me and makes packing faster.
By Judy Lowrance
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Pack all of your heavy items in the bottom of your suitcase. Determine the bottom by the position of the suitcase when it is locked & either wheeled or carried.
Use travel sizes only for your cosmetic choices and place them in ziploc plastic bags.
Roll clothes rather than fold. Roll each item in plastic & then when it is removed you will have no wrinkles plus you can fit a lot more items rolled rather than folded.
Take a slip of paper, put your name, address and phone number on it and leave it INSIDE of your luggage.
HAPPY TRAILS TO YOU.
By joesgirl
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I go to conferences and schools yearly. The 4 cup coffee maker the hotel has will have a pre-packaged coffee and filter. I make the 4 cups of regular coffee. I take a covered pitcher or carafe with me and pour that coffee in the pitcher. I then run a coffee pot full of water through the grounds left in the coffee maker. I pour that in the pitcher. Then I make the decaf coffee that is also supplied. I do not run a pot full of water after making the decaf coffee. I pour the decaf in the pitcher with the regular coffee. My husband, sister, or whoever goes with me on these trips have plenty of coffee. We are coffee drinkers, by the way.
By Kathie
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If you are flying somewhere and have to change planes on-route, you will probably have to walk a few miles. Don't take anything on-board that you don't want to lug for five miles. I use a comfortable padded back-pack for my laptop, and check in everything else.
Never carry a jacket or coat through an airport. Aside from being marked as a first-timer, you are bound to lose everything from the pockets, and the silly garment will snag on everything along the way. You will not need any coat or jacket until after you have retrieved your luggage.
Don't pack more than you absolutely need on-route. Chances are high that you will buy some clothes when you get to your destination. After wearing your clothes, pack them in a sturdy box from a liquor store and mail them home.. I have never paid any duty on dirty laundry. You will be very surprised how much more fun traveling is, when you are not weighed down or worried about a lot of luggage!
Have FUN!
DearWebby
http://webby.com/humor
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Put Small Travel Items in Zip Lock Bags
When traveling, putting small items such as brushes, toothpaste, and undergarments in large zip lock bags, makes room for the larger items that have to be taken with you.
By Della Gray
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The first thing I put in a suitcase when I pack is a clean trash bag so I always have a ready laundry bag when I travel.
By Linda
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Planning on Doing Some International Travel for the Holidays?
By Susan Dunn, MA
(shudder). No really, a little EQ - managing the attitude, and using the ole noggin' - can make it more of a Joyeux Noel.
1. Pack your patience and your Emotional Intelligence.Turn down the emotion, turn up the forethought. Example - research your destination on the Internet prior for websites where individuals (not paid interests) can tell you what you can ^anticipate^.
2. Pre-arrange everything you possibly can ' air, hotel, car, restaurant, attractions, plays.
3. Make copies of your passport, traveler's checques, credit cards, itinerary, and airline tickets.
Carry one copy with you and leave one copy with your designated emergency-contact.
4. Carry with you the address and phone number of your country's embassy (consulate) for each country you'll visit.
5. Take any regular medication in your hand luggage and be sure you have more than enough for your trip. (Remember needles and scissors can't be in hand luggage.)
6. Check the US State Dept. advisories, www.travelstate.gov, before your go for immunizations, hazards and other pertinent information; the Overseas Security Advisory Council, www.ds-osac.org, and the Transportation Security Administration site, www.tsatraveltips.us.
7. You'll know you'll be waiting, so use your EQ and figure out how to make it A Good Thing.
8. Use your neocortex when you pack, not your brain-stem. (You KNOW the rules, abide by them! Exorcize from the brain-stem another time, another place.)
9. Be sure you have a valid passport and any required Visas and be prepared to show them at any point along the way.
10. Know the rules of security checkpoints and abide by them.
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