Road Trip: Infant Fussy in Car Seat

Do you have a mirror or anything she can look at? I also had a fussy baby and once I bought a mirror that lit up and played music, it worked! Also, have kiddie cd's in the car.

Have you tried a DVD player? Even buying a new toy like a book that has doors to open - something interactive.

If you haven't tried this already, line the seat with a soft blanket or sheet. I've learned that the upholstery on these seats are itchy and uncomfortable.

DVD player and books with the "peek flaps" - those books with imagines behind flaps. I got 2 of them at Target last summer in their summer aisle for $1 a peice. My 11 month old looked through them 1,000 times. We drove to MI to drop older kids off at camp - 9 hours round trip in one day. Baby was fine the whole way.

My son was so like this- I had the soothing sounds CD but eventually I found if I cracked the windows a little bit he would fall asleep. Good luck! I second everyone who suggests traveling during nap time- we take long car rides and do the same thing still with our 3 yo!

I've travelled a couple times with my granddaughters. They're older now, 4 1/2 years & 2 yrs 4 months. I travelled alone with the older one when she was a year and a half, and fortunately she was just a really good traveller.

The first time I travelled with both, I travelled at night. Maybe that's an option for you. Since then, any time that I travel, I buy them a couple new toys (nothing expensive) and a couple new books, maybe a coloring book and crayons, and give them the new stuff only when they start to get bored with the drive.

I have a 6 1/2 hour drive coming up next weekend, in fact. We will be leaving in the p.m. on Thursday night, and coming back during the day on Sunday.

I sing Old McDonald endlessly to my little one and then "the wheels on the bus go round and round" and I have a mirror that has tunes and lights etc. Also I have a vtech baby laptop that my little one loves using.

Well, if your baby is 10 months old, I'm sure you've tried lots of things already. My son HATED the car seat, but I bought a baby miror that plays songs and lights up...he really liked that. Now I just keep TONS of toys in the front seat and pass them back to him one at a time after he gets bored with the mirror and/or drops a toy. Also, when he was 4 months old, we drove to CO (16 hours). It really helped to get him good and tired, feed him just before leaving, and then he seemed to sleep longer in the car. Good luck, hope it all works out!

kids music...I know it makes some parents crazy, but not at crazy as a screeming child in the backseat. I used to have to do 5+hr trips with my kids and the kids music was the only thing that helped. Once my husband and I listened to the same 8 songs for 3 hours straight, but there were no tears. Best are the ones with their names in the songs if you can find them. www.playnames.net was a lifesaver and www.mycreateabook.com has them too I am sure there are lots out there. If you can listen to the songs before you buy, do!

Around 10 months, my son started doing pretty well with a snack trap cup so that he could feed himself cheerios in the car. Maybe you could try that? And/or a DVD player? I just broke down and bought one myself. We do a 2 hour car ride too and from every weekend with our 19 month son. It gets long! Good Luck!

The car seat is the one place I can handle listening to them cry. As long as they are fed & clean, I let them go. I would suggest getting some new toys for entertainment, but otherwise just turn the kiddie songs up a little and sing along.

Good luck!!!

Babies R Us carries a remote control toy that atttatches to the back of the headrest my friend swears by. It's got mirrors and lights and sound. It runs around 20.00

C.,
My heart goes out to you, my little Zoe was (is) the same way, she's better now, but I still have to watch how long she's in the car for.

I don't have any suggestions, besides leaving when your little one is ready for bed, but that kinda sucks! Just prayers for you! Sorry!!
Good Luck and have a safe trip,
M.

I would really try to keep her awake as along as possible before the trip, so that she will be really sleepy. Since there won't be anyone to entertain her, she will just have to cry it out and relax! sometimes, the kids are on to us and know that if they cry, we jump. our oldest was the best car rider..would sleep. our second..he was the cryer!

For his 1st b-day my son received a V-tech piano/book type toy that we always keep in the car. He loved it & still likes it (he's almost 2). I don't think 10mo. old is too young for it. There are 4 or so pages that turn, and animals, animal sounds & songs. It's really cute (& I don't even get annoyed by it). I think it's called the V-Tech Sing & Song Piano, or something like that. Car toys like that (& toy laptops now that he's older) are lifesavers in the car for us. A CD with silly songs you can sing to her may help too. Good luck.

IS the amtrak an option? I'm going to take the train next month with my 2 kids and the youngest is 4 months and still needs to nurse every few hours so a roadtrip can take forever. I felt that with gas as high as it is, it would be more relaxing and cheaper to take the train. Depending on where you're going of course.

WE just got back from a 6.5 hour road trip with a 3 year old boy and a 10 month old. We tend to travel at night or in the evening so it is during their sleeping times. If the trip is for 2.5 hours maybe try and time it around nap time if your little one still naps. I also always invest in some new toys for on the trip so the kids have something new to keep them interested for a little while.

Good luck!

Can you borrow a portable DVD player for the trip and let her watch it when she is awake? My younger daughter loved watching movies when we were on the road to her grandparents' house, which was 3 hours away. She survived! We also played lots of kids cds and sang along to them.

can you stop for a long time so that when you get back in she will sleep again? or perhaps turn her car seat around to face front so that you can see her in the rearview mirror? it could also be that she gets carsick when awake.

I would suggest getting some fun kid Cd's and play that music. I used to fill the passanger's seat with tons of toys and pass them back to my daughter one at a time for her to play with, but I think you are just going to have to deal with some crying and allow her to get used to entertaining her self.

My daughter was the same way. I think that becuase my husband or I would sit in the back seat with her she got used to not having to entertain herself. I eventually figured that out and we started sitting in the front seat. I would still have to turn around a lot and pick stuff up for her or hand her a new book or toy, but now (20 months) she is really good in the car seat and will entertain herself for longer periods of time. This may be her chance to learn to entertain herself, but you will probably have to deal with some crying. You may want to practice some during the week before your trip.

Also, they make a number of toys that hook onto the car seat, if your daughter isn't too old for them, you might want to get one.. I find when I am driving alone it is much harder to reach back and grab something for my daughter. So I keep some things hidden in the passenger seat to hand her and some books in a backpack behind the passengers seat that I can grab.

I totally agree that getting out for a short while does not work, I would just go. She will eventually figure out that crying isn't doing her any good and she will calm down.

Good Luck,
D.