i’m wearing: white lace f21 dress (last year, but this is similar), striped old navy shirt, no name necklace, michael kors runway watch, various bracelets and marc jacobs aviators.

we are getting ready to go on our first road trip with eep (for any newbies…eep is my son’s nickname…he is now 20mo old). a 12 hour drive up to northern ca. don’t worry, we are stopping half way and staying at a hotel on the way there and the way back. i’m a little stressed out worrying about how he will do on the drive and sleeping somewhere strange, etc. etc. i bought a portable dvd player (since i never got that ipad i’ve been dreaming of….hint, hint) and we plan on stopping every two hours for breaks. but we are really looking forward to a fun family visit. if you have any tips/suggestions for traveling with a toddler, please PLEASE please leave them in the comments!  thank you!

p.s. we have a house sitter and two big scary 90lb dogs (and an alarm system) while we are away. #justsayin <— LOL

categories: oufit of the day32 comments

32 Comments ( Reply )

  1. Amy
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 1:29 am

    Love your top! Beautiful colors! Enjoy the trip!

  2. natalie
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 1:47 am

    such a cute top! I love the style here 🙂

    natalie
    http://lucyandtherunaways.blogspot.com

  3. Red Tag Chic Los Angeles
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 3:06 am

    Awww good luck Jenn…..your outfit feels so summery!!

    Rebecca
    http://www.redtagchiclosangeles.com

  4. Penny Pincher Fashion
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 4:18 am

    First of all, you look so cute in these picks – I really love your hair like this!

    As for the road trip, we did one with my daughter from OR to CA (18 hrs) when she was 18 mos old. A week before we left, we packed up some of her fave toys in a bag (so she wouldn’t see them for a while) and then pulled them out when she started to get a little cranky on the drive. The portable DVD player was a huge help too, plus every once in a while I would sit in the back with her and read her books. Good luck – sounds like a fun time! 🙂

  5. Danielle
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 5:34 am

    Hope you have a blast. And love the outfit.

  6. Lynzy
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 5:59 am

    I love how you transformed the dress into a skirt and added a pop of color at the top! You look gorgeous!!

    xx Lynzy

  7. Shandi A
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 7:18 am

    Don’t worry! I drive from LA to northern CA with my kids all the time and my kids are great (I think cause my son knows he’s going to grandmas house). The portable DVD player is perfect ! Also lots of snacks and I suggest not stopping unless you have to because that just teases them and then they have to get back in the car. So unless you need gas or a bathroom I think you should just keep driving! Also it’s a good idea to leave when you know he will nap for a little while ! My daughter gets a little antsy because she’s only one and doesn’t understand yet but she always sleeps twice and she’s usually fine! Good luck and have fun! 🙂

    • jennifer
      Jun 04, 2012 @ 12:53 pm

      i’m convinced that you are world’s greatest mom with the worlds greatest kids. i’m serious! =) thanks for the tips!!! xo

  8. Amiyrah
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 7:24 am

    PPF gave a great tip. We call them “busy bags” and they usually have toys in them that we put aside after those big birthday gift hauls. We have taken my son on road trips since he was 6 months. I’d say stop every 3 hours for diaper changes and meals/snacks. If you can do at least one leg of the trip in the backseat with him that would great.

  9. Ayumi
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 7:57 am

    Aww have fun with your trip! We havent had that long trip (6hrs the most?) with my son who is now a month away from 2. When he was about 12mo, i think we just gave him toys when he fusses. The point is not to give toys or snacks until hes getting fussy. We dont own dvd player nor ipad so we dont know how it works but if your son tend to get easily amused by videos and tv shows, then it probably will work. 🙂 if you have to stop, u might wanna get him off the car and walk around with him a bit to give him a break. Some kids might get worse cuz u have to put him back and he might cry again but that would depends on your child and your judgement. When you feel like he needs a break too, then do so. 🙂

    I hope that helps! And great outfit!

    Ayumi

    http://www.theayumiaspect.com

  10. bravoerunway
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 8:15 am

    Ooo travelling with a 20 month old? That has to be rough but it looks like you have it figured out! Not sure if you need to stop every 2 hours…but then again you never know. Just bring lots of snacks, toys, and the portable dvd player to keep him occupied. I love the striped sweater and just read your post below. You don’t like swimwear and the ocean??? Ok…

  11. Fashion By Alicia
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 8:16 am

    I hope you have a fabulous trip! I really love your top.

  12. AngieFab
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 8:24 am

    I agree with Shandi…….keep driving unless you need gas or a bathroom break or you can tell he just really needs to get out and stretch! Just take it as it comes. It will probably be an easier car ride than you think—at least ours were when our kids were little like that. The dvd player will be great, pack a bag of snacks and google “long car rides for toddlers”!!

    AND…….I want to know how many pairs of shoes you are taking on the trip! 😉 LOL

    Have fun!

    • jennifer
      Jun 04, 2012 @ 12:52 pm

      girl…i haven’t even started packing yet! =) ha ha

  13. Jennifer S.
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 9:30 am

    We travelled to the Jersey Shore from Cincinnati last year with my daughter who was about 20 months old. We do have two older children, which helps, but they of course wanted to “do their own thing” and not watch my youngest. The DVD player was a blessing (lots of Dora and Diego movies that she had never seen). We also got one of those soft trays that go over a carseat to put snacks and toys on. She got some new toys she had never seen, which helped as well, but she did sleep most of the way, which was nice. Keep lots of drinks and snacks on hand. She did great, and I’m sure your son will too!

    • jennifer
      Jun 04, 2012 @ 12:51 pm

      thx jennifer! i just got two new cars movies and some books and even a tractor (he is obsessed with tractors right now)! i’ll let you all know how it goes! =)

  14. Amy Shaughnessy
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 9:40 am

    A dvd player is a great idea. Maybe bring some books too. We took an 18 hour road trip with my 2 1/2 year old and my 2 month old baby at Christmas time. Going there wasn’t too bad because we broke the trip up over 3 days. Coming back was different. I got the brilliant idea that we should drive the last 12 hours straight through at night time. I figured the kids would sleep. Um, no. My toddler was awake the whole time and my baby would only sleep if you would hold his pacifier in his mouth and then hold his hands down. (He still had that newborn reflex so his arms would fly up and it would wake him up.) Then when we pulled up to our neighborhood, we couldn’t remember the gate code and the guard was already gone. I finally remembered it after 15 minutes of punching in random codes. Ugh. Worst night ever.

    Amy

    fashionandbeautyfinds.blogspot.com

    • jennifer
      Jun 04, 2012 @ 12:49 pm

      OMG…this is like my worst nightmare! have to laugh now but i can only imagine how stressed everyone was!!! we thought about doing this too but now i am so happy we aren’t!!! thank you!

  15. Lauren
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 10:13 am

    The portable dvd playing will be your lifesaver 🙂 Have a great trip!

  16. lisacng
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 11:47 am

    You sure are making the inaugural road trip a big one! My son is 22-mos! Too bad you don’t have the iPad, but a DVD player aint bad. We have neither and I don’t want to hold the iPhone so the baby just as me in the backseat as entertainment! Ha. The longest car ride we’ve been on recently is 3.5 hrs, no stopping. So good for you for stopping, you kinda have to with a 12-hr drive! Good thing to stop overnight too. When we drive 3.5 hrs, we leave 1st thing in the morning. We don’t time the drive for nap anymore b/c there’s no guarantee he’ll nap, and there’s less traffic in the morning. We pack milk, snacks, and try to keep him entertained by noticing cars/trucks passing by. We also find that as hubby & I talk, baby just listens. Better than silence. Good luck on the trip! You look so summery in that outfit!

    • jennifer
      Jun 04, 2012 @ 12:47 pm

      thanks lisa! eep tends to enjoy listening to us talk too! i just went to target and got him some new “CARS” books & cartoons so hoping they do the trick! =)

      • lisacng
        Jun 04, 2012 @ 1:15 pm

        you know what i’d want, like an “airplane tray” but for the backseat so my son can play with toys without me having to hold them ;). let me know if you know of any such product!

  17. samantha
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 12:21 pm

    So cute! I love how you layer tops over dresses. I would never think of things like that. Very inspiring. No advice for the trip as I have not done it but I’m sure it will go better than you think it will.

  18. Tiffany M
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 12:58 pm

    First- love this outfit-the lace and stripes just works so well together.
    Now onto traveling. You know I’m childless so you don’t have to take my advice but I do have 7 nieces and nephews (age range=16yrs old to 8 months) and we’ve done quite a bit of traveling in the past 16 years. Every years we travel 8+ hours to the Outer Banks and we’ve even done a cross country with my nephew once.

    You’ll be surprised-he might sleep quite a bit. Have a shade on his window that you can pull up to block the sun out and to also make the back a bit darker. Buy a few new toys or store some current ones away till the trip. Pull a new one out each time he tires of the current one. Snacks are also a great way to keep a young one occupied.

    As for stopping-I would only stop if it’s absolutely needed. If eep is content keep driving even if it’s been 2+ hours since the last stop.

    We’ve also done the whole leave at 11pm so they’ll sleep through most of the drive thing-doesn’t always work but it is a good option if he sleeps well in the car.

    You’ll be surprised-traveling with young ones is easier than you think it would be. Most of the time my nieces and nephews just liked watching all the car pass buy and listening to us talk.
    Good luck and have a great trip!
    beijos,
    Tiffany

  19. Jennifer
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 1:46 pm

    Have a good trip! I hope you packed at least one sweater because it’s raining here in Nor Cal today!

    xo Jennifer

    http://seekingstyleblog.wordpress.com

  20. Niki
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 2:06 pm

    I love that shirt! I own it. You can see it here: http://fashionatforty.blogspot.com/2012/04/lorange-fin.html
    Niki

  21. Tara
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 3:14 pm

    I’m obsessed with the colors of your top!

  22. Kimmie
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 3:43 pm

    Eep is 20 months old already? Dang, time flies!

    Good luck with the road trip! Unfortunately I have no tips, but I’m sure you’ll be fine. Car rides are at least easier than flying!

  23. anna
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 3:50 pm

    wow you’re so cute!

    just found your blog and love your aesthetic!

    and hey guess what! i just started a new blog! i think i have some great ideas and i’d love if you could stop by and perhaps follow it, if you like!

    http://www.annacbie.com/

  24. The Wind of Inspiration
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 4:09 pm

    Love the look! So bright and cheerful!

  25. Audrey
    Jun 04, 2012 @ 7:28 pm

    Those colors are gorgeous on you, Jenn! Good luck w/that road trip!! xoxo http://www.casualglamorous.com

  26. Rachel
    Jun 05, 2012 @ 12:35 pm

    I love these colors! You look gorgeous 🙂

    xoxo,
    Rachel