You have your road trip all mapped out, you’re excited about hitting all those milestones, and your suitcases are full and ready to go. So what’s next? If you’re me, you start preparing your in-car luggage. Just because I don’t fly doesn’t mean that I don’t do checked and carry-on luggage. I pack my suitcase, add a luggage tag (the day we get our new ones with our MagicBands is always a celebration), and hand it up to Mr. Hubs to put in our car backpack. I know I’m not going to see my “checked” luggage until we bring it into the resort…and that’s why I bring some carry-on as well.
The drive between home and Disney is long. Like…long. That means that there are a few things that I’m going to need along the way to keep myself entertained, feeling good, and not going absolutely crazy. This also goes for the Hubs and the baby. Which brings us to…
Don’t forget your in-car luggage.
Of course, like anything when it comes to packing, what you include in your in-car luggage is totally personal to you. Add things to my list that you might need. Take away things that don’t make sense to you. Bring along what will help you remain physically comfortable, manage your individual special needs, and let you focus on the fun of your road trip instead of the nervousness.
Here’s your glimpse into my “carry on” items:
- Pillows. Note the “s”. It doesn’t matter if we are driving throughout the night (my personal preference) or during the day (the preference of Tutu and Hubster), I always bring along pillows. This is important for a couple of reasons. The first is that I feel more secure and safe when I am tightly packed into the car, especially at the beginning of the trip. Think of it as a baby being swaddled. No matter how excited I am to be on the trip, traveling makes me very nervous, so surrounding myself with pillows helps me feel more secure and protected. The second is that I am a master at sleeping during road trips. I will tuck myself in and just doze. This in of itself is a luxury to me because I work so much, so getting to just sit and relax is just plain awesome. The third reason for the plural is that my husband and the little one always forget to bring theirs. Packing three or four of them around me means that I can pass one over to them when they are ready for their trip nap
- Blankets. Because pillows need their best friend, I also bring along blankets. I have problems with regulating my temperature, so I always dress lightly and bring blankets. That way I can bundle up when I’m cold and then flail myself out of them when I get too warm. They can also be fantastic for tucking into the handle at the top of the door to block the sun when I just can’t deal anymore. Again extras = for my family
- Sheldon. I have a teddy bear named Sheldon. He is blue, he is wearing pajamas, and he is fabulous. My husband got him for me while we were dating, and he has been with me ever since. I have no qualms at all admitting that he makes me feel more comfortable and eases my nerves. Though I have had him for many years, he stepped up into the position of main teddy bear only a few years ago. I used to have another bear who was a much more realistic brown and who my hubs gave me after we had been together for one month. Little John was there with me through everything, including being behind my head while I was giving birth. He went with us on our first Disney trip…but never returned. I don’t know where he went missing but I like to think that someone found him and is loving him a la “Toy Story”
- Snacks. My heart condition requires that I stay very well-hydrated and not ever go too long without eating. If I don’t, I get dizzy and disoriented, I start shaking, my heart becomes erratic, and overall badness ensues. This means that my in-car luggage has to contain sustenance. This always includes plenty of water and nuts for me, honey barbecue twist Fritos for Tutu and the baby, and ranch Doritos for hubs. There is a great divide in the family about sodas, with Mommy always reaching for the Pepsi, and Hubs going for the Dr. Pepper. It’s a struggle, but we manage to get through
- Entertainment. While we love a good game of “find the letter on the road sign” and go through multiple rounds of the alphabet game each trip (listening to Avalon do animals is a thing of beauty), there are some times when we are just a little bit done with the Griswold-style reenactment and go silent. Sometimes this is while we are still on the road, sometimes this is during pit stops, and sometimes it is when I have whined until I get my way and we travel during the night, requiring Tutu or Hubby needs to take a nap. For these situations, I pack books, coloring books and crayons, and notebooks and pens. I can’t use any of these while we’re moving, but the little one and hubs can, so I pack for everyone. Full disclosure, I have also been known to go online and design custom word searches for the family to do and include them in their welcome bags. (What is a welcome bag, you ask? Just wait. We’ll talk about that soon.)
- Documentation. Have you ever desperately wanted a specific type of terrible fast food and tried with everything in you to order it in a drive-thru to the complete confusion and dismay of the associate, only to realize that you are at the wrong restaurant? Yep. Happened to me. This perfectly illustrates why I keep a print-out (or three) of every piece of documentation that I possibly need for the trip with me. This includes having all of the paperwork that Disney sends in my bag as well as print outs of the resort information and confirmations, directions to them, restaurant reservation confirmations, and confirmations for any extras that we might have for the trip, such as holiday party reservations or tickets for other area attractions (GASP!!). If we are traveling in two different cars, both cars have as much of the documentation as possible. Having this easily accessible keeps me calm, making me feel secure and prepared. You never know when that wonderful GPS system will go wrong, the cell phone will die, or you get to the resort and the security guard doesn’t want to let you in because they don’t have your reservation. Paper doesn’t lie.
I think we’re pretty much as packed into our car as we can get and it’s time to go. Sigh. Wishful thinking. Well, at least we can pretend together. We’ll talk more about getting ready for the trip next time and you’ll get some ideas of how I keep things feeling “real” while I’m still a few months, weeks, or even days out from the trip, and how I manage my anxiety as we get closer.
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Taryn was born and raised, and still lives in Richmond, Virginia. Neither she nor her husband ever had the opportunity to visit Walt Disney World when they were children, but when their daughter Avalon came along, they decided she was not going to follow in their footsteps. They brought Avalon for the first time when she was 3 and have been hooked ever since. Now along with Taryn’s mother and equally Disney-loving older brother, they go “home” at least once a year, and by the time she is staring longingly at Cinderella Castle from the ferry on their last night, Taryn is well on her way to planning the next trip. As a group consisting of two adults with Asperger’s, including one who is also vegan, a very accommodating husband, an only child, a senior, and a service dog, they are a pretty special family, but Taryn is excited to show that the World really is The Most Magical Place on Earth and that there is a place there for everyone. When she isn’t thinking about her next Disney adventure and trying to come up with a Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party costume that will beat her Oozma Kappa nerd look, she is a professional blogger and novelist, but Taryn also likes to indulge her Disney passion on her Etsy shop It’s Better in Vinyl.
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