long car rides

Melanie - posted on 12/17/2008

Yeah!!!

I did that too, flying ahead one time...it was a nice change...

Mel

Kimberly - posted on 12/17/2008

thank you for all the words of advice, my husband is now talking about us flying out ahead of him. I think that may be best for all us. We will see.

Anna - posted on 12/17/2008

they have little portable potty's , if it happens that they need to do a # 2 , put a bag over the pot - under the soft little bum ring - it works - we travel 8 hours often and my son does not hesitate to do this - he also loves to pee on the tires lol. good luck.

Victoria - posted on 12/17/2008

I drove from WI to NH and back with all 3 of my kids (2 girls & a boy) during different stages in potty training. I never had any problems. Just explain the concept of the long car ride and that they should let you know when they have to go. Use a pull-up incase of an accident (there will be times when it's not convenient to pull over or stop for a potty break). And have them try to go everytime you stop for gas. I found that they were much better about holding it or letting me know when they had to go when they were confined to the car for the long ride. I think it kinda teaches them to be a little more responsible for themselves at the same time. Just make sure to tell them how proud you are that they went potty at the right time during the trip. (MI to CA? hope you have a dvd player and/or video games to keep your child occupied - you might find potty training isn't an issue when traveling long distances)

Gigi - posted on 12/17/2008

I agree with the pull up ideas, if you explain to them that you are so proud of them for using the potty, but since we have such a long trip, we are going to use a pull up incase there is an accident, but when you get where you are going we will start wearing big girl/big boy undies again, i don't think you would have a problem. and definitely invest in a dvd player if you don't already have one. IT IS A LIFESAVER!

Amanda - posted on 12/17/2008

Bring the potty with... it makes it so easy to stop and use it if you need to. I didn't need to put my son in a pull up or anything. I just had to listen when he needed to go. I really didn't even limit how much he drank. It would really depend on how far along they are in the process and if they will tell you when they need to go.

Carrie - posted on 12/16/2008

Just Relo'd from IL to TX - 16 hour drive, 4 yr old was still being potty trained. We initially thought you should put in pull up, but he didnt want to. We thought he would need to stop every 15 min. But since we didnt let him drink a lot of juice/ water on the trip, it was almost regulated with our stops. Just be watch what you give them to drink/eat in the trip to make it easier, but dont deprive. we did our drive in 2 days to make it easier on my 2 kids ( ages 4 & 2) Good Luck! oh.. and DVD is a MUST

Amanda - posted on 12/16/2008

Driving long distances is always hard with children.... I know that when my son is in the car, he usually falls asleep for at least part of the trip. You may not need to stop every hour, if he is a sleeper stop when he gets up (a likely potty time). Also, i think children need some credit, they tend to be very adaptable. If preventative measures (ie pull ups) are taken, i do not think that a one time event like driving cross country will be ultimately detrimental to training. Just remember to give him positive feed back when the potty-ing goes well on the trip and reassure him, if accidents do happen.



Hope to be of help. Good Luck!

Lisa - posted on 12/16/2008

I am not sure if your 4 yr. old is a boy or girl, but my 2 year old son does well in the car ( granted I think the longest trip was like 6 hours one way) if we let him "pee in the grass." We just pull over on the highway and let him go in the weeds. I did bring the kiddie potty and set it in the van on the floor for him to sit on and use, but daddy thought the grass was funnier, and it was much neater!

Melanie - posted on 12/16/2008

We used to cross the States from New Orleans to Quebec City, Canada every year and we brought the potty with us. We stopped on the way, on the side of the road when one of the 2 kids asked for it. We made the trip in 4 days usually and we never used pullups. Maybe we were lucky but it worked. Stopping every 3-4 hours is important anyway for them to get out of the car.. Good luck,

Mel

Airlie - posted on 12/16/2008

Pull ups, stop every two hours and sit them on the toilet. My daughter says "but my bottom is empty" but she'll go if I go. If you relax about it, they will. Just put a towel under them so it doesn't matter so much if there's an accident.

Erica - posted on 12/16/2008

We drove from PA to FL over Thanksgiving. I will not be doing that until our youngest is out of diapers and fully potty trained!

Patricia - posted on 12/16/2008

yeah, you and the 4 year old fly.. the rest can drive... lol.. i drove from california to georgia when my dd was 2 1/2 months old.... we stopped every 2 to 3 hours to nurse... it ended up taking 7 days because of all the stopping... if we had to do it again, my husband would just drive with a friend and i would fly with the kids... good luck!! where in michigan are you?

Kari - posted on 12/16/2008

I have driven cross country from WA to FL 4 times with 2 kids. One of the times my son was potty training, and one time my daughter was training. I'm not a strict trainer in anything. There were some accidents in pullups but it actually helped. Feeling that uncomfortable wetness made them really want to get out of diapers for good, especially having to sit in it for any period of time. I just limited their drinking and did have to stop often. I didn't drive any more than 450 miles a day. Just a lot of communication and trying to be patient and flexible helped. Stopping often is kinda important whether they're potty training or not. You may need to get out and stretch more often than you think. The kids need to run around for about 10 minutes every couple hours. Otherwise you may all be cranky. So pay attention to Rest Area signs. Good luck!