Feeding Tips for Road Trips
By Dawn Winkelmann, M.S, CCC-SLP
Speech Language Pathologist & Feeding Specialist for ezpz
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Are you taking a road trip with the kids this summer? Traveling in the car for several hours means hungry and thirsty kiddos. On this blog I have provided a list of must have feeding products (+ tips) for your upcoming adventure!
Drinking: Parents consistently ask me for advice on cups that are good for in-home use as well as travel. Believe it or not, every 4 hours a child in the United States is taken to the hospital due to an injury from a bottle or Sippy cup. I prefer to use safer cup alternatives. Here are a few cup safety tips:
- Drink Breaks: Pull over every two hours to stretch your legs, get a few selfies and offer a drink to your children. Avoid drinking from hard or soft spouted Sippy or 360 cups in the car because it places a child at risk for injury (in the case of a sudden stop or an accident). In addition, avoid hard plastic or metal cups. These items can become dangerous flying projectiles if a toddler decides to throw it or in the event of an unexpected stop.
- Silicone Products: Open cups or straw cups made of softer silicone are a safer alternative. The ezpz Tiny Cup (2 oz) is perfect for babies on-the-go. The Mini Cup + Straw Training System (4 oz) is designed for older babies and toddlers and consists of a larger open cup + a soft silicone straw / lid.
Eating: Choking is the 4th leading cause of unintentional death in children. Also, since it is silent, you might not notice your child choking in the back seat. Most medical professionals agree that parents should avoid having their children eat or use food pouches in the car when it is in motion. Here’s what you can do instead:
- Food Breaks: Schedule a break every two hours to offer a small snack and give your littles an opportunity to go to the bathroom. This should limit toileting accidents and break up the redundancy of the road.
- Travel Mats: The ezpz Tiny Bowl (bowl + placemat) and Mini Mat (plate + placemat) are the perfect size for traveling! And, you can purchase lids to make mealtime on the road organized. The Tiny Bowl Lid and Mat Mat Lid are designed to store snacks, leftovers and meals on-the-go.
- Snacks: Plan on packing some healthy snacks and low-sugar drinks to keep your kids calm, satiated and hydrated.
Additional Feeding Gear: Meals on the road require some additional feeding gear. Here a few items that are game changers for snack time on a car trip.
- Essential Oils: A few drops can help keep kids calm, comfort a child to sleep, or help a kiddo with car sickness.
- Baby Wipes: Wipes are perfect for cleaning hands and faces before a snack, wiping up mealtime mess and freshening up a smelly car. Try placing essential oil drops right on the wipe!
- Sanitizer: Sanitizer is a must after pumping gas or to clean little hands for a quick roadside snack.
- Wet Bags: This is my organization go-to on a road trip! I hook one wet bag on the back of the driver’s seat and another one on the passenger seat. I place snacks, drinks and all of the above items in one wet bag. The other bag is used for trash, wet bathing suits, baby blankets, pet gear or soiled clothing / diapers.
What are your go-to feeding tips and products for traveling in car? How far do your family road trips take you? If you travel with ezpz products, share your travel pics with us using the hashtag #ezpzfun. Safe travels!
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Happy Feeding!
Dawn Winkelmann (M.S, CCC-SLP) is ezpz’s Pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist and Feeding Specialist. She has 28 years of experience teaching parents and medical professionals how to start babies on solids safely and encourage toddlers to overcome picky eating tendencies. In addition, “Ms. Dawn” is the designer of our award-winning feeding products.