Insider on RV'ing with Kids

Welcome back! If you are new here, thank you for joining me on this week’s topic on Rv’ing with kids.

Whether you are a weekend warrior or full time, traveling with kids can be tough to handle. I am here to share with you tips and personal experiences RVing with kids to help you have a smooth experience. Camping with kids might sound like a nightmare, but it can be extremely fun and fulfilling for you and your family. I have two kids ages 5 and 3 and we went full time in our RV almost a year ago. It has been amazing and at times frustrating.

Just like living in a house, everyone needs their own space. When we purchased our travel trailer, we kept in mind the kids needing their own spaces to call theirs. We ended up with an East to West travel trailer with three slide outs with a bunk room in the back. This was extremely helpful to slightly contain the toys and giving the kids their own space. If you are currently looking for a RV for your family, keep the kids in mind and make sure everyone will be comfortable in the RV. Whether or not you will be full timing it or on occasion.

Toys. Toys. Toys... The love/hate relationship of all thing’s toys. I don’t know about your kids, but mine love to scoop up their toys and bring them all over our home. We attempt to store toys in their bunk room, which we have renovated a number of times. Ikea is one of my favorite places to go and I recently purchased a 10-drawer toy organizer to contain all of their toys. We also store outdoor toys in a weatherproof storage container. To keep things real, we have clutter and fast-food plastic toys that come into our home. We learn everyday if a specific toy or thing is that important to keep and to be able to find a home for it immediately.

Another great topic is mealtime in a tiny space. Eating in a RV is just like eating in a regular sticks and bricks. If you have access to an oven, microwave, grill or even an instant pot, you can make some pretty awesome meals. We prefer to use our set of dishes and utensils and wash them after every meal, but many people use paper plates for easier clean up. Eating outside is another great option for kids, if they are messy eaters or want a nice view. I highly recommend a bug net of some sort to keep bugs away during mealtimes. Here is a simple pop-up tent you can put over a picnic table and eat in peace. Most RVs have a decent amount of storage for foods and snacks, but grocery shopping might happen a little more frequently than living in a sticks and bricks. Which is okay!

Rainy days can be a hard one to handle in such a small space. With little ones, they want to stay busy. For myself, rainy days affect my mood. I check the weather app on my phone often, to prepare myself for those days. If it will rain later in the day, we get outside as soon as possible. If it is already raining when we wake up, I go ahead and start the day with our normal activities then I bring out some special stuff. My kids LOVE kinetic sand. We keep this for the rainy days or when they are grumpy. They play with this stuff for hours, especially when I am interacting with them. I also have sensory activities, board games, coloring books, stickers, blocks, and tablets to play with all day. If you are not in the mood, turn on a movie and lay with them on the floor, that will help them know you are still present.

Moving days can relate to rainy days when the adults need to get some stuff done to get ready to hit the road. I like to keep them entertained or have them help us when we are packing up the RV to move. Once we are ready for the car ride, I bring lots of snacks, tablets, coloring books, books, and a blanket. My kids have always been pretty good in the car, but I know they have their days or when we drive extra hours it gets stressful. Food excites my kids in the car, I don’t know why but I go with it. I try to purchase snacks that they don’t have very often just for car rides. We also play I spy, point to colors and letters, and sing songs. It can be a great time to learn too. We drove by a huge field of wind turbines on a trip and my kids were so fascinated by it we talked about them for over an hour. How it works, and we even watched a few YouTube videos about them. I was so surprised by the fact that we can just look out the window and talk about what we see, and our kids were happy about it. I would suggest if you will be in the car for a full day to take as many breaks as you can. Let them run out their built-up energy and stretch even if its for a few minutes. Breathing in fresh air can be a lifesaver.

Lastly plan your trips that revolve around kid stuff. If you plan a trip with lots of adult activities, the kids won’t have a lot of fun, therefore you might not have fun. Depending on where you go, do a mix of adult and kid activities. Outdoor activities are a great way to let kids enjoy themselves and so will you. Going on hikes, visiting a nature center, going to the zoo, etc. Even exploring your campground can be a lot of fun for the whole family.

I hope you enjoyed this article and I hope it was helpful for you if you are going to go on a trip in your RV with kids. It all depends on your kids’ personalities and age but keeping them in your plans will make the whole family enjoy themselves on new adventures to come.

Travel long, Travel Happy!

Written by Shelby Long

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