My wife and I have always been road trip people. Before our son came along, we used to pack up the car with snacks, music, and our two dogs, ready to chase the horizon without much of a plan. It was the best kind of freedom.
These days, we’re still chasing the road—just with a toddler in tow. And as you can probably guess, that changes things a little. More pit stops, more snack negotiations, and something we didn’t really expect: the need for a throw up kit.
When Toddler Tummies Join the Ride
Our kid’s actually a pretty awesome road tripper. He loves the car, the playlists, the random stops for ice cream—but sometimes, his stomach just taps out, especially on curvy backroads.
After he got sick on two different trips—same route, weirdly—we realized this might not be a one-off. We could either dread it every time or just get ready for it.
So, we put together a kit. Nothing fancy. Just stuff that’s made those messy moments a whole lot easier.
What’s in Our Throw Up Kit
We each keep one in our cars now. Here’s what we’ve ended up carrying:
- Baby wipes (we go through these fast)
- Antibacterial cleaning wipes (for the car seat and anything else that gets hit)
- Paper towels
- A full change of clothes (top, bottom, socks—sometimes two sets if there’s room)
- Hand sanitizer (my wife likes the scented one, I go unscented)
- Doggy wee wee pads (these have seriously saved us)
- Small 5-gallon garbage bags (we double-bag everything now)
- Travel-sized baby laundry detergent (this one was my wife’s idea, and it’s come in clutch when we’ve stayed overnight)
Talking About It
One of the best things we’ve done is normalize it. We’ve told our son:
- It’s totally okay to throw up.
- It’s not his fault.
- We’re not upset.
- We’ll clean it up, and it’s no big deal.
I honestly think this took most of the fear out of it for him. He doesn’t freak out when it happens. He just tells us and waits calmly while we handle it.
How We Clean Up
When it happens, here’s pretty much what we do:
- Pull over safely.
- Get him out of the car and into clean clothes.
- Toss dirty clothes into a garbage bag right away.
- Wipe him down with baby wipes.
- My wife cleans the car seat with the antibacterial wipes.
- Cover the car seat with a doggy pad so he’s sitting on a fresh, clean surface.
- Double-bag all the dirty stuff (super important if it’s a hot day—trust me).
- Quick final wipe-down and we’re back on the road.
If we’re staying somewhere overnight, we’ve used that travel detergent to wash his clothes and sometimes even the car seat cover. It’s made things a lot easier when we’re not heading straight home.
Why We Keep It Handy
For us, it’s less about staying “perfectly clean” and more about staying calm. It’s one less thing to panic about. And our son really picks up on that. He knows we’ve got him covered (literally and figuratively).
Honestly, this little kit has just become part of our road trip rhythm. It’s not a perfect system, but it’s worked really well for us. Feel free to borrow the idea, tweak it, or totally reinvent it for your family.
