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My wife and I are planning a visit in August to see if Raleigh will be a good fit for us. We have 15 month old triplets - and we currently live in Chicago. Any tips on the best way to get down there? I realize not many folks have triplets, but would love to get advice from parents with kids who have traveled long distance. Should we drive down there or fly? I'm thinking we drive - stay overnight at some point in the middle (Ohio maybe?) and then continue the next day.
As for Raleigh - we are looking at Cary, Morrisville and Apex areas. Any recommendations for good communities we should visit? We would be looking for houses around $300-350K range with 3000 sqft. Also, any recommendations on realtors to show us around would be appreciated.
Have you ever done extensive travelling with the kids? We have twins....they sure do have a lot of "stuff", don't they???
Personally we always preferred driving - more options for stopping and getting the energy out, more room for their things. Think carefully about how much stuff you'll need to pack. If you fly you will need to either bring all 3 carseats and rent a car/minivan large enough to accomodate them, or you'll need to make sure you can get 3 carseats from AAA or your rental company when you arrive. Where will they sleep? It's hard to find a hotel that will have 3 cribs for you - we were never able to get a guarantee that we'd get 2...always brought our own pack-n-plays.
Just some food for thought. Good luck with your trip planning - I remember those days!
I couldn't start to advise you on the "how to travel with triplets" question. I'd probably put them on a plane to Raleigh and catch a flight to Hawaii with my wife
We have friends in Chicago and used to meet them "halfway" for a long weekend. Since they would head south on I65, we would typically meet in Lexington Ky. At least you're then pointed towards the east coast.
I'm sure a few realtors here have sent you DMs. You can search on their posts here to get an idea.
We have 4 year old triplets and have traveled extensively by car throughout their lives. We have never flown with them - the thought of keeping up with them and all of their stuff in an airport gives.. yikes. Our kids could ride pretty well for a couple of hours, and then we'd stop for a snack or meal.. we could travel about 8 hours of actual driving time per day which took much longer than that with stopping. We took pack and plays with us and I probably lost 10 pounds on each trip just getting everything into a hotel room.. you'll pretty much need a suite room, a king suite worked well as there was plenty of room for their 3 cribs.
To haul all of their stuff we used one of those cargo carriers that fits in the hitch receiver (which I had added to our minivan specifically for that purpose) I don't see how you could do it without something like that.
We have traveled both by plane and car with our 20 month old twins. Air travel was *very* stressful, granted it was an international flight but the amount of stuff you have to carry, plus the confinement of airplane seats just doesn't go well with toddlers.
I'm not saying our road trip (to Pittsburgh and back) was a brezee but with stopping midway, using elmo videos freely and singing I felt more in control than I would have in a plane.
I have two little ones, now 4.5 and 3 but we've been traveling quite a bit since the youngest was 1. I'd prefer to fly. You have to bring your a-game when handling kids in the plane and airport, but I would assume if you have triplets you have to bring your a-game all the time! I believe Southwest has direct flights from Midway to RDU. I also have kids who love to be on a plane and max out at about four hours in a car trip.
You know your kids best, if they do great in the car it might be worth the drive, if not the flight isn't too long.
Good luck on your trip and I hope you like the area!
Travel with toddlers of any number is a stressfui trip! We had 3 under 3, with twins included, and did lots of back and forths between Ohio and VA in their toddl'ing years. We also moved 3 times before the twins were in kindergarten so I feel like a fairly seasoned veteran.
If your visit is just to scope out the area for a potential move, why not leave the kids at home this time? Its hard enough to pay attention when its just you and the spouse trying to figure out all the details like commute time and schools and neighborhoods, etc, etc.!!!! Maybe the grandparents could help out and stay with the children while you take this trip?
If the kids have to come too, then driving will be easier than flying. You know their car tolerance better than anyone, but we found it helpful to take a break about every 2 hours. It doesn't have to be a long one, but something to let them stretch was always helpful for us, even if just to go get a drink from a water fountain. Mapping the location of parks along the way was helpful. Also, fast food places with playgrounds can be a God-send if you encounter rain and they are in need of exercise.
If you have the built-in video systems, good for you- get new tapes and don't show them until the trip. We didn't have the dvd's back then, just VHS tapes, so we taped favorite TV shows or marathons and that helped a lot. We also read aloud to the kids along the way, and they liked that a bunch; those "Little Golden Books" with familiar stories or collections like Mother Goose Rhymes worked well for me. If I was feeling ambitious I sometimes made little finger puppets to use with the story telling and then let the kids have them when we were finished with the story.
At least for our family, there is no substitute for surprise bags; little "goodie" bags with some sort of small toy or book and a treat they could manage on their own like a sucker or twizzlers. Those came out as an emergency distraction- not too often cuz then they start to expect them every time they get in a car.
We had a car top carrier called an x-car-go that went everywhere with us until the kids were out of their pack n' plays and stroller. Worked great for the big items that make the car/van feel so cramped.
These days the suite hotels are pretty common, and that was our favorite lodging set up. Embassy Suites and County Inn and Suites usually have a couple of 2-bedroom units and so do the Residence Inns. It costs more, but having the extra space to relax at the end of the day is worth it, and most regular hotel chains will not guarantee you connecting rooms if you need them.
Drive for four days with 15 month-old triplets? You've got to be kidding. There are Southwest flights that take only two hours from Midway to RDU. Anyone who can keep 3 toddlers occupied for 4 days in a car can keep them occupied for 2 hours in a plane.
As to car seats, bring them along. The kids can sit in them on the plane. If you fly Southwest, each of you gets to check two suitcases. Surely, you can get everything you need in 10 suitcases.
The best, of course, would be leaving the heirs with the grandparents or godparents, or aunts/uncles.
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I believe Southwest has direct flights from Midway to RDU. I also have kids who love to be on a plane and max out at about four hours in a car trip.
