Disclosure: I have partnered with YMC and OnStar and have received compensation for this post. All opinions are my own.
I grew up in a family where travel was very important. From an early age, my younger brother and sister and I were very fortunate to experience many different destinations - from the beaches of the Caribbean to the happiest place on Earth, and a road trip here or there in between. From that young age, my parents gave us the “travel bug” and instilled in us the importance of family-time and creating lasting memories.
As I grew older, the urge and importance to travel stuck with me. Whether it be a road trip from Alaska to Toronto, an all-inclusive beach vacation or a simple weekend getaway, the urge to “get out of town” is always calling.
Now that we have a family of our own, the experience of travel is something we want to pass on to our children. Even with two little ones in tow, travelling as a family can’t stop and won’t stop. But, it most certainly has, and most certainly will, continue to change.
The type of travel we do nowadays is a little bit different. Nowadays, we tend to spend less time in the air or relaxing on the beach with a frozen drink in hand, and more time in the car, road tripping from place to place. Our travelling adventures now also consist of more family time - weekend trips to Gramma and Poppa’s house, visits to the family cottage and even a camping weekend fill our travel itinerary. And we wouldn’t change it for the world.
From the hours we’ve spent in the car the past two and a half years, we’ve learned many things about traveling with kids. The biggest, by far, is safety. And, unfortunately, our lesson in safety came from a less than positive road trip experience.
When our daughter was just seven months old, we were driving home from a long weekend away at Gramma and Poppa’s house. With our destination in sight, we were talking about what we planned to do later that afternoon. What that discussion didn’t include was totalling our car. But, that’s exactly what happened.
Long story short, a student from the local high school decided to play “chicken” with the car in front of us as we were both driving through the intersection. Before we knew it, bam - we had smashed into the other car and almost flipped ours. Despite totalling our vehicle, the good news was was that mom, dad and baby were all safe (aside from some expected aches and pains).
Safety is often an afterthought – most people think “it won’t happen to me”. Reality is, life throws you curves. And on that fall day, life threw us one we weren’t expecting. Whether you’re driving in the city or on a family trip to the beach, an emergency can happen to anyone, anywhere, at any time.
OnStar helps provide families with peace of mind while on the road. With over 20 years of experience, this in-vehicle safety and security technology can connect you with real-life, medically-trained and certified emergency advisors in a time of need. They are there to assist in any situation, even when you aren’t in a position to call for help yourself. This service is available on Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac vehicles, and includes automatic crash response, stolen vehicle assistance, roadside assistance and emergency services .
We don’t want to let the fear of getting into a vehicle stop us from creating lasting memories with our family. Luckily, there are tools to help give us the confidence and peace of mind along our travels. I foresee many more family road trips in our future.
How do you ensure the safety of your family when you travel? I’d love to hear!
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