Are you hitting the road this holiday season?  This handy checklist will help you get your car ready for the journey!

 Winter Road Trip Checklist

winter road trip checklist

For many of us, the answer is no.  Thanks to United Healthcare for offering these valuable tips…

Each year millions of Americans visit family and friends for the holidays. What happens if there’s a medical emergency during the holidays?

Unless consumers are prepared, they might find the care they receive is not covered by health insurance, leaving them with costly medical bills. Understanding your health insurance coverage before you leave home can help ensure that you receive quality care while avoiding unexpected costs.

Below are a few tips from UnitedHealthcare’s Golden Rule Insurance Company (www.goldenrule.com) to help you prepare for traveling during the holiday season.

• Make sure you understand your health insurance coverage before you leave home. Determine what your out-of-pocket expenses would be if you need to visit a doctor or emergency room while you’re out of town.

• Find out which urgent care centers, hospitals and pharmacies located in your destination city participate in your health plan’s care provider network. Check your insurer’s website or bring a list of network care providers with you if you don’t have mobile access.

• Always carry your health insurance identification card in your wallet or purse. It will make it easier to contact your insurance company if you or health care providers and facilities have questions about coverage.

• Bring a list of your prescription drugs. If you take over-the-counter drugs regularly, include those as well.

•  If you plan to travel out of the country, find out if your health insurance plan covers treatment outside of the United States. Make note of what documentation you need and the process for filing claims for treatment received outside of the country if such treatment is covered. If medical expenses won’t be covered, consider buying an international health insurance policy before you travel.

Source: UnitedHealthcare’s Golden Rule Insurance Company

medical insurance while traveling

The only thing certain about spring travel is that the weather will be totally unpredictable!  Be prepared with our handy packing list.

• Rain gear – including rain coats, boots and umbrellas
• A mixture of long pants and shorts/skirts.  We pack a lot of skirts and tights for our girls – easily adaptable to the weather.  Any good tips for boys?
• Sweater, sweatshirt or light jacket.  Evenings are likely to still be cool.
• Swimsuit.  Forget this and the weather will be unseasonably hot.
• At least one extra pair of shoes.
• Sunscreen – keep those winter white bodies from burning!
• First aid kit
• Fun outdoor toys – see Made in the Shade for some ideas.

What is on your spring travel packing list?

Road Trips with Kids · spring break travel

The TravelKiddy family is headed to the beach and we are looking for your help creating a packing list.  We haven’t been on a beach vacation since having the youngest two kids and now we are venturing back.

It is impossible to create a packing list without some basic details so here goes – we are flying to our destination and renting a condo on the beach (but there is a readily available pool, just in case).  The condo has beach chairs, towels and basic beach toys.

What are the must have items we should pack?  Anything we should leave behind?

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Active kids and long car rides are not the best combination.  No matter how many exciting toys and activities you bring for the car, sometimes they just need to run.  A few easy to pack items can help you make the most of limited time at a rest stop.

• Jump rope:  nothing beats a couple of minutes jumping rope to get the blood moving.  Kids too young to jump rope?  Stretch it out on the ground and have them jump back and forth over it.  Toddlers can step over it or walk all the way around it.
• Soccer ball or playground ball:  play a quick soccer game or throw the ball back and forth.
• Cones:  small cones are great for creating an obstacle course.  Combine with the soccer ball and jump rope to create an entire course.
• Bubbles:  even older kids will have fun chasing bubbles (especially if they have been riding for a long time).
• Balloons:  they take up no space and can be left behind everytime – the perfect travel toy!
• Sidewalk chalk:  create a hopscotch board for instant fun.  Then, let the kids wind down for a few minutes by creating masterpieces on the sidewalk.

How do you get kids active on a road trip?

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