Current Fridge Protein & Leftover Inventory (Travel Day Start)
Cooked bacon
Breakfast burrito
Cooked rice
Cooked taco meat
Kevin’s cilantro lime chicken
Leftover beef stew
Homemade beef summer sausage
Italian wraps
Charcuterie snack packs
Frozen loaf pan chicken breast
Fresh vegetables and fruit
Cheese, salsa, yogurts, and snack items
Road trip cooler fully stocked
Morning — On the Road
We officially got on the road today at 7:42am, which I’m counting as a success considering my goal was 7:30.
Before leaving, I packed:
- the large hard-sided trunk cooler
- the soft-sided car cooler
My cooler strategy is very intentional.
The soft-sided cooler contains:
anything we’ll realistically eat within the next 3–5 hours.
The hard-sided trunk cooler contains:
- all the major prepped food for the week
- backup food
- extra proteins
- “just in case” items
The reason I do this is because I don’t want to constantly open the large hard-sided cooler during travel.
Every time you open it:
- you lose cold air
- things shift around
- it becomes harder to keep organized
So the smaller cooler acts like our active-access food station while the big cooler stays colder longer in the trunk.
And after today’s travel delays, I was VERY grateful for all the backup food I packed.
Breakfast in the car included:
- bacon
- toast
- eggs for my husband
- breakfast burrito for my teen
Thermos Lunch Strategy — This Worked SO Well
Before leaving this morning, I filled all the thermoses.
This time, instead of assigning one thermos per person, I organized by food category:
- one thermos full of rice
- one full of taco meat
- one full of beef stew
- one full of Kevin’s cilantro lime chicken
My thermos strategy:
- Preheat with boiling water for at least 10 minutes
- Fill completely to the brim with piping hot food
- Put the thermoses inside another insulated cooler
At that point, it’s basically not even acting like a cooler anymore — it’s functioning like extra insulation to HOLD heat.
Around 11am, we pulled over and I lined up Solo cups for everyone.
Then I built bowls directly from the thermoses:
- rice + taco meat
- rice + beef stew
- rice + cilantro lime chicken
And then people added:
- cheese
- salsa
- toppings
The food was still VERY hot and everyone loved it.
This reinforced something I’ve been realizing lately:
if you only pack cold road trip food, eventually everyone gets tired of eating cold food all day.
Having one hot meal in the middle of a long drive changes the whole experience.
Afternoon — Traffic + Backup Food Saves the Day
Unfortunately, around 2:30 we hit terrible traffic.
Basically stop-and-go crawling for close to an hour.
It added about an hour onto our drive overall.
And once again, I was incredibly glad we packed extra food because nobody was panicking about meals while we sat there.
After traffic, we:
- stopped for bathrooms
- grabbed a fun snack at McDonald’s
- 2 hours later we stopped again for a bathroom/gas break. I like to look for Love’s travel stops…they have nice and clean bathrooms. I even bought a small pint of ice cream to share amongst the kids and they gave me some cups to use!
Then got back on the road and everyone started eating the cold dinner/snack foods I packed:
- homemade beef summer sausage wraps
- yogurt
- cheese
- sandwiches
- snack packs
Which basically became “pre-dinner” before arriving.
Arrival at the Hotel — Tiny Kitchen Reality Check
We finally made it to our hotel after about a 12-hour travel day.
And immediately discovered:
there is no oven.
We had specifically called ahead and been told there WOULD be an oven.
Instead, we have:
- microwave
- two very small burners
- my electric skillet/griddle that I thankfully brought
At this point, I REALLY wish I had packed the air fryer.
But we’re going to make it work.
I’m very glad I packed so much prepped food because this kitchen setup definitely changes what’s practical.
Dinner — First Hotel Meal
After unloading everything and getting settled, my husband went to Walmart to pick up the grocery order while I got dinner moving.
Dinner tonight:
- shredded potatoes in the electric skillet
- Annie’s mac and cheese on the stovetop
- reheated loaf pan chicken breast with vinaigrette dressing for those who want a sauce
- frozen vegetables in the microwave
Not fancy.
But after a 12-hour travel day, it was exactly the kind of meal everyone needed.
And the loaf pan chicken froze and reheated beautifully.
Post-Dinner / Looking Ahead
What’s stocked and ready now:
Cooked rice
Cooked taco meat
Loaf pan chicken breast
Homemade beef summer sausage
Wraps and snack packs
Breakfast foods
Fresh produce
Beach food prep supplies
At this point, I feel really good about the amount of food we brought.
Tomorrow’s plan:
- beach day food prep
- easier lunches
- probably dinner out somewhere
And even with the smaller kitchen setup, having all these prepped proteins and meal components is going to make the week so much easier.