Photo Credit: flaivoloka

Road trips, play dates, swimming, and more…that is what our summer has involved and we still have many sunny days left to play.  In just a few weeks, we’ll be heading on our family vacation.  This year, we’re road-tripping it and to be certain we’re prepared, I utilized State Farm’s Learning Center as a resource for tips on ensuring our vehicle is ready for the trek.

Here are some of the tips I found valuable as we prepare are vehicle for the road:

• Get your car serviced before you travel including a check of the engine and other systems such as the air conditioning and cooling, the tires, brakes, lights and windshield wipers.
• Check the air pressure in all tires, including the spare, to make sure they are properly inflated.
• Replace ragged wiper blades.
• Inspect batteries and battery cables for corrosion, cracks, and dirt.
• Change the oil and filter according to manufacturer’s service interval specifications.
• Test your car’s interior and exterior lights.
• Keep an emergency kit in your trunk – jumper cables, tools, water, emergency flares, and a flashlight and gloves – just in case.

With two small children in tow, we definitely don’t want to spend any amount of time on the side of the road in the summer heat.

State Farm’s Learning Center is a valuable resource for information on insurance, car and home maintenance, finances, safety, and more.  As I was perusing the site, I found articles on road trips, packing tips for traveling with a baby, and an entire section with articles on safety including how to install a newborn car seat.

State Farm wants to hear your best summer safety tips!

Win It! One of you will win a $100 gift card to Home Depot! Simply leave a comment with your best summer safety tip. Comments will close on August 1st at 11:59 PM PST.

US Residents only. Duplicates and comments not including the above information will be disqualified. Comments are moderated. If you don’t see your comment in a reasonable amount of time, send me an email. Bloggers and non-bloggers may enter. If you don’t want to leave your email address, please be sure to check back for my announcement on the winner. Please note that winners must respond within 48 hours of being announced/contacted or another winner will be drawn.

Want an extra entry? Do any or all of the following and receive an extra entry for each one. Be sure to leave me a separate comment for each additional entry.

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Blog about this giveaway. It doesn’t have to be a separate post. Just include a blurb about it when you blog about other giveaways.

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No compensation was received for this post. Items for review and giveaway were provided which helped facilitate this review.  Tips provided by State Farm.

What are your plans this summer?  While my husband had planned an incredible New England trip for us, sadly, that is not going to work out due to the pregnancy.  We do have a couple of fun trips planned including a trip to Minnesota for a General Mills Eat & Greet (my husband and son will be in tow) and a driving trip through the South.  When my husband and I were first married, we’d hop on a plane on a whim.

Now that we have a little boy and one on the way, we’ll definitely be making more road trips (it’s actually really difficult…but not impossible…to travel with kids on a plane). This summer travel season, Safety 1st is offering a a “Summer Road Trip Safety” basket to one of you! Summer travel is fun and exciting, but it is important to first ensure the safety of your children in the back seat before you are able to sit back and relax.

The basket includes items from Safety 1st’s ProGrade line, all of which are crash tested by the Safety 1st team of certified Child Passenger Safety Technicians. ProGrade items include the See Baby Soft Mirror (for the backseat headrest), the Secure View Mirror (for the rear view mirror), the Soft Solution Roller Shade, the famous “Baby on Board” window sign, and a $25 gas gift card to fill your tank! To enter simply post about your summer travel plans.  If you would like an additional entry, tweet about the contest (be sure you’re following me) and comment once more with the link to your tweet.  Comments will close on July 23, 2009 at 10 PM PST.

Also, for those of you attending BlogHer in Chicago, be sure to stop by the Safety 1st booth to learn about the latest development in child safety. Side impact crashes are by far the most harmful type of collision for children; and Safety 1st has developed Air Protect, a groundbreaking new car seat technology to help protect against this terrifying threat. Safety 1st will be giving away the Complete Air car seat, the first car seat available with Air Protect, so make sure you stop by and enter to win!

To learn more about Air Protect, visit www.safety1st.com/airprotect.

Profuse thanks to Mom Generations for this giveaway opportunity.