Hi, I’m Kristen. And yes, hockey has taken over our weekends.

I’m a hockey mom, a planner, a weekend traveler, and someone who is always trying to figure out how to make life run a little more smoothly.

Our family lives the travel hockey life: early mornings, long drives, hotel weekends, gear that seems to multiply overnight, snacks packed for every possible situation, and calendars that revolve around practice and tournament schedules.

And honestly? I love watching my kids play.

But I’ve learned that getting to the hockey is sometimes a whole production of its own.

The hockey is the fun part. The logistics are a different story.

There’s the packing. The hotel reservations. The food. The laundry. The gear you absolutely cannot forget. The things you do forget. The siblings and family routines that still need to happen while hockey takes center stage.

Even when you’ve done it before, there’s always something new to figure out.

Our first out-of-state tournament this season was a pretty good reminder of that. We waited until the night before to pack and forgot to prep the dogs’ food for boarding. Thankfully, our trusty black-and-yellow Home Depot tote of tournament essentials was ready to go.

Was it a perfect system? Not quite. Did we make it work? We did.

And that pretty much sums up what you’ll find here.

Why I started The Travel Hockey Parent

I started this because I wanted practical ways to make the travel hockey experience easier – not another place telling parents they need to do more, buy more, or somehow become perfectly organized.

I wanted checklists that actually help. Packing systems that save time. Ideas that make hotel weekends less chaotic. Shortcuts that come from experience, including the experience of learning something the hard way.

So that’s what I’m building here: the resources I wish we’d had from the beginning, along with the things we’re still learning as we go.

What you’ll find here

• The practical stuff: packing lists, tournament checklists, and the essentials worth keeping on hand.
• The travel stuff: hotel tips, road-trip ideas, food, and ways to make weekends away easier.
• The real-life stuff: the routines, mistakes, little wins, and lessons that come with being a hockey family.
• The helpful finds: products and tools that can make the whole experience a little more manageable.

I’m not here to tell you how to parent your athlete or pretend we’ve got everything figured out. I’m here to share what works for us, help you skip a few avoidable headaches, and make the next tournament weekend feel a little less overwhelming.

Because we already have enough to think about.

We should get to enjoy the hockey, too.

Less chaos. More hockey.

I’m glad you’re here.