As a father of a small child I have to say that this article is totally invaluable...
Always plan
We've only made one large trip so far so you're right that you have to have the hotels ready and have those restaurants in mind, too. A two year old melt down in the car with no food in sight is not a fun thing!
We always bring some snack as well too to tie in to my last sentence.
I'll definitely be referring to this article later as well... Thank you!