Why is he driving in areas with snow in the first place like that? Either prepare to get stuck, don't go there, or turn back as soon as a key assumption fails (snow!). It appears he checked the weather forecast, saw no prediction of snow, and then started - and didn't turn back when the weather forecast proved wrong, even though a pick-up is not the best snow vehicle around...

Sure he could have hauled a lot of gear along to handle being stuck for days with the kids, but most people don't have that kit and can't afford it. A better answer might be, avoid that situation, don't drive a pick-up into snowy areas, turn back when weather is so much worse than forecast. And perhaps just take along the older boy, so you can perhaps take along a couple of thick blankets, etc.

One suspects that when snow was first seen on the road his comment may have been "hmm, snow, better hurry" not "Uh oh, I've got a truck full of kids & can't handle snow, time to head back, *now*".

I'm not sure the lesson here is so much prepare to spend the night in the woods as it is to know the limits of what you prepared to handle and turn back rather than go further. Dealing with a multitude of possibilities is expensive, but *not having to deal with them in the first place* is often a practical alternative.