ChristusG Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 I'm just about to have to institute a rule. Over the past few months, the things my children want to take in the car with them whenever we run errands (or go anywhere, for that matter) has been growing. They'll want to bring a small backpack of toys, carry coloring books and crayons in their hands, all stacked on top of their magnet boards. Ummm....hello....we're coming back in a few hours. We're not going on a trip. We're not moving. Do you have a certain sized container they are allowed to put toys into? Do you allow them to only carry one item? How do you regulate what toys leave the house with your children? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 My dc are older and these kind of posts just make me chuckle and miss little ones. :D Are they leaving stuff all over the car or is it the time it takes to pack up and go that is the problem? I always had a bag with coloring and a couple of books and their memory verses lived in the back seat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
annlaura Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 2 hands = 2 toys. I do keep mini coloring books and crayons in my purse, and usually grab a few hotwheels or small animals to toss in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WiseOwlKnits Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 Nothing. They get their water bottles and that's it. They play Eye Spy, Rock/Paper/Scissors, etc. in the car or we sing silly songs or stuff like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristusG Posted October 9, 2011 Author Share Posted October 9, 2011 My dc are older and these kind of posts just make me chuckle and miss little ones. :D Are they leaving stuff all over the car or is it the time it takes to pack up and go that is the problem? I always had a bag with coloring and a couple of books and their memory verses lived in the back seat. It's the running all over the house at the last minute as we're in a rush to get out the door....they start grabbing everything. And it takes them forever to situate it all when we get into the car. And then they don't want to bring it back inside because it's "too much to carry." :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrs.m Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 As long as they are ready to go when I am anything is ok. It becomes a problem and they have to go without when I'm ready to go and they are still gathering items. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angela in ohio Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 They each grab the book they are reading if I say, "grab something to do." I do that when we will have to wait somewhere for a long time. If it is a long car ride, they bring a book on tape for everyone to listen to. Otherwise, I encourage them to stare out the window and think, or we talk. That only works well for olders, of course. :001_smile: When they were littler, I made sure they brought books to look at and we played math and spelling games together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrs.m Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 It's the running all over the house at the last minute as we're in a rush to get out the door....they start grabbing everything. And it takes them forever to situate it all when we get into the car. And then they don't want to bring it back inside because it's "too much to carry." :tongue_smilie: I tell them about 30 minutes before we are going to leave. They have to have their shoes and socks on and whatever they want to take along packed up. We leave without it if it isn't packed. And if anyone makes me late there is a consequence! It does get better when they get older. But now my DD wants to bring her laptop. So I'm back to warning her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mert Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 We're just starting the mad dash right before leaving. I'm hoping it's just a phase. I have books and a couple little things in the car plus brainquest cards, tangoes and pen and notebook in my purse. So he already has alot of things, but he gets bored with them pretty quickly. He's allowed to bring 1 toy with him. It can't be one of the special things he sleeps with or have lots of pieces (he loves alphabet and number sets), and he has to bring it back in with him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IsabelC Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 We keep a few books in the car, as well as drinking water for everyone and one or two emergency snacks. Other than that, the kids can bring small things - popular items are their wallets/bankbooks, soft toys, notebook and pencils - but when we get home they have to bring their things inside, because otherwise we end up with too much stuff in the car! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joker Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 My younger is like this and I let her bring whatever she wants and she must bring it back inside. She usually ends up only playing with whatever she brings for a short time but she seems to think she needs it. It would bother me if I didn't insist she bring it back in once home but I just enforce that rule. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dolphin Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 We keep a small bag in the car for dd4. She can bring her baby doll, and other than that she has her car bag that lives in the car. Ds9 can bring whatever book he is reading. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 :) How funny. This is something I've never though about or considered. This could be why we could survive a week in our car without becoming bored. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 No toys in the car. As you say, we're just doing an errand, not taking a cross-country trip. Maybe a book or two, but no crayons or markers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pretty in Pink Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 A water bottle and one other item -- they usually go for a book; my toddler prefers Matchbox cars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
staceyobu Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 One item apiece. And, sometimes I veto the item if it is something messy or that I don't want them to lose. No one will carry toys back inside the house. It is amazing how much they can lug to the car... but are incapable of bringing even the smallest toy back into the house. If we are going on a road trip somewhere (several hours or more), I bring a bag of "car toys". Books, stuffed animals, etc to keep them occupied. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 I used to be really bad about letting the kids bring books, markers, toys, etc. in the car, and a good deal of the time they'd leave half of it in there. When we bought the van, I instituted a rule: whatever you bring out must come back in that day. We've largely stuck to that rule, and it's been so nice. Sometimes the 2yo packs his small backpack with cars and other treasures, and the big kids often bring a book or two and/or a drawing book and some markers/crayons. Sometimes another toy. And they're responsible for bringing their own water bottles. Often, though, they don't bring anything, but we listen to books on CDs/tapes a lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KidsHappen Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 :) How funny. This is something I've never though about or considered. This could be why we could survive a week in our car without becoming bored. :D Me either. Six kids and it has never dawned on me to have limits on what they could take in the car. It does take me half an hour to pack for a car trip even if I am just going up the street to the Starbucks drive-thru. On the other hand, I don't know that I have ever been stranded anywhere without something to read. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Splinter Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 My kids don't usually bring anything in the car. We sing or talk the whole time anyway. If we are going somewhere where they'll have to wait, they bring their Nintendo DSs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie Laurie Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 It's the running all over the house at the last minute as we're in a rush to get out the door....they start grabbing everything. And it takes them forever to situate it all when we get into the car. And then they don't want to bring it back inside because it's "too much to carry." :tongue_smilie: What I do is I let my kids bring what they want, but I give them plenty of warning before we leave, while I'm still getting ready, to start gathering what they want to bring and a snack to bring if they want it. I have stated the rules very cleary: if you bring it, you carry it back into the house and if you want to bring it in to the store or wherever with you, you have to carry it. Otherwise, no more bringing stuff. They've been trained to gather all snack wrappers and garbage when they leave the van too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lakotajm Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 It's the running all over the house at the last minute as we're in a rush to get out the door....they start grabbing everything. And it takes them forever to situate it all when we get into the car. And then they don't want to bring it back inside because it's "too much to carry." :tongue_smilie: :iagree:OMG! Are you my Alternate Universe twin? That is exactly us! Our truck is a dump! I tried to make a rule and enforcing it was a nightmare! I told one today I am thinking of a nothing but yourself rule. Of course, she got smartalecky and started listing innocuous stuff : "You mean no car seats?", "Ya mean no wipes?", just to be a pain:glare: Mine bail the truck so fast I am like a drill Sargeant trying to shove articles into their arms before they escape! ARGH!:bigear: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Governess Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 I pretty much let them bring whatever they want as long as it's not going to permanently ruin the car (markers) or upset me if I see it strewn about the back seat (expensive colored pencils). They usually bring water, books, coloring books, dolls, stuffed animals, etc. I let them leave it in there until Fridays and then we toss everything in a basket and bring it in and put it away. On the other hand, I don't wait long for anyone to get stuff together to bring in the car. If you have it ready, fine. If not, it stays home. They are getting better about having their things ready. What really gets on my nerves are the dirty socks that get left in the car. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 The general rule is: you may bring nothing. The rule gets modified at my discretion. Jackets if the weather is iffy. Bear / Doll if we're going to be driving home late or spending the night somewhere. Something to eat if we have no time to eat except during the commute. On rare occasions, something to read or play with. (Reading in the car just makes them feel sick; toys are too easy to lose.) There is plenty to do without bringing stuff. We sing and chat, I give mental arithmetic and spelling problems, or they look out the wondow. We also usually have school papers or the like lying around the back seat. So far, nobody's head has exploded from boredom. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudoMom Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 Nothing when they were younger. I didn't want to have to keep up with it or deal with the aftermath if they lost something, and I had my hands full just making sure I didn't lose a boy. Now that they are older they might bring a notebook and pencil if they're in the middle of drawing something, or they might bring something they left in their pocket, but that's rare. We often listen to audio books or memory work for school in the van. If they'll need to wait somewhere, they might bring a book or school work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 It's the running all over the house at the last minute as we're in a rush to get out the door....they start grabbing everything. And it takes them forever to situate it all when we get into the car. And then they don't want to bring it back inside because it's "too much to carry." :tongue_smilie: This would make me crazy too. How about a bag that is already in the car and they can grab a book? :auto: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J'etudie Posted October 9, 2011 Share Posted October 9, 2011 They can each bring one book, and it is brought back in when we get home. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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