Activities for long road trip?

[Wabi Sabi]

We're getting ready to take a long trip. Dh won't be able to travel with us, so it will be just me and the kids driving about 3,000 miles total. They are (almost) 4 years old and 7.

 

Since I'll be driving I won't be able to pick up dropped toys, read books, change DVDs, etc. They're going to need things that they can do in the car that don't require an adult sitting next to them (keeping in mind that they're both in carseats still.)

 

I'll do the usual bag of small toys (action figure or two, beanie baby, mini-Barbie saved from a Happy Meal, etc.), Magnadoodle, colored pencils and paper, some books (but the 4 y/o can't read and the 7 y/o isn't a very strong reader), etc. I'll make sure to bring some audiobooks as well, but to be honest they don't generally hold the kids' interest for very long.

 

Anything else you've found that really keeps young children happy, that they can do on their own and doesn't make a mess in the car? I feel like I need to make my bag of tricks pretty grand for this trip considering that I'll be preoccupied driving, not entertaining.

[Rosie_0801]

When we took a cross country trip, the kids were pretty content with audiobooks, paper books and the magnetic erase board. Other than that, we'd stop around mealtimes at a playground, then eat when we got back in the car.

 

Can you get those portable dvd players and set them up to replay? I'm not sure I understand why you can't pull over now and then to change a dvd or whatever.

 

Rosie

[Wabi Sabi]

Can you get those portable dvd players and set them up to replay? I'm not sure I understand why you can't pull over now and then to change a dvd or whatever.

 

We borrowed one a couple of times and honestly found it was more hassle than it was worth- the kids couldn't hear over the noise of the road and kept needing the volume adjusted, the cord wouldn't reach the cigarette lighter and the battery kept dying, every time I stopped the car and restarted the DVD would start all the way back over at the beginning, it kept malfunctioning, the DVD kept skipping, etc.

 

I should note, however, that we do have iPods Touches and we can load a few movies into them for the kids. They have much better battery life and they kids can totally operate those on their own!

[StephanieZ]

I think it'd be well worth the trouble to buy a portable DVD player and teach the older child to change the DVDs, or simply stick a long DVD in at a stop, press go, then drive. 2 HRS peace while they are watching a DVD is WELL worth a 5 min stop! (TV series that you can press play-all are a good option, up to 2.5-3 hours of shows at a go. Feature length movies are 90+ min as well.)

 

DVD player is a nobrainer IMHO.

 

Also, "road food" is a standard operating procedure in our family. We eat all kinds of junk on the road. It is distracting and makes a zillion mile drive more fun. Gummy bears are time consuming but not too messy.

[regentrude]

When the kids were that age, we listened to audiobooks. there are wonderful ones.

Later, we got a portable DVD player and never had any problems with it (until it started dying). A 7 y/o should be able to change DVDs.

[Susan in TN]

Yarn. Pipe cleaners. Dry erase markers on cheap baking sheets. A box of tissues (this WILL make a mess, but may save your sanity in a time of desperation).

 

We used to travel with a DVD player, but for some reason, it always made my kids fight and complain more. They are much more peaceful without. We do bring books on CD, though, and have some success with those. We have a crappy sound system and fairly loud 12 passenger van - if your vehicle is nice and quiet inside they may work better for you.

Edited December 10, 2011 by Susan in TN

[LibraryLover]

Glow -in-the dark Gak. Silly putty, bubbles, stickers. Playdough is good, too. It just turns to rock when it drops to the floor and dries out. Window markers? Never tried those, but they look cool & fun. Water bottles with sports tops.

 

I have a very high tolerance for car messes...so, ymmv.

Edited December 11, 2011 by LibraryLover

[gingersmom]

Another vote for a DVD player. I would just have the 7 year old practice at home before you go. My son could go thousands of miles sitting in the car watching a movie.

 

Do they like sticker books?

 

I used to pick up lots of stuff at Costco and the bookstore for long car trips. Word search books and stuff like that.

 

We also pack snacks that we normally don't eat.

[NanceXToo]

They are (almost) 4 years old and 7. The 4 y/o can't read and the 7 y/o isn't a very strong reader...

 

A DVD player with DVD's.

 

Music CD's/Family Sing-A-Longs.

 

Audiobook that you can all tolerate (we listened to a lot of a Harry Potter audiobook when we drove to Florida last time.

 

Nintendo DS's or other travel video games

 

A bag of life savers (sugar free if you prefer)...you wouldn't believe how handy the "Who Can Make It Last The Longest?" game can be right about when you are ready to tear your hair out. ;)

 

A Checklist, using pictures for your non-readers, of people doing a bunch of different things that people might be doing while driving, so that they can look for people doing those things and see who can find them and check them off first. These might include little pictures (which you can find online and print, or draw stick figures of, or whatever) of people doing things like picking their noses, talking on a phones, eating something, smoking cigarettes, singing, gesturing with their hands, talking to someone else in the car, drinking something, kids in the backseat watching a movie, or whatever.

 

A checklist of all different types of things you might pass on the road from types of vehicles to types of buildings to types of road signs to types of restaurants and so on, and see who can check those off first.

 

The Alphabet game where they have to see who can find the letters A-Z on road signs first, in order.

 

Trying to find out of state license plates from as many states as possible.

 

Stuff to make simple crafts like paper bag puppets or sock puppets so they can make up little silly puppet shows while you travel.

 

Any time you stop for gas or bathroom breaks or food, let them out of the car and get out a stop watch or something and do timed races and stuff that get them running full out to get as much exercise as possible in as short a time period as possible and encourage them to do silly things like "Now run backwards as fast as you can to that sign, now do running jumps, now hop on one foot to that sign and back" etc.

 

There's 20 questions and I Spy, you can all take turns telling part of a story and trying to keep the story going, you can see who can be the first to count to 100 of something (big trucks, yellow cars, people who will wave back to you, etc).

 

Good luck! :D

[justasque]

Audio books.

Old time radio shows on CD.

Sing-along music on CD - classic American songs, kids' songs, etc.

Looking out of the window games.

ipods

Sticker books

Craft items such as sewing with felt and embroidery thread. Yes, for boys too.

Frequent rest stops with a variety of snacks.

 

Healthy food, low in sugar:

fruit

cheese

bread

peanut butter

hummus

baked goods

yogurt

water bottles

[QueenCat]

Package some of the items as surprises to open every few hours. Something special to look forward to.

[Heather in OK]

Lots of great "toy" suggestions.

 

When we went on our vacation I made a BIG batch of trail mix. Instead of packing one big container or zip lock bag, I did them up in snack size zip locks. I had them pack 2-3 in their backpacks so they would have their own serving if they got hungry. I did the same with Ranch Crackers (oyster crackers + ranch dressing + dill + olive oil).

[Elizabeth in MN]

Package some of the items as surprises to open every few hours. Something special to look forward to.

 

Wrap them in wrapping paper so that the kids will have fun ripping off the paper. Every little bit helps : D

 

I've drive across country with my daughter starting when she was three. One thing we did was plan the trip so that there were stops along the way at kid-fun places. We had lots of audio books (preload them on an iPod so you don't have to change CDs), and stuff to look at out the window.

 

We never have done the DVD in the car thing. It just seemed to be a waste to drive through the US and not actually *see* it.

[HSinNH]

My girls and I recently drove 14 hours by ourselves to visit family. A DVD player was very helpful (ours had 2 headphone jacks so I did not have listen to the movie). But, the best distraction was the "grab-bags" that I pre-packed with dollar toys, new writing tools, flashlights, printable worksheets/games, etc. They picked one every two hours and were so attentive about when they could pick the next bag. If they began to bicker, I added 5 minutes to the grab time. It worked wonders! Try http://www.momsminivan.com/ for many fun printable car games.