I think we have all had the joy of watching a good Clark Griswold movie, family vacation at its finest. Nothing else like loading the family in an a old station wagon and taking off across the country. This is weekend is one of those weekends for us.
What does a person pack for the ride? Even more so how do you entertain the kids as the only adult in the car and the requirement being to keep your eyes on the road?
I am here to help! So settle in and don’t worry about packing the kitchen sink, I have you covered!
There are two categories of packing. Phase one is what you need while there; your clothes, food, etc.. Phase two is what you need while in route.
This weekend we are headed to Nebraska to visit my husband at his job site, so I did not pack much for while we are there since I keep things in the camper. Therefore, I will focus on Phase two… it’s half the fun anyway 😉
First step of phase two is to get each kid a backpack, satchel, heck a plastic bag. Something they can claim as “theirs” for the car ride. Now if you have kids like me make sure this item is the same size for both so you don’t have the “his bag is bigger” argument before you even start the car.
Second step is to fill that backpack up with several things that will increase your chances of a blissful ride. Here is what I pack for each kid:
1. Books – hardcover for the younger kids since we don’t want pages being ripped out to make airplanes in the middle of a traffic jam.
2. A handful of small toys; trucks, cars, dolls, etc. The rule is they MUST fit in the bag, not make noise (you will thank me for this later), and not be anything they are tempted to throw at the driver.
3. Some kind of activity books. There are some great road trip activity books for older kids. There are a couple great ones with actual road trip games in and then basic ones like word searches and sudoku. For the younger kids the highlights activity books are great, simple color books (Use colored pencils and not Crayons. They don’t melt when left shoved into a seat and they don’t mark up the seats), or picture search puzzles.
4. Games… again ones that don’t make noise or you can mute. Wyatt has a small travel etch-a-sketch and an old school get the rings on the posts game that he likes to have. There are also card games if you have more than one kid, that they can play. Disney Eye Found It, is great since it keeps both younger and older kids busy searching the pictures for items. In a pinch you can print road trip games off the web like license plate bingo and other simple games that keep them quiet and searching out the windows.
5. Snacks!!! If you think you can’t make it to the store without a “I’m hungry”, think about how many you will hear in a 9 hour car ride. When considering what types of snacks to bring ask the following questions. How much sugar is in this, and will the kids be bouncing off the roof from it? What are all the possible ways the kids can use this snack to ruin my car? What’s the likelihood they will choke on the snack? Wyatt is a bit older now so we do fruit snacks, granola bars (not any of the ones that make enough crumbs to fill a sandbox), and apples. When he was younger dry cereal was a good go to.
6. A beverage. I give both kids water or flavored water. Again, nothing that can stain the seats, clothes, or give them a sugar high. Along with the beverage comes the “don’t drink it all in five minutes” lecture. No one wants a long drive to be double due bathroom breaks at every highway rest stop.
8. The tablet. These days it seems like every kid has a tablet and mine are no different. Each kid has a couple movies downloaded and a set a headphones. I remember as a kid a particular road trip where we must have been driving my parents crazy and my dad walked out of the gas station with a handheld asteroid game. We thought it was so cool just shooting the asteroids on the screen and my parents probably thought the quiet on the car was just as great. So there is nothing wrong with electronics but I try not to let them have their eyes glued to the screens the entire ride.
Lastly, my secret weapon. A type of non-messy candy. (I usually have licorice). This is for when the passengers are so rowdy you are about to bail out while the car is moving. Nothing stops a backseat wrestling match like “who wants a treat?”. Do NOT and I mean absolutely do not, let the kids know you have this until necessary.
Those are my must haves for trip entertainment. If you have any great suggestions or things you pack that I didn’t think of let me know! The kids would welcome the change up!
Wyatt and I rolled into my husbands campsite around midnight last night and have several adventures planned for the weekend. In addition, since we are at a KOA, there is awesome things to do right at the campground too. Stay tuned!
Wandering Momma 