Are We There Yet

Are We There Yet?

Taking a long road trip with kids can be fun - or a nightmare! A little planning can make all the difference and take any stress out of the journey.

Make sure they are comfortable
Making your kids comfortable should be your top priority. Take along travel blankets and pillows. If the weather is hot place a light shade on the windows to avoid the bright sunlight. Make sure they are appropriately and comfortably dressed - if it’s cold out make sure your kids have plenty of layers on, and let them kick off their shoes if they like. Don’t forget their favorite stuffed animal or teddy bear.

Pack their favorite possessions
Let each child pack a little backpack with their favorite toys, books and even snacks. It’s exciting for them to pack their own special bag and it’s nice for them to have their favorite things close at hand. This also helps you avoid them wanting to bring along their whole room. The rule is if it fits in their bags they can bring it, if it doesn’t then it has to stay.

Plan your stops - and make plenty
If you are going to drive for several hours, remember children don’t have the same patience as adults and often have a genuine need to stretch out their legs, so make sure you take plenty of rest breaks along the way. You can stop at rest stations but also schedule in visits to playgrounds or parks where you can all stretch, or alternatively visit a fast food restaurant which has a separate play area for the kids. Make sure that everyone has visited the bathroom before leaving.

Plan to stop once an hour, even if only to get out of the car for 2 minutes!

Bring along some games
There are a range of classic board games like monopoly in smaller versions specifically for travel. Cards are also another great travel game and of course handheld electronic games (make sure you have one for each child to avoid arguments) will keep them amused for hours, and may even induce them to sleep.

Remember that some children need to watch the road to prevent car sickness, so have a good variety of "thinking" games to play, too. Keep some quiz books in the glove compartment, have tournaments of I Spy, play your own version of Travel Bingo, count red trucks, and so on! See also Games for car journeys

Other "busy" ideas
Apart from games, you can take along art supplies like coloring pencils, coloring pages, crayons, and markers to draw and paint the different scenes along the way. You could ask the kids to write and describe scenery or make up a story or poem. Get them to draw a "map" of interesting thing they see along the way, or write down the names of towns they pass through or signs they see.

Listen to music and stories
Listen to their favorite songs. Get a pack of several CDs and let each kid take turns playing their favorite songs. Sing along! Invest in some good story tapes too, because a good story can make a long journey fly by.

Prepare some surprises
A boring journey can be transformed if you have a surprise or two up your sleeve for when the kids get restless! Save fast food toys or party favors, print out puzzles and word searches, keep a small stash of snacks and sweets, or even wrap up a tiny parcel or two, all ready to distribute when the grumbling starts. Perhaps you could ask Grandma to call you on the cell phone (mobile) at a prearranged time and ask to talk to the kids? Anything to break the journey and provide some interest!

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