Traveling Ideas???

I find that my 7 year old enjoys the v-smile pocket. It's educational and keeps him quiet for all the trips we take to my in laws. You can even get the headphones so you don't have to hear it too. My other 2 who are 2.5 and 1.5 usually sleep or like any toy that makes music keeps them pretty happy. I was more concerned with my oldest in the car. If he behaves they all do.

For your 7 and 4 yr old get some travel games. they also sell notebooks full of tic tac toe sheets.

We used a travel bingo game which might be great for the 4 and 7 yo - they have to spot the items on the card, but instead of using chips, there are little sliding plastic doors that cover the spot. There are also magnetic versions. Items to discover include motorcycles, bridges, barns, cows, etc. Look in the travel games section of the toy store, or in specialty or classic toy stores.

There are hand-held games like Yahtzee (for the 7 yo) and Connect Four (for both) which actually provide electronic entertainment and brain stimulation at the same time. Math skills, pattern recognition, etc.

The 7 year old could play the license plate game - either writing down the states, or having either a checklist or even a magnetic US map to mark with magnets, every time any of you spot a license from that state. Trucks are great - they often have several plates!

Sing old style songs - I've Been Working On The Railroad, Erie Canal, Take Me Out To The Ballgame, etc. You can find tapes/CDs of these, or borrow from a large public library. My family always did this when I was a kid, and later when I became a music teacher, I found that many kids today had never heard these songs - so I did a whole unit on Americana! Your little one will enjoy the singing too. Some songs have finger play motions, which is good for boredom as well as fine motor skills. Again, try the public library for books that will teach you all the things you have forgotten from your own childhood!

A lot of bookstores (Barnes & Noble) have little kits that look like decks of cards - 52 things to do on a car trip, or 52 things to do on a rainy day (which is anytime you are cooped up). They are great activities, and they get families talking, something we do too little of these days when we're all going in different directions or catching quick meals in front of the TV.

There are also travel desks you can use in the car so the kids can color - as long as you are on major highways without too many bumps. There are also "back seat organizers" to keep the games, markers, tapes, etc. all organized so they aren't all over the car.

Don't be afraid to have some quiet time too - even with quiet music so they can all nap. Or just enjoying the scenery! Don't miss this opportunity - they don't have to be actively entertained at every moment.

Good luck, and enjoy!

CD recordings of stories are wonderfully engrossing for kids, and a nice alternative to dvds. Check out the following web site for August House, they have wonderful books and audio material.
http://store.augusthouse.com/

Have fun!

Great ideas from other moms! We've done lots of long car trips with our son & have found that his own 'journal' ( a hard bound blank book) & bag of art supplies (including glue sticks, crayons, blunt scissors, magazines, etc) has been useful from 18months on. We found the mess was well worth the focused, happy, self-occupied child. As he gets older, thr journal gets used to record bird sightings, write stories, etc. In general we don't use dvd players/electronic games, but for my son (& our sanity) we got him his own 'walkman' & a box of tapes, which included stories, music, etc. I would consider one for each child for those moments when everyone just needs to do their own thing. FOr times when everyone in the car does things together..we play lots of car games adapted to all ages: "I Spy" for example & a game we call "Alphabet Cat" which goes like this~ "My Cat is an (something that starts with a, b, c, etc) cat", the group makes it way though the alphabet, 1 letter per person per turn. FOr the youngest player we accept any word (with lots of encouragement from all) & just focus on taking turns, for older kids we look for interesting adjectives. We also like telling stories in a round (each person adds a sentance or two), sing alongs & flights of imagination ("Lets pretend the car is a submarine & we're all under water!"). Other surprisingly useful things to have along: small flashlights/booklights for traveling in the dark, magnifying glasses, kid binoculars, yarn, a few little plastic animals, tape, music everyone (including grownups) likes, & (if you can stand it) a harmonica. Enjoy your trip!

If you can, get some NEW things and don't let them see any of the new items until your are in the car.
I just bought the magnadoodle-like drawing boards and my kids love them.
If you have home movies, let them watch dvds of themselves vs. any old movie. Also, buy a photograph book and stuff it with family/friend pictures for them to look at.
Don't forget the snacks....that always helps too.

I just traveled to NC from NH with 3 boys. It was an 18 hr car ride, here are some tips. Make sure you bring plenty of snacks, start the trip either early in the morning so the kids will be sleeping for a while when you start, bring coloring books, reading books, my boys love the color wonder by crayola and I love it because it only colors on the paper it was designed to color on and not on anything else. As far as the 20 month old bring lots of toys and also make lots of stops and let them run off their energy, at each stop give them like 10 to 15 min of just running time to run around at the rest area. There are my suggestions to make the trip much more successful for everyone and good luck.

went from Florida to the north east twice with my girls
they were four and five and then five and six

best bets in our car

leapsters with headphones

cookie sheets with magnets (older one could draw a backround on paper and stick magnets on over it - fun play)

doodle bears

colored pipe cleaners (these were a huge hit)

colorforms that they could stick to the windows

healthy snacks

the promise that they could jump on the hotel beds (never allowed at home)

have fun!

I pack coloring books&crayons, magnadoodles are GREAT. books to "read", snacks. the little "gifts" someone else mentioned.
Don't forget thier favorite stuffies, babies or blankets. puzzles the wooden ones. My 5yr old has some magnetic paperdolls. There are now some magnetic scenes kinda like colorforms. Also you can play some car games with the older ones like finding letters of the alphabet in roads signs. And the little one could even find dump trucks firetrucks ambulences car haulers.pLus some other car games. See log cabins onthe road etc..And of course you mentioned the Dvd player...bring some not seen yet DVD's Have a SAFE and FUN trip :)

I recently got my daughter a travel size doodle board (the little magnetic ones they write on and can erase). Its small size is perfect for traveling ~ it fits in the back of the seat in the little travel pocket. She will draw on this for hours!

My children are 1 and 3 and we have been going on 7 hour trips (each way) several times per WEEK in order to deal with a family crisis. So, while my children are younger, we've encountered some interesting feats with trying to entertain (we do not have a DVD player in our car).

The other things that have helped have been books, dolls and a pillow and small travel blanket help.

I would also suggest a small tube of dramamine for "just in case" moments. (My 3 year old gets motion sickness and it helps her not vomit AND she usually sleeps for an hour or two after taking it which helps it go by faster for her).

Hope your trip goes well!

What are their interests?

Can you go to a craft store and buy activity books and small projects for the car?

Coloring books, gameboy (for the 7 yr old), trays so that they can play with play dough (molding clay), dolls or action figures, travel games, also they have games the whole family can play for the trip (spot the license plate, each peron picks a color car and count how many they see, songs, etc - they have books with travel ideas).

When I was young, my family rented an RV to go down to Florida (from Massachusetts with and they brought a lot of the things I mentioned and they had 6 of us!).

Whenever we travel long distances like that, we leave at night and travel through the night. That way the kids usually sleep most of the way and makes for less stops. The other thing is that they have games that they can play in the car, like travel bingo where they have to try and find different road signs or things on the way. We also have a handheld learning game that we bring with us and give the kids time limits on it.

I myself am headed out on a long drive with my children, 12yrs & 9yrs. I am going to the library to pick up "books on tape/cd" as part of the entertainment. When they were smaller I had a wooden magnet maze called Magnet Express Maze Toy, you can see an image of it at, http://www.1888toys.com/ , scroll down to "Manipulative Toys", there are a lot of options. Secondly, I would fill an activity basket that would sit on the seat between them and they could choose their own activities. I think your 4 & 7 yr olds could share a basket, while the 20 month old would need different age group activities. Lap desks for drawing, reading, a "stage" or other projects are a handy addition, find desks that store easily between the seat and door, the kids can access them as needed. Little plastic animals and people work well for imagination time, books for quiet reading, MadLibs,dot-to-dot, there are many books with ideas for games on the road, a map for the seven year old(mostly) to track the road trip progression.......... Just a few ideas hope it helps.
M. P

There is a great website called momsminivan.com. Check it out!

My brother visited us once and his kids had metal cookie sheets with letter magnets and other magnets that the had alot of fun with. I always played the alphebet game, finding the alphebet on signs license plates and things. You can also get a travel Bingo game with cows, cemetary and such. We traveled from California to Maine with our 3 kids.

When we go on vacation which involves a long drive, I wrap small "gifts" and give the kids on each hour in the car. We've had every thing form lollipops to a small, kids calculator to small books, etc. Wrapping makes them that more inviting, and a little more time consuming!!!! Even a fancy cookie wrapped up makes an interesting snack. Good Luck!!! Also my children are 7 & 4!!!!