Ready. Set. Road Trip!
- By Liane Frank and Jodi Suissa
Getting away from the daily household chores, and the crazy carpool conundrums of who needs to be where and at what time is an exciting thought, until the reality of actually planning and packing for a road trip knocks you right off your feet! Not to mention being trapped in a car for hours with restless, rowdy, and rambunctious kids.
Getting ready for a road trip with your family can be stressful but it doesn’t have to be, nor should it be. From the moment you pile into the car and hit the road, your vacation begins.
Here is a list of must haves for your journey:
Entertainment Essentials:
- Music CDs or iPod
- Portable DVD player and DVD movies
- Portable video games
- GPS for the driver
If you don’t want to play referee while in the car then make some agreements ahead of time: Does everyone have their own favourite electronic item or will they be sharing systems? Who will decide what to listen to or watch? Do you need to bring a splitter for multiple ear phones and peace-keeping salvation?
All Access Activity Tote:
- Travel Bingo or other magnetic board games
- Stickers and sticker books
- Dolls and figurines
- Books, comics, or word search
- Pack lap trays. They’re very useful for snacking reading, and colouring
Each child should have a goody bag of their favourite portable pastimes. Give them limits on how much and which items come along for the ride (long ago we banned the 164 crayola packs, lego and puzzles…can you guess why?)
First Aid Kit:
Band-aids, gauze, and antibiotic cream, antiseptic wipes, antihistamines, pain and fever relievers, tweezers (for splinters), and a thermometer.
Personal Care Items:
Plastic bags for garbage, carsickness, or wet and soiled clothes, a change of clothing and extra diapers, small pillows, blankets and favourite stuffed animals, tissue, paper towels, wipes, and anti bacterial hand soap, and for germ protection when you leave the car keep Table Toppers for visits to roadside fast food restaurants and Potty Toppers for gaz station facilities we all love to hate using.
Food and Water:
Cut up veggies in individual baggies for each child, fresh fruit if you’re not crossing the border, and healthy individually packed snacks, water bottles, and juice boxes.
In case of emergency: Every long ride will eventually need its occasional but always necessary deterrent: The Bribe Treat (candy, gum, chocolate) but remember to keep this one hidden.
Interactive Car Games:
- Give each child a roll of quarters when you start your trip. Every time you hear, “are we there yet?” or “how much longer?” fine your child a quarter. Tell them that any money they have left at the end of the trip is theirs to keep.
- Word games and I Spy games.
- Count the stop signs or cars like yours or the red cars on the road.
The Intangibles:
A good navigator,
A sense of adventure,
An ability to turn drama into comedy,
and a willingness on everyone’s part to compromise.
Keep praising your kids for good behaviour and reward them with small tokens. They will remember this positive reinforcement and this will encourage them to behave well again on future road trips.
Bon Voyage and have a safe trip!
