Words of Wisdom: Traveling with Kids

I just spent 6 days traveling with my five youngest kids--fourteen hours from Mesa to Twin Falls, ID. Three hours from Twin to Salt Lake City. Multiple 40-minute drives from Salt Lake City to Provo and back. Whew. It's exhausting and nerve-wracking. We've traveled like this ever since Brad went to law school in Chicago and we had to drive home with two tiny kids--24 hours, non-stop.

I've learned a few things during those experiences. Here are a few of my favorite tips for traveling with kids:

Prepare for the worst.  Most of my kids, unfortunately, inherited Brad's tendency to get car sick.  So we keep an industrial-size bottle of Dramamine in the glove compartment.  First thing--a dose.  Also, every time I fly, I take the barf bags from the seat pocket.  I have a few in the console of the Suburban, and they're small and strong and designed for such emergencies.

Make things mobile.  I use these tubs to hold snacks.  They keep all the stuff corralled and protected from smashing; plus, if someone wants to move seats, it's easy to move the whole tub to another seat.

Movies.  I fought having movies in the car for many years.  I had memories of my family driving together and I wanted my kids to have similar memories.  But as a kid, we only had four hours to go, and there were only four of us.  I finally relented to movies in the car, and I must say it does make the time go faster. We have two portable DVD players and a built-in TV (which I would never buy, but it came with the car, and I've actually not minded having it).  We have such an age gap in our family that it's difficult to find a movie that will appeal to old and young, male and female.  It may seem like overkill, but it seems to work well.
My kids will select a few of their old favorites to bring, and I will buy one or two new ones each trip.  Ben actually downloaded "Inception" to is iPod, so he watched that.  Lily had finished reading Harry Potter 5, so she was allowed to watch that movie (and was disappointed, I might add, that the book was so much better).  Micah and Hyrum got a few episodes of "The Clone Wars," and all the kids, including Miss Evie, watched and laughed through "Megamind."

Storage and entertainment.  When Heidi and Tucker were little, I actually made pockets that tied to the headrests of the car for their toys and water and books and stuff.  I'm past having to prove my creativity in such a fashion.  I found these hanging canvas pockets at Wal-Mart for about $15 each, and they are perfect for the car.  Just zip-tie them to the headrests, and they are strong, easily cleaned and easily removed when the trip is over.  I also tie a grocery bag to each headrest for each kid to be responsible for their own trash.
Rest stops.  Brad and I have differing views of this.  Brad thinks getting out and running off some pent-up energy is a great idea.  My philosophy is "Get there and out of the car as fast as we can."  Notorious for speeding and a few tickets, I might add.  We do stop, but we try to make them as few and far between as possible, about once every three hours or so. I also try to limit how much they drink . . . obviously.


Food.  I have no real strict rules about eating in the car.  It's too hard and it's too far, and treats work too well.  I always bring tootsie pops.  Always.  They are life savers.  They are tasty, they are good, and they last  A LONG TIME.  I also let the kids pick out a treat at a gas stop once every trip.  Then they feel like they have a little control.

And my favorite traveling secret of all time . . .

I will never travel without a timer ever again.  THIS IS AN INVENTION FOR THE CAR.  You were unaware?  It's the best.  When we get in the car after a stop, I evaluate the time until we can get out again--usually about three or so hours.  I tell the kids I will set the timer for . . . say, 50 minutes . . . and when the timer goes off, we'll watch a movie. Or have a treat.  Or change seats.  Or whatever. But not until then.  This wonderful invention will automatically bring quiet and no more begging for as long as it's ticking. Plus, as an added bonus, Dramamine usually kicks in after about 30 minutes, so often the kids will fall asleep and extend the contention-free time.

Hope this helps.  Any other tips you use with your family?  I'd love to hear them.

Linking up to W with Jenny Matlock, then I'm catching up on all your blogs.  I've missed you!