Summer Is Here So Is Torture By Road Trip
Ok maybe torture by road tip sounds a bit strong, but anyone who has spent 10+ hours in a minivan with a couple of kids knows exactly what I mean. The “are we there yet” normally doesn’t start for an hour and after that it seems to be downhill.
It is easy for people who have no children to say things like “bring something to keep them entertained”, it is never said by anyone who has actually tried to keep 3 children from ages 5 to 12 entertained in ways that don’t involve them picking on the youngest one or spending money.
There are some age old car games you can play, the secret is to not play them for too long and not to force any of the kids to join in. If the oldest child doesn’t want to do anything other than listen to the noise that she calls music on her ipod then let her.
Buying a car tv monitor makes sense if you go on more than one or two trips a year. I know it isn’t a good way to stimulate their minds, just letting them watch TV or a DVD for a couple of hours but it is one way to get some peace and quiet and that alone is worth the expense.
You can mix up the time that is allocated to DVD’s with time that is spent on games and of course make sure that you stop and have them walk around every few hours so taht the blood can circulate.
A couple of games that you can play on the road
-Car Bingo – do a small board with different car colors on and as they see one they mark it off. The first one to get them all wins a prize.
-State Spotting- have a list of all the states and as you see a number plate from that state you mark it off.
Children now have so much to do and so many gadgets at home that they may just be happy to sit back and enjoy the peace and quiet of the drive. Not likely but you can always hope, if all else fails bring some earplugs and make sure there are no sharp objects in the back seat.
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