Hi friends!
I'm sure most of you have gone on a long car ride with your kids or grandkids at some point. It's a challenge! Keeping the little ones entertained and happy throughout any car trip (whether it's cross-country or just to the store) is a huge undertaking. But it doesn't have to be unpleasant (as in "Are we there yet? I have to go to the bathroom! He's touching me!") Although you'll still inevitably get those classic questions, the time will pass much quicker for everyone involved, and your smallest passengers might even have a good time in the car! As our own summer vacation approached, I decided to make Travel Kits for each of my girls - L is three-and-a-half and N is sixteen months. Originally, I had planned to purchase a plastic tote with a lid to contain all of the activities, but I chose to be thrifty instead and use diaper boxes covered with kraft paper. See what I added to each Kit below!
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| N's Travel Kit Books (mostly board books), tag blanket, quiet book, mirror, finger puppets, small doll, snacks |
A sampling of the pages in N's Quiet Book:
Paper Doll Make-over, Hoo! Hoo! Peeka-a-boo!, Pocket Ocean Waves, Sleeping Bag, Buckles
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| L's Travel Kit Books, stickers, activity and coloring books, Tag reader and books, Color Wonder markers and papers, car games (I Spy, Slug Bug, ABC Find-it), lacing cards, Little Kiddles paper dolls, busy bags, crayons, card games, snacks |
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| Lacing Cards from L's Kit (Watch for a tutorial on how to make these!) |
So there you go. Some fun, actually educational activities that can keep the little ones entertained and content on a car trip. I tried to fill our Kits with things the girls had not played with before, or hadn't played with for a while, so I would have the added benefit of 'new stuff excitement.' There's so many other options of things to put in these Kits...what a great way to get crafty and creative! Are you going on a road trip soon? Did you go on one this summer? What activities did you bring along for your kiddos? Please share your ideas ('cuz I'm sure I'll have to do all different Kits for the next trip!).
Happy crafting!
Kristin at Fiddle & Frog
Kristin, you made the quiet book, right? I'm guessing you actually have to sew to make something like that. ;-) We'll be visiting WI for Christmas, and have 2 4ish hour plane rides to plan for. Lydia will be fine, I have lots of ideas for her. Any suggestions for Jeremiah? He'll be 16 months, which is close to the age Lucia was when you guys went overseas. Since you had experience with plane travel and small kiddos, just thought I would ask! :)
ReplyDeleteHi Cheryl! Yup, I made the quiet book. When we went to Moldova, I made a different quiet book for Lucia, and that one was sewn too. I also packed a ton of stuff for her to do: coloring and reading books, stickers, snacks, a magnetic doll thing, etc. She had plenty to do! Not sure how Jeremiah is with putting stuff in his mouth...Lucia was pretty much over that by the time we went, but she was a bit older (about 20 months). Another idea is 'busy bags' which is sort of similar to quiet books, except all the pieces are contained in a small bag. There's lots of ideas on Pinterest and elsewhere online for these...tracing things with dry erase markers, puzzles, etc. Maybe these would work for you? Hope you can find some good ideas!
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