I am taking a long road trip with 2 boys (5 and 8 yrs old).?
Answer:
Buy some brand new movies for them, and don't let them watch them until you get in the car. New movies tend to hold their attention better the first time they watch them. Stop and eat lunch at a roadside park if possible with the weather. If not stop at a restaurant like a Pizza place with video games, that way they have time to get some energy out, and you have time to relax before getting back on the road.
make sure you have dvdsof things they really love cause if not it will be long trip lol
Involve the boys in choosing what to take. For a week or so warn them that they will be in the car for a LONG time and build up the excitement of a road trip (seeing new things, eating in unusual places, etc.)
Looks like you have it covered...lots of activities, and the time will pass quickly.
Stick them in different seats, if you can. Like if you have a station wagon, or minivan or SUV with a rear seat. That helps a lot.
We took 15 hour road trips every 3 months growing up, and all we had were books and the window.
Iam sure they will be fine with all those things.
Moving them around every couple hours helps.
I think the best thing if you can handle it, is driving through the night. They'll sleep, and you can trade off with your partner and get a little sleep. That saved my parents sanity every trip.
make sure they are good DVD's and some Hand held games... like even 9.99 kb toy ones... or even ur phone should have games..make sure their in the back seat so they can do their own thing and have fun together.
the radio, put the station in their favor, and maybe if they have any of those yugioh cards and dueling games... my cousins love those.
We travel all the time with our 3 kids just recently a 19 hour road trip. What works for us is to leave at night and drive all night straight while they sleep. Sticker books and handheld video games. Gameboy with fresh new game that they have to figure out and keeps them interested for stretches at a time. You can rent movies if you have a dvd player in the car or a portable one. Rent ones they have seen before and really like.
Remember to take lots of breaks from the drive, too. We kept a "Nerf" football in the car to toss around during those breaks, and maybe play Simon Says, or jump rope, etc. for a few minutes.
put stuff between them.... i hope your stereo goes loud enough to drown things out lol. map out bathrooms, trust me on that one.
Is the road trip for the pleasure of the scenery, or to try to get somewhere quickly? If it is the latter, try to travel when they are normally sleeping if possible.
If it is a "pleasure trip" you will want to make frequent stops-- sometimes at a park or other place where the kids can actually run around a bit...and hopefully tire themselves out!
I used to play a lot of 'word games' with my kids-- 20 questions-- (My then 5 year old was the only kid I knew who could tell which animals were marsupials, amphibians, etc.) We'd play 'rhyme the word' thinking of as many words as possible to rhyme with any given word (helps them a lot with reading later on) even 'sang' the multiplication tables. They learned, were a little amused, liked the attention and interaction.
Be sure you have some little games they can play together in the car--- and also a means to completely separate them when necessary because confined quarters always eventually leads to sibling violence!
Give them Dramamine for motion sickness. It'll make them sleepy too and it'll be the most pleasant trip you've ever had. We did that when we drove to Tennessee from Ohio - 9 hrs of peace and quiet.
if they get tried of all those
u can start an I spy game
like unique road signs
or cloud game ( different shapes of the clouds )
something like that
i suggest buying a portable movie player or somthin like that to keep them entertained
plenty of breaks along the way.Let them get out and stretch their legs run for a bit.Play games,like see how many red cars or blue cars ect.... you can spot along the way.But long road trips can be hard on anybody even adults.Good luck we drove from Ohio to Florida with two boy's 5 and 6,took us three day's.
Keep the windows down you need air that way if they do drive you crazy the coldness will calm you.Turn on the radio to a song you all can like that way chances are u won't have to scream.If they get restless make a couple stops for them to play outside with your supervision that way you can calm your nerves before you go on the road again.
duct tape and wooden spoons (ha ha) lots of hedache medicine
How long? You may want to make sure they are dressed extremely comfortable. Keep their little belly's full! Remember not to give them to much to drink so you won't have to stop a 100 times for a restroom break.
Also play color/road signs/car tag games - will make the trip more interesting for them!@~
gameboy, 20 questions handheld, switch-up locations in the car, lots of food and drinks, maybe a digital camera for everyone to take pictures (the 5 and 8 yo can't wreck your camera in the car). a map to show them where they are going, sing songs, mp3 or walkmans, good luck..I just asked the same question for 8-10 year olds. It gets worse.
sounds like you have it well covered. make sure you stop sporadically so they can get out of the car and run off some of that pent-up energy!
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