Long Distance Drive with Little Ones

I think it just depends on your children. My son (27 months) hates sitting still in the car. We just drove 4 hours Monday and for the amount he wasn't sleeping he was asking to get out of the car seat. In September we drove to Florida and it was a sixteen hour drive. We ended up leaving 5 in the evening and got there in the morning. It was hard to drive overnight but I knew that my son would not last.

It appears that everyone down below has great ideas as well. Have a great holiday!

An idea to make the trip easier: If you haven't already, I'd as some extra time onto the end of that hour number :) We always stopped a LOT to let the kids stretch their little legs and get some of the pent-up energy out. We stopped at rest areas and McDonald's to eat and let the kids play at their "play place". We'd think we were on time, then didn't think to add in the number of stops and the time we took for them. That time really adds up!! If you add in an extra "hypothetical" hour now to the trip for stops and such, it wont seem to daunting to you parents.

One thing I did when I drove with my son when he was that age was to use a cookie sheet or jelly-roll pan (the kind with a little 'lip' or edge on it) as a 'desk' in the back for little puzzles and games. Crayons and things wouldn't roll off the edge and it was very handy.

We never had a tv in the car or anything like that, but we listened to a LOT of books on CD! You can get them from the library and listen to the Grinch or any favorite book that they might find comforting (and that might drop them off to sleep for a while!).

Just make plenty of stops to go potty and stretch your legs and you'll be fine. My son actually always seemed to LOVE the car trips, lol, and now he is almost 11 and tells me he remembers them as a toddler and how much he liked the 'adventures' we had and stopping at the same place for lunch or coffee, etc. So, you're building some memories! Good luck and happy holidays to you!

I'd bring a protable DVD player. If you don't own one - it's worth the investment (check craigslist for a used one??). The books on CD is a good idea, too. Lots of healthy snacks and water. And some planned (and unplanned) stops.

Last year we drove from MD to Orlando with our then 6.5, 4.5, and 2.5 year old. We drove mostly at night, so they slept a lot. We also brought along portable DVD players so they could watch what they wanted when they wanted it. We also brought their DS's so they could play those. Most of the drive was at night, so it wasn't too bad...but they have always been great car riders - once my oldest was 1 at least :). Bring some snacks (we like cheese and grapes for long car rides) and some juice boxes/water bottles. And play games like "I spy something_____" and so on.

I drove alone from Colorado Springs CO to Wilmington De with a 9 week old and a 2.5 year old and was just fine! The below suggestions are great! You can go onto McDOnalds or Burger King's web sites and map out where they have play places. We dont do much fast food so we stoped and got drinks and played for about 15-30 minutes. One thing for sure is to not count on being in one place at a certian time because it seems to double! THe DVD player worked great so did the crayloa coloring pads with the pens that do not leave marks! You might also want to bring a little potty with you especially if you are not sure of what is inbetween point a and b.... My son always seems to have to go when we are in the middle of nowhere! Great luck!

I would say if you have a dvd player in the car for movies that helps. I would also say who ever is not driving make a game of looking at things outside. My son for instance likes bob the builder and we also have him looking for things that bob the builder uses and he likes it. He will see look Bob the builder. Bring some games or toys with them that they can play with. May be read them a book. Be prepared to add a few hours on to your trip for bathroom breaks. Good luck

I traveled with an 18 month old. He slept most of the way, drank a lot of milk, played with some cars from our bribe bag, and ate some fruit. It wasn't as bad as I expected. Haven't done the 3 yo thing yet.

Hi --
What we did for a long car trip was start driving in the evening, and then we stopped at a mall in Morgantown, WV (we just found it) and ran around there and had dinner before continuing on for our all night drive. My son slept all night. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be for us!

Bring a small ball. They can run around and kick it in the grassy area at the rest stops.