Road Trip to Florida

We did this with a 5 yr. old last spring. $ for every hour, Bendaroos, they are messy, but can stick to the windows. Every time we got gas we let them pick out a "junk" toy from the gas station. We brought fun snacks they didn't regularly get. Good luck. We were shocked how well it went. We stopped overnight to make it easier.

We've taken several car trips with our 4 & 6 yr olds.

Post it notes - they come in all shapes and colors and can be stuck to anything - dare him to cover his window, the seat....

lots of new DVDs - Wal-Mart has some great old cartoons cheap

Leapster - on Ebay you could buy a lot of games pretty cheap.

Trip to the dollar store - you can stock up on cheap, cheesy things. I remember buying a pair of glasses w/ cheesy mustache attached and my kids would pull those out when they got bored and would get a good laugh.

We also love to listen to books on CD. I got several from our library.

Buy a bunch of new snacks - stuff you normally would not buy but your child will like. I hate the processed cheese & crackers but bought them for one car trip. Or licorice, that's dessert to me but I let them have a piece here and there if they were behaving.

I always print out maps for each child - just off of google maps - and with a crayon they can trace the road we've driven. Usually I would announce the major city on the map so they could essentially "connect the dots". Example - "ok we've made it to Indianapolis! Trace the road from Chicago to Indianapolis!"

Make sure to bring a football or frisbee for rest areas - you can stop and get some of that energy out. We thought that scooters were a nice idea but it turns out there really aren't many safe places to ride at rest areas. When we drove through the mountains one time we allowed the kids to climb a little rock wall next to the building w/ bathrooms.

Kids love the newness of things so an inexpensive thing to do is put away some of the toys he already has and bring them out in the car - they'll be new all over again.

I would also advise against doing the middle of the night drive. I know it is nice to think that the kids will sleep in the car the whole way. Turns out unless your child is a really heavy sleeper they probably won't. They will continuously wake up and the next day will be hell!

Good luck!!

We did the road trip last year with my then 3 year old and 1 year old to visit my parents. We did the DVD player and my oldest was reading at the time so I got some new books. We made the trip in 2 days each way and our trip on the way back went much smoother with what we learned on the way down. There is a mall on 465 South, on the ring around Indianpolis, that has a great play area in the food court. We would stop there to let them burn off some energy and get a snack/meal. I wish I could remember the exit but it is about 15-20 minutes off of I-65. We also drove more late at night and took our time during the day. Hard on the parents but easier on our kids. We stopped at Targets/Walmarts to get out and stretch our legs and get a toy from the dollar bins. On our longer trips, our Pacifica allows me to sit in the back with the girls to help with drinks/food/games/reading whatever. Not sure if you have a car that can handle that arrangement, but that also cut down on the whining. Good luck!

Leave for the trip at something like 3 or 4 am. They will sleep for a good quarter of the trip. Snacks are good but try not to let them eat non stop this will cause other sorts of problems. Books on tape/cd are good. mp3 players or read along cd's are good. go to the local library and ask if they do travel bags. the aurora public library used to do it. you give them the ages / sexes / interests of the children. they will pack you a bag with books, cd/s movies, coloring / puzzle papers. lego type things are good. bionicles are good also if he likes that kind of thing. something that he can put together and take apart. but beward of small parts getting lost and kids howling lol. so be careful of that. maybe a set of christmas cards he can design himself? video games are also good.
S.

C., I am considering a road trip to Florida as well this winter -- I'm really glad you asked this question!!

We were told by friends to make stops along the way that are exciting for the entire family. We were thinking of stopping in Memphis (they have a special duck parade at one of their historic hotels and we have friends there) and Atlanta (they have a wonderful aquarium) and then heading to Fla. It's going to shorten our stay at our ultimate destination, but we want it to be enjoyable as much as we can.

My daughter does not sleep in the car and will start whining after an hour that she wants her seatbelt off and wants to sit on my lap and wants to get down. I plan to have small "presents" on hand that are wrapped -- I heard this is really fun for them. I will have to remember not to hand over the gift if she breaks down crying, so I'm not positively reward bad behavior (but it will be hard)! :)

I also plan to bring CDs, DVD player, healthy snacks (carrots, dried fruit, crackers and things that won't weight her down or make her too antsy) and look for hotels that have pools so we can stretch our legs and be silly after hours of being in the car.

I hope this helps -- I am still brainstorming ideas -- and will check back to see if there are more good suggestions, too!

Have a great trip, C.!

Stop often as you can. You will need to stop for potty breaks anyway. Get new movies, bring kids cds, play games such as animal, mineral or veggetable. You can play the alphabet game where you have to find letters (in sequential order) on license plates or billboards. Have a good trip.