tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6191855643434963173.post4288457685288069638..comments2023-05-23T11:07:36.240-04:00Comments on MichiGal: Road Trip! 5 Mom-Inspired Driving Tipsalyaia75http://www.blogger.com/profile/12426016206260065847noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6191855643434963173.post-54295031884632438982012-02-12T14:15:42.721-05:002012-02-12T14:15:42.721-05:00These are all great tips. I make sure I leave plen...These are all great tips. I make sure I leave plenty of time available while we are on the road to spot and see the attractions and views. I like to make those stops so the kids can get out and stretch their legs. I bring plenty of snacks and entertainment with me as well. My iPad becomes a lifesaver on the road when it comes to entertaining the kids. From what a co-worker at DISH told me, I can now stream my Blockbuster@home service on my iPad. Now I won’t have to download movies and they can play games, and watch TV. With the Sling Adapter hooked up to my receiver I can access all our subscription channels from anywhere I am. The kids can watch all their favorite shows live from anywhere we can get a Wi-Fi connection. I strap it to my headrest and the kids are set for the trip.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6191855643434963173.post-214918364020818572012-01-26T21:36:45.881-05:002012-01-26T21:36:45.881-05:00I've done that cross-country drive with childr...I've done that cross-country drive with children *many* times... and with four children... at least 3 times... plus several 10-18 hour drives. We've done it since we had just one baby and now our kids are 13, 11, 8 & 6. I agree with everything you've suggested. Running around at rest stops has become a favorite part of trips for us. We've found frogs, had different kinds of races, thrown balls and frisbees, and sometimes have 'challenges' (balance on something, only hop around the building, etc.) I'll bring new surprises (almost always a new dvd they haven't seen) that I can pull out in intervals. I try not to wait until they're too far gone before I give them... Sometimes I set a little alarm and every 3 hours I'll pull something out. New pencils, lip balm, car games, the dvd, a new book, etc. I'll also bring snacks and treats that I don't usually buy - just to make the idea of driving fun!! If I'm on top of things enough before we leave, I'll even wrap things so that they have another element of surprise. I *LOVE* to get books on cd from the library and we'll always listen to at least one as a family during road trips. You can find things that will satisfy most everyone all at once. My family loves to do this. I also keep a myriad of magazines, activity books, etc in the van so that there is always *something* they can do. When it gets dark and late, we'll play soft, classical music so that they can go to sleep (or at least have some peaceful time if they don't.) We try to intersperse bits of trivia as we travel, talking about things that we are passing. If we have the time, we do our best to make it to famous or interesting landmarks. For a while, we were taking the kids picture in front of every state sign (Welcome to ...) that we passed. Sadly, we haven't done it every time, so there are many states we don't have pics of... but that is always really fun.<br /><br />I hope that your trip this summer is super memorable - not only the drive, but also the *destination*!! ;-)ThurberGanghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16263308711119430242noreply@blogger.com