travel tips with toddlers - cars

photo taken on Independence Pass in Aspen, Colorado

We drive everywhere.  You don't have a choice when you live 4.5 hours from the nearest city.  Thank goodness we like to take car trips.  Our honeymoon was spent driving the coast line from the tip of Oregon down to San Francisco and then home.  With kids things get more complicated and the older they get, the more you have to plan.  The baby is easy.  She is content lying in the car seat, watching her brother while playing with various hanging toys.  If we choose not to stop I bottle feed her while my husband drives the car.  Our 3.5 year old is another story.  I am jealous of the families who claim to drive across the country with only music and books.  I am not one of those moms.  I rely on the dvd player for part of the time, music during breaks and a cache of books/toys mixed with a few surprises.  Here are my tips for surviving a long journey:

• borrow or trade with friends.  Trade books, videos, small toys with friends whose kids are similar in age.  The goods are new to your child but you don't have to spend money or buy more toys you don't need.  If you don't have this option hit the consignment shops for used items.
  
• download favorite television shows off the web.  We did this for a long car ride and it worked really well.  They only last 20-25 minutes which allows everyone to take a break to talk, laugh, sing or hit the nearest rest stop for leg stretching and potty time.  Downloads are often under $2.99 per and your child will ask to watch the same one over and over - so there is no need for a collecting lots of episodes.
  
• get headphones for your child.  My little guy started wearing headphones at 1.5 years old.  Whether they are listening to their favorite music or story on cd or watching a dvd; this has saved my sanity.  The adults can have a conversation or listen to their favorite music without competing with the children.  They make inexpensive kid earphones which are sold at many major stores.  I think ours cost less than $10 and has a volume control.
• a mirror to view the backseat.  We got one with a clip so it can be moved around.  This saves the chore of unbuckling yourself from the passenger seat belt to turn around.  You can see if they are in need, asleep or fooling around.  Saves the neck.

Things that never worked for me:

• a bag filled with books, toys, etc.  This is a bit deceiving as we do take a bag with stuff but don't put it in his reach.  Placing a box or bag full of items next to the child has never worked for us.  My boy loves to take everything out of the bag immediately then drop them in the foot well for me to retrieve.  (fun game for him!) Bending backwards to pick up items proved to be unsafe for me (no seat belt) and no fun.  I put the bag of goodies in a place I can reach them easily but can't be thrown all over the vehicle.  A one-toy-at-a-time rule is enforced. 
• car seat desk / caddy.  I bought one and after trying it numerous times have found it to not work well.  This may not be the case for all kids but mine just doesn't like it.  He would rather place items between his legs and have the room to move than the hard surface a caddy offers to color or write.  And his crayons would roll off causing lost items resulting in crying for more "colors". 
• neck pillow.  I got one but he hates it.  I wish I could find a solution for his bobbing neck and head during sleep time but I don't have an answer for this one.  Do you?  

If anyone out there has a great tip for car travel - add it here.  I would love to update this post with more information.