Over the river and through the woods to grandmother’s house we go!  It’s the holiday season and that means lots of road trips to the relatives’ homes.  Here are some of our favorite tips and ideas to help the kiddos pass the time quickly and comfortably while you’re on the road this year.

Snacks: Our kids get hungry the minute we buckle them into their seats, so we always make sure we have snacks with us.  We bring snacks that fit easily inside of small Tupperware containers or snacks that are easily self-contained.  We try to stick with snacks that aren’t too salty or sugar-loaded.  The last thing you want to do is give your child lots of sugar when they’ll have no way to burn it off while strapped into the back seat of the car.  Some of our favorite snacks to bring along are raisins, crackers, granola bars, string cheese, low-sugar cereals, and mini-bagels.

Drinks: While every kid would probably prefer juices or soda over water, we always bring water for car trips.  Here’s our theory anyway: When kids have sweet drinks, they’ll drink it up fast and ask for more.  With water, they drink only what they need.  The result, fewer potty breaks during your long drives and no sugar-hyped kids.  Avoiding salty snacks also cuts down on how much your kids will drink.  We don’t do juice boxes or any kind of “squeezable” containers to cut don’t on potential spills or messes.  Instead we use hard sided water bottles (BPH free of course) that have one way straws.  We’ve also use kids Nalgene bottles that have worked well too.

Car Games: Bringing along simple travel games always helps pass the time and makes the trip more of a family event.  Our favorite game is Rubberneckers Junior.  It’s a fun little card game that involves picking a card from a deck and finding the item pictured on the card somewhere inside or outside of the car.  The cards are colorful and fun and really make the kids look outside the window and observe what’s around them.

Soft, lightweight fleece blankets: Last year, my mom made small, lightweight fleece blankets in fun kids patterns (race cars and rockets).  Our kids love taking them places with them. When they’re in the car they use them keep warm and snuggle with.  It just adds a nice touch of comfort to otherwise long rides in uncomfortable car seats.

Music: A must! We often have sing-alongs as we’re driving down the highway.  Our kids love having “their own” music, but we’ve been careful to pick out good CD’s that don’t drive mom and dad crazy either.  Some of our favorites are Dan Zane’s and Friends “For the Kids“, “For the Kids Too” and “For the Kids III“.  These CD’s are fantastic and contain a variety of songs from artists you probably listen to every day like Sarah MacLachlan, Barenaked Ladies, Jason Mraz, Five for Fighting, etc.  Other CD’s that work pretty well are the Backyardigans, Hot Peas n Butter and Laurie Berkner.

Audio Stories: Sometimes its nice to listen to stories as well as music.  It keeps their attention level up and keeps both the kids and us entertained.  Some of our favorites are Shel Silverstein’s “Where the Sidewalk Ends“, The Polar Express (read by Liam Neeson), When the Leaf Blew In, The Hiccupotamus, Fox Makes Friends, and the Kipper Story Collection.

Play I Spy: When things get to the point that you need to make up a game, you don’t always have to resort to the “Who can stay quietest the longest” game.  We play lots of I Spy.  It’s simple, keeps the kids looking for things out the window and it’s always entertaining to see what our 3-year old makes us look for.

DVD Movies: As a last resort, you can always fall back on the old trusty portable DVD player.  While not our first choice for entertainment, it’s always a good option when mom and dad need a break.  We try to keep the DVD selections short and light.  Some of our favorite travel DVD’s are the Little Mammoth video series, Leap Frog Math Circus, Letter Factory and the Talking Words Factory.  Our kids also love the old Muppet Show and have recently started watching old Looney Tunes compilations that keep them laughing too.

Well, those are our “secrets“.  Hope they help you on your travels this year.  And, if you have others to add to the list, please share them.  We’re always looking for new ideas especially when it comes to long car trips.