12 hour car trip....advice

[Fashionably Green Baby]

Ok so I am leaving tomorrow for a funeral. It is a 12 hour drive and although I will have my sister to help on the drive there, I will be coming home by myself with my 3 kids. DH can't come

Anyhow, my kids are 7,3, and 15 months and I just need ideas on how to make the car rides easier. We are going straight through and both trips will unfortunately be done during the day.

The longest trip we have ever taken with the kids is 6 hours. Ok so give me your best advice!

[Only]

We did a 22 hour drive around the holidays and what my Mom and I did for the kids is make them each a little bag and filled it with different small things to entertain them. Mini etch a sketch, mini play doh, colors, etc.

Pack some candy, it saves you when everyone is having a melt down and wants to throw one another out the window! Even if it's only a lollipop.

ETA: Nooks were great, too if you have one!

[VinhThiMom]

We make little totes with papers, crayons, books, snacks. And now my kids are old enough they play apps on our phones or DS plays with his Nintendo DS.

[Fashionably Green Baby]

Oh a bag of goodies sounds good. I made them chalkboard mats last night to take and a crayon roll for chalk and crayons. I am leaving in the morning and I am super stressed

[PBAki]

That's long...no advice other than bring a potty if in case of an emergency and no closeby location with a bathroom.

We hate to rely on electronic devices but for such long trip it maybe worth it, the ones that can charge through the cigarette lighter of course. Portable DVD players are pretty awesome for that.

[VinhThiMom]

Oh yeah, we also had a portable DVD player. Unfortunately, DD gets car sick and can't do much in the car. We're taking a 12-hour car trip in a few weeks.

[MatildasMum]

Portable DVD player, fo sho.

Books, snacks, portable potty, comfy clothing including socks, pillow pet, favorite lovey, etc.

[tallanvor]

Audiobooks and music are big things for us. The kids always get a new book (at least one), and they bring a few toys. Sometimes we do electronic devices, and sometimes we don't. We play travel games. For food, we pack granola bars, fruit snacks, and some sort of fruit (this is usually eaten at whatever restaurant we stop at).

Make sure everyone gets out and walks around a bit when you stop, and make everyone go to the bathroom at each stop (within reason).

Oh, and ColorWonder is great for driving. Long trips are the only time we buy them, though we've not bought them the last couple trips we've made, but then, our kids are getting older (youngest is 5 now), so regular crayons or markers aren't as big of a deal in the car.

[Rhianna'sMommy]

My kids younger kids love the leap frog toys in the car - it is one of the few times dd2 is interested in practicing her letters.

We've done ispy bags or bottles in the car. Ispy bottles are easy to make - take an empty pop bottle, add small objects to spy and fill with rice. For the 15 month old leave about a 1/3 of the bottle empty so it shakes easy. Screw the lis on super tight or glue it on. We've done ABC beads in one for dd2 and animal beads for ds in bottles.

Those invisible ink activity books are always a hit because we never buy them unless heading out on a big trip.

We also have a dvd player in the car that helps a ton.

[mebl0901]

Snacks and toys! And definitely a portable DVD player - if you don't have one, see if you can borrow one from a friend? I would suggest getting some cheap toys from the dollar store or dollar bin at Target. Even if it's no big deal junk, it's new and exciting for a little while. It's not something I'd typically recommend but a 12 hr drive is an emergency situation!! Good luck!