**We will very soon be taking a long car trip (in the 700 mile range). We considered purchasing a DVD player for the van, but decided against it for various reasons. I did purchase some new Your Story Hour cds as a surprise for the kids (love those!) but need some help with other ideas to keep everyone happy. Actually the biggest challenge will be keeping Beatrix happy. She’s such a car screamer. Any tips or ideas for keeping everyone occupied? We haven’t taken a road trip with the kids in almost two years. Last time we did this we only had three little ones. I would really appreciate your help!
Okay, on to my baby and those pants.
Evidently I shouldn’t have been wearing my favorite pajama pants yet. Was I ever really skinny enough to wear them? At any rate they got a big hole in the seat 🙂 So, I cut them up and made them into little pants for Beatrix. It’s easier to handle clothing getting ripped in embarrassing spots when that clothing can be repurposed in cute ways.
I also cut up an old shirt of mine and made it into pants for B-Rose as well. The fabric has a nice texture, but is a dull brown so I will probably perk these up with some embroidery at some point. Well, realistically, I probably will never get around to that. Anyway, these were so easy because I didn’t have to hem them-I just lined up my pattern with the bottom of the shirt.
B has a wee black eye. She fell in the bathtub. On Jonny’s watch of course 🙂
Would you look at those chickens. Love them- not their poop which is now everywhere. What to do?
And now back to my baby who won’t go to bed, and my attempt to finish up my rag dolls and squeeze in a little reading.
Shelly says
i love your blog! i love how creative and crafty you are, and i love your photos!your idea for the car trip is SUPERB! love the laminated cards… all of them!God bless!
Amanda Pedro says
best of luck on the driving!! We have a dual monitor dvd player, but have found that the age difference of the 2 kids makes that much of a difference to what they want to watch. So the dvd is mainly for the older one when the younger falls asleep. One of the favoured movies of both is home movies of when they were babies! Keeps them focused the longest.We made a ton of cds of our favorite songs. Mixed it up a bit. Books on cd are good also. there are a few rounds of knock knock jokes. (just got a good one from the library) and some eye spy games. And then there are times, when we just have a big jam session. I take out my harmonica or ukelele, if I remember it, and we sing till the cows come home. Hopefully after all of that, there will be some sleep and quiet.oh, I love the kid's pants. i want some too!!
eve says
for a long trip (i.e. more than 4 hours), we have found it best to travel at night. so if it's a 12 hour trip, we try to leave at 9 pm. if it's a 6 hour trip, we leave after midnight. the kids all sleep, and so do i! this way, you don't need any food or entertainment. much cheaper, and more time-efficient.(note: this really only works if you have a driver who is used to staying up all night, or who can take a huge nap before leaving and be totally good to go.)
Meghan says
We have been on many road trips with our almost 3 year old- from NC to IN and MI. Of course my bag of tricks has varied with the age but here are some favorites:-books (library or new)-aquadoodle travel side-memory cards (flashcards- shapes, animals etc.)-shoe laces and colored noodles to string-snacksI have bought a portable DVD player when on big sale last year but have never used it.
Sarah says
I go to the dollar store and buy things that I usually don't get. Weird toys, there was one that I got that was really squishy that I took for the cruise. Everyone was in awe of it, mostly the adults!! And I love the pants on B. Can't wait to see you! One more week 🙂
Colleen says
Hi, love your blog, and thanks for visiting mine! What an awesome family you have, how do you have time to sew too?? Amazing! For long trips, we always leave at 4 am if possible, and stick the kids in the car in their pajamas. They fall asleep, and we drive for a couple hours like that.Then we stop for breakfast around 7 and let them run around, change into real clothes, etc.We drive again and try not to stop until an early lunch time if everyone's patience and bladder can make it.I know lots of people make multiple rest stops, but we have found that once we let the kids out of the car, they are not too happy to get back in it.As for the screamin baby – just pray she'll sleep!!
BT says
We are not DVD-player-in-the-car people (so far). We adopted our two sons at ages 3.5 and 5.25, and almost immediately had to take an unexpected long car journey. We found out then what fantastic travellers they are. We instituted on that trip many traditions that we continue. We do the frequent rest-area stops, and make sure we have frisbee or balls to run and throw so everyone gets to stretch their legs a lot. We have mandatory bathroom use — not an option at rest areas! Everyone has their own water bottle. And my favourite: the box of fun. I pack lots of little new things appropriate to their ages. It is a big secret. Books, comics, some bubble gum, little toys that have the promise of keeping them occupied for awhile. After each rest stop (roughly every 2 – 2.5 hours), something comes out of the box of fun. Parents always pick. Kids shut eyes and open their hands and then get a surprise. It is such fun! And money well spent! I have gotten our older son started on a cross-stitch kit in this manner, and he loved it. We also do LOTS of books on CD or one of us parents reads aloud to the whole car. I'm not sure what to do with your youngest!
Aubrey says
I have no travel hints, as we haven't attempted more than a 200 mile trip with our kids. I'll be curious to hear how it goes! My brother and sister in law travel often with their young children–overseas flights, 800 miles here, 500 miles there–and they say they wouldn't do without their DVD player and lots of rest stops. Good luck!
crispy says
Try borrowing a DVD player instead of buying one. We also use leapsters (borrow those too). Books on cd are my fav for the car.
Anonymous says
Hey Ginny,My fil bought us a DVD player for our car when we had only the 3 kids…I was not too happy about it. Our kids had always been "good" in the car for trips, & we make a lot. Flash-forward 6 years later & with our "new" 12 seater that was one of the first things I had put in! It's great for long trips…watch a movie, play a game, read books, watch a movie, repeat cycle. If one of us needs to run an errand & we don't want to take all the kids into the store, pop in a short educational video in…etc, etc, etc. Isabelle, our worst traveler has gotten better now that she is facing forward & can watch the movies too. It's never something I would have gone & gotten to start with, but now I'm so thankful that we have it.Love,Cari
Annie says
I don't envy you the car trip. My children have all been sleepers. It is an enormous blessing!
Diane says
oh– (sorry.) We don't do car dvds either. The best thing (we found) is to bring a blanket and take snack/meal park/picnic stops (have a full cooler and snack bag!). Everyone can eat, potty, run and stretch all in one stop. They can be consolidated and they're very refreshing!
Diane says
I'm with you, hemming is the worst part. And, re-used material always make my favorite items. I once made a skirt out of my great-gramma's old bedsheet. It was a crazy green with a striped white floral pattern. (But hard to do with how thin they'd worn the sheet!)