How to make kids comfortable on long car ride

[mrsmillar]

So we are taking our twin 4 year olds to disney for the first time, along with it being our first long car ride as well. We are leaving after work around 6pm and plan on having the kids sleep through the night. Any suggestions on how to make them more comfortable in their carseat? I read using pool noodles for a "footrest", anything else? We are also purchasing dual headrest DVD players so they can watch movies, but I need more ideas. We will stop for potty breaks and to stretch our legs but thats it. We will be going to the beach for one day and staying over night then heading to WDW early the next day. Its about 16.5 hours to the beach and then another 2 to get to WDW.

 

[rachellm]

Good luck with your road trip!

I'd make sure to have whatever pillows/blankets/stuffed animals that your kids like to sleep with (or if they're like my kids and have a whole toy store in bed maybe just a favorite.) I'd plan to stop 30 minutes or so before their normal bedtime to get into pjs. Than let them watch a movie until they fall asleep.

We did a 2 day road trip last summer and here are some of the things that helped:

- Lots of snacks. This is probably the most important thing!
- Bring a few new toys that they've never seen
- The colorwonder crayola stuff is great for car rides. We got lap trays and coloring was a good activity.
- Make some kid playlists to have ready
- You could consider books on tape for everyone to listen to

 

[plutoplanet]

What about a younger baby like 8 months old in November. Any ideas for being comfortable, music playlists, things to do or to look at...

 

[left210]

We just got back from a 16 hour trip. I brought lots of new stuff and had just purchased a new dual DVD player that plays two different movies at the same time. It was a hit and that is mostly what my 10 and 2 yr old did the whole trip. You will need to get headphones if you are going to play two different movies at the same time. We took rest breaks at rest areas as much as possible so the kids could get out and run vs. just walking around at a restaurant or gas station. That seemed to go over much better than just getting in and out. We also had some favorite snacks. Good luck. I will warn you - it felt like the last 3 hours were the worst for all of us. Those 3 hours seemed to take forever. Have fun.

 

[mphalens]

I tend to pack food like a loaf of bread, pb & j ... and we stop in rest areas and I let the kids run and kick a ball around and then stop for a sandwich instead of doing restaurants if I can ...

We usually make the trip at night too... pj's ... movies ... they each have a snuggie that they can wear after they're buckled in their carseat, which is great! They're each allowed one stuffed animal. I try to load new music, apps, etc. on the ipods for them ... they each have a pair of Disney kid headphones (they have volume control so they can't hurt their eardrums AND a mute button!) ... If there's a new Leapster game they've been wanting and I have the $$$ to spend I might get a new game to throw in the mix ... we take leapsters and tags with us on car trips...

We also usually stop at a cracker barrel for breakfast first thing the next morning ... they don't bat an eye when we walk in with pj's on and hit the bathrooms before we are seated ... and it's a real breakfast and a chance for us all to wake up

 

[MSSANDRA]

I would try to change events to let them know it is "bed time'. Perhaps stop for a snack and bathroom break and maybe even put on pj's. Perhaps do this about an hour past regular bedtime so they should be very tired. Avoid caffine and extra sugar in the hours leading up to bedtime. Try to make the car as much like bedtime as possible. A story? music? quite and dark?

I would also be sure they are in car seats that are safe to sleep in. 5-point harness are the best for 4 year olds. In a seat belted booster, they really must sit pretty much straight up with feet down to be safe. Lots more wiggle room with a 5 point harness.

Good luck!!!

 

[Nanu57v]

We did it a little different...left at 3am and drove until 6pm, then stopped for the night an hour South of Savannah, GA. (We live in Central PA). Then it was just a couple hours the next day to WDW. My kids were 5 and 15 months (still rear-facing) at the time. I bought a new toy for the baby...and packed lots of books. Our van has a DVD player, but the baby couldn't see it and we didn't actually use it until we were almost home for the oldest. I would recommend some sort of foot rest...DD6 seems uncomfortable with her feet dangling. She's only 40 pounds so we still have her in a car seat. Goldfish crackers. Drinks. Ball or frisbee for rest stops.

 

[squirrel]

They make nice travel pillows (the ones that are shaped like a C). Those might work nice for the kids so their heads don't flop onto their chests.

Wrap up a few new toys/activites and hand one out to each of the kids when they start getting restless.

Try to pack some items under their feet so they have a place to rest their feet instead of them dangling all night and day. Duffle bag with just clothes inside (Pack extra outfits if any of your children get carsick).

Ball, bubbles are great for rest stops.

Movies, music and books are also great to help pass the time.

 

[mom2princesss]

We don't have quite as long a drive but it is still a trek for us. We make sure each of our girls have their regular pillow, stuffed animal and their "lovie" blanket. I also recline their car seats so they aren't sitting bolt upright for the drive.

We have the DVD player too. I also make up bags for the girls in the weeks leading up to the trip that have new and fun things for them to do in the car. I get colored pencils(don't melt like crayons!), coloring book, activity pad, stickers. I found these little wooden block and elastic things last time and they played for hours with those. Magnet play sets are also a big hit with them.

 

[mrsmillar]

Thanks for all the good ideas. I like the one were I can wrap new toys and when they get restless have them open one. Someone mentioned a lap tray, what kind of tray did you get?

 

[Debyule]

They make travel pillows for kids and they are done in animals (we have a duck and a dragon). My MIL bought us some a few years ago (we do an 18 hour drive during the summer and the holidays) and they are so much better than regular pillows. We also like to pick up a few new movies for the drive, that way they aren't getting bored with movies they've seen a hundred times. Grapes are great car snacks, as well as apple slices, celery, and carrots, and are less messy than crackers. CDs of kid's sing-a-longs are great for when they start to get fussy - helps distract them. Also pack an extra set of clothes and pj's that are easily accessible in case of accidents on the road. Same for a towel or two.

 

[3pletprincesses]

We just drove 27 hours each way last month with our 4yo triplets. The drive is actually 24 hours but with stops it turned out to be 27. It was such a nice drive to be honnest. We had the movies going all day and would close the DVD at bed time. Right before bed time, we stopped to have a snack, change into pj and pee break and they knew it was bedtime. We had those C shape pillows for their heads and it was useless. they thought it was annoying and hot. We brought bags of small goodies for the girls with new toys, stickers, sticker book, markers, coloring books, snacks, pipe cleaners etc... Everytime we would stop, we would give them a few more things to add to their bags of goodies. The weren't bored nor complained that it was long becasue they were too busy playing. We had little lap tables in a upside down U shape that they could put their stuff in the compartments on the side like their books and crayons and it was easier to set down when it was time to stretch. We also brought a small cooler with drinks and food for everyone to keep the stops to a minimum. it was great. We connected a plastic bag to their car seat on the side for garbage purpose. Our drive back home, they were soo tired from Disney that they slept most of the trip. I mentionned we might dirve back down again and they all for it.

 

[rachellm]

We used this tray

http://www.amazon.com/Star-Kids-Sna...ie=UTF8&s=baby-products&qid=1308237721&sr=8-1

I wanted a soft tray that would collapse and bend in an accident.

 

[ccstrickler]

Radio Disney on XM. Put the speakers on in the back. Tolerate it as long as you can!

 

[Jynxed]

Posted wrong thread!

 

[tlbwriter]

The c-shaped pillows are great if they're small or squishy enough - if they're too big, they're pretty useless.

We used this tray

http://www.amazon.com/Star-Kids-Sna...ie=UTF8&s=baby-products&qid=1308237721&sr=8-1

I wanted a soft tray that would collapse and bend in an accident.

What a great idea! I hadn't seen these before.

Radio Disney on XM. Put the speakers on in the back. Tolerate it as long as you can!

If you have an iPhone, there's a free app that streams Radio Disney. Then all you need is for parental sanity is headphones. My daughter has a small pillow that's actually a speaker that she can plug her iPod into, since headphones get old after a while.

 

[Bren's Mom]

Depending on the size of your car and the room available in your car...bean bag chairs can work very well for kids feet. They're soft, they'll mold into the footwell space, and large enough that they should give them definite leg support.

 

[bjensen25]

We travel a fair bit mostly to visit family. We have a 3.5 year old and our vehicle has the dvd player. We bring along her favorite disney dvds and she is good to go. The last hour or so she usually needs a break so we will stop for a small treat to recharge and we are good to go again!! We bring along a small pillow for when she falls asleep so her head doesnt keep bobbing around.

 

[amym2]

I would try to change events to let them know it is "bed time'. Perhaps stop for a snack and bathroom break and maybe even put on pj's. Perhaps do this about an hour past regular bedtime so they should be very tired. Avoid caffine and extra sugar in the hours leading up to bedtime. Try to make the car as much like bedtime as possible. A story? music? quite and dark?

I would also be sure they are in car seats that are safe to sleep in. 5-point harness are the best for 4 year olds. In a seat belted booster, they really must sit pretty much straight up with feet down to be safe. Lots more wiggle room with a 5 point harness.

Good luck!!!

Ditto the 5pt harness suggestion. When my kids were in these, they were willing to sleep in the car. Now that they are both in boosters, they absolutely will not sleep in the car, there is just no safe way to be comfortable. And I don't blame them, I can't imagine getting any decent sleep in a car. I've tried sleeping with a neck pillow both in a car and overseas on a plane and for me, it's worse than no pillow. I know they work for some, but my kids didn't like them either. I'd take along anything you think might help but also be prepared that they might need naps the next few days to make up for sleep. And you likely will, too!

 

[iheartdisney]

Radio Disney on XM. Put the speakers on in the back. Tolerate it as long as you can!

For 4 year old, I would be more in favor of Kids Place Live than Radio Disney, especially outside of the morning block.

We have moved from coast to coast FIVE times, so I know a bit about long drives with the kiddos (they aged from 5 months to 6 years during that span)
One of my best tips for a long trip is to hit up the thrift store and get a couple of "goodie bags." Most thrift stores will sell misc. small toys in a baggie for a dollar or two- old McDonalds toys and random stuff like that. Grab a few of those, it really breaks up the boredom! And when you get home, just sweep them into a bag and back to the thrift store they go!
I second stopping at Cracker Barrell, just to sit down and have a real meal, and then let the kids pick a small something from the store. Again, just to break up the boredom!
Do they have leapsters or DS or something? Keep the batteries fresh, and maybe buy a few new games (but ones that they can figure out! Nothing like trying to explain how to play a game from the drivers seat!)
Also a reminder about snacks and juices...what goes in has to come out! So control the drinks unless you are planning lots and lots of rest stops!!
To the PP who asked how to entertain a baby on a long trip...I have the best Cracker Barrell story there too! After the seconf day, my 4 month old daughter was not having it anymore, so when we stopped at Cracker Barrell, my dad bought a sparkly windchime and hung it in the back window of the minivan above her head. It was MAGICAL! and her windchime still hangs in her bedroom!!!