In the Backseat

Let's say, hypothetically, that you were planning to take your two kids on a roadtrip.  A 12 hour road trip.  Let's up the ante and say that these two kids were one and a half and three and a half year old boisterous boys.  Would you be nervous? No, you wouldn't.  Would you go on Pinterest to find some ideas for entertaining the little guys, and then hit up the dollar store to implement these ideas?  You betcha!  So, here's a quick look at the drive.  Pictures of the actual visit will come at a later date.

 My first step was to take the boys to the park near our house, and then proceed to tire (pun!) them out as much as possible.  After we got back home, no they were not allowed inside...they stayed outside and played more!  Then we carb loaded on their favorite mac and cheese for lunch until Zach got home and we hit the road.  I thought these steps would almost guarantee a three hour nap from each of them, but that was not the case.  Alas.  We did get a solid hour out of Owen and about two from Caelum, and every minute helps when you've got a long way to go. 

 I asked Zach to string a rope between the handles and put my little blue car mock-up on it.  We moved the car the appropriate amount for each hour, so that the boys would have a visual of how much more we had to go, and hopefully keep Owen from asking, "How much longer until we're at Uncle Joel's house?" as is his tendency.  They loved seeing the car make progress and I think it helped them see just how very long the trip would be.  The other Pinterest idea I used was bringing along pipe cleaners and a colander.  What a hit!  This was probably the favorite activity and they were very entertained with the hats Daddy made and threading the pipe cleaners through the colander.  Caelum particularly enjoyed the part of the trip with lollipops.

 Another great Pinterest idea was punching balloons.  We tied them right to the rope between the handles and the boys went crazy for them.  It did not take long for one of them to pop, but the other made it the whole way there and back.  The boys were able to throw it to each other, kick it, and of course punch it like madmen.

 A nice long break at Cracker Barrel was helpful too.  My favorite part of it was the mom sitting at the table next to us (toddler was sitting next to her), who had a giant marijuana leaf tattooed on her forearm.  Welcome to Indiana, folks!

 I brought a bin of toys from the playroom, which Caelum quickly emptied.  Boo for boring old toys that have been seen before!  Bring back the lollipops!

 Playing Peek-A-Boo with blankets is always fun. It came in handy for the trip home when I realized I hadn't saved much for the drive back. 

 But of course the best thing about playing with blankets is when the child falls asleep while still "hiding" underneath it.  Our plan worked, Caelum.

 Zach and I both felt like the 12 hour drive was definitely long, but doable for a holiday weekend.  To sum up, we made great time and the boys enjoyed most of the ride.  We pulled out all the stops: books, books on tape, coloring books, little crafts, a band-aid free-for-all for their stuffed animals or selves, and a disgusting amount of snacks.  Owen watch one movie each way, but otherwise we didn't have to resort to that as much as I had thought.  And finally, when all else failed, we pumped the music loud and the air guitars came out in full force.