Road Trip! 10 things your kids need in their car backpacks.
- Jen
- Apr 30, 2018
- 3 min read
We are no stranger to road trips. Addicus and I love them.
The Kids, however, are not always as excited for those things as we are... weird right? So we've spent years perfecting the 'car backpack' fillings. We've got it down to an art at this point. An art we're about to share with you... it's not a secret. You can totally share it too. In fact, share this exact post and spread the secret around.
First, we have found having a backpack that is ONLY for the car works best. Usually? We literally leave them in the car. So no matter where we go, a twenty hour drive down the left coast or a 10 min trip to the library, there's something to entertain and distract, if needed.
Right now those backpacks are ones my mother in law sent them for Xmas last year. She filled them with fun stuff, some of which is still used, some of which has been relieved of it's duty to this world.
Lets look at what they have in them now.
(this post contains affiliate links, opinions and recommendations are my own)
1. White board: on our first trip with white boards, my kids spent HOURS drawing. Yes. I had to snap pictures of everything they drew... but totally worth it for that much time without yelling or screaming.
2. Colored Markers: These just made the pictures more interesting... yes, each kid has a small set of colors... no need to share or beg for the last red marker.
3. Headphones: (we like this style cause they fold away for easy storage) On long trips and overnights, we're sure to pack their devices (iPad's, etc.), headphones mean that no one has to listen to #FlyBoy's Pokemon Go music or #WestWinds Talking Angela. It works in reverse too! When #MoonSeeker gets screamy cause she doesn't want to listen to the audio book we all picked out, she can put her headphone on.
4. Stick Bots: (this starter kit includes a phone holder for making videos) This set of stop motion bots checks TWO boxes. Yay! a: the kids play with them in the back seat. They characters talk to each other and have sometimes elaborate back stories and plot lines. b: They can use them, when we get to where we're going and actually make stop motion videos.
5. Snacks: My MIL put a sandwich bag with a small assortment in each bag and we've just been replenishing it before each trip. The great part here? Each kid packs their own car snacks. So there's NO chance it will be something they 'don't like'.
6. Squishies: If you're like us... they've literally taken over your house. So some of them go in the car backpacks. Car fun? Yes. Less mess in my house? Heck Yes!
7. Personal choice: each kids gets one or two, depending on how big the backpack is. Right now the choices are such- #WestWind: drawing supplies, #FlyBoy: Lego creature, #MoonSeeker: stuffed poop emoji.
8. Toiletries: A small bag with extra toothbrush, toothpaste and washcloth.
9. Game: we have buckets of small, travel games. Each kid picks one for their bag and we have 3 choices anytime we need to kill a few minutes... like waiting for food to arrive at a restaurant. Our favorites: Spot It, Story Cubes, Uno, BananaGrams
10. Water bottle: It NEVER fails. We get three miles down the road from our house and at least one child NEEDS a drink or they'll die, right there, in the backseat of my jeep. SO! Each kid has a spill proof water bottle that gets packed into the car bag before we leave. No deaths on THIS trip!
Leave a comment and let us know what your kids pack for a road trip.
Taps, taps. Lights out.
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