Tips for peaceful long car drive with kids in the backseat

[Anonymous]

OP your kids are brats at that age 3 hours should be a no brainer

Pick some toys put them away in a bag just for car trips
Screens movies or shows downloaded to an iPad no brainer with headphones for them

Family music make a playlist you can all sing to in the car and do it. Have some fun with your kids

Snacks small bento type boxes they help fill before leaving same with drinks

This really is not hard

I have way more kids then you 4 boys 2 girls and never once had a car problem this is your mistake people who have these issues are lazy .

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here. They are 9 and 6. My ipad has no data plan, what can they do in the car ride? They are not carsick but just they are bored from looking at same scenery (trees, farms and a few houses) along the highway.

You download movies or shows to the iPad to be viewed offline. You don't need a data plan. But they don't stay downloaded forever, so you have to do it before every trip. Netflix, Disney+ etc all have this feature. We do a mix of movies and shows.

[Anonymous]

I think you can download games and still play on ipad

listen to family audio book

play games - geography, word games, I spy, etc

eat junk food

each pack a backpack with toys like rubics cube, stickers, fidgets etc.

Have a great attitude

[Anonymous]

We used to play punch buggy…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Screens and devices duh.

Actually I have found the key to be never letting kids use devices in the car. You give them paper and crayons, you listen to podcasts and music, you tolerate them saying "I'm bored." When they whine you tell them "when I was a kid I passed the time by looking at books or daydreaming." Eventually they learn to read and they read in the car, or draw, or listen to podcasts and music, or talk to each other or you.

Relying on devices guarantees they never figure out how to occupy themselves in the back of the car, it in a plane, or waiting in line, or during adult swim at the pool, or after school, or pretty much ever.

It's a short term solution and a long-term problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here. They are 9 and 6. My ipad has no data plan, what can they do in the car ride? They are not carsick but just they are bored from looking at same scenery (trees, farms and a few houses) along the highway.

Make the scenery more interesting by playing car games with them, download movies/shows to their iPads, put on an audio book or music they like to sing along to, have the 9yo read (either to themselves or aloud to the 6yo/family), get magnetic travel games (chess, Yahtzee, whatever they’ll enjoy), sticker books, puzzle books, etc.

[Anonymous]

Yotos for music and audio books (each kid has one). LED drawing pads. We do ipads eventually and i just hot spot off my phone and they have pbs games etc. They get tired off the screen after an hour anyway. Play iSpy and "rainbow cars". My oldest would read but she gets car sick from that eventually. We also do long drives after a big lunch (they fall asleep) or after bedtime. Longest was a 8 hr limited stop trip to Massachusetts. Left at midnight. Put the kids in the car sleeping. Dh and i traded right before NYC (bathroom and gas). And kids woke up at 7 in Providence for diner breakfast and then another couple hours to our destination. Kids are 4 and 8 but have done this drive several times.

[Anonymous]

If they are used to personal screens at home, limit them to almost nonexistent in the week before. Load them up with favorites and new movies.

We always had luck with little surprises from Dollar Tree. Every hour or state line, whichever came first, I’d pull out a “surprise”. It kept them occupied at least 15-20 minutes.

Snacks. Stuff they might not normally have a lot of at home. Even better if they can choose it from the gas station. Don’t give it to them until you’re back on the highway!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Screens and devices duh.

Actually I have found the key to be never letting kids use devices in the car. You give them paper and crayons, you listen to podcasts and music, you tolerate them saying "I'm bored." When they whine you tell them "when I was a kid I passed the time by looking at books or daydreaming." Eventually they learn to read and they read in the car, or draw, or listen to podcasts and music, or talk to each other or you.

Relying on devices guarantees they never figure out how to occupy themselves in the back of the car, it in a plane, or waiting in line, or during adult swim at the pool, or after school, or pretty much ever.

It's a short term solution and a long-term problem.

To each their own but this is an insane theory. Turns out you can both daydream and have time to use iPad!

I've found that the folks that put the most restrictions on iPad and screen use end up with the kids that are the most glued to them when they get them and then their kids are always asking to use them or for more time. When iPad use isn't reserved for special times or as a treat, it works out better for everyone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here. They are 9 and 6. My ipad has no data plan, what can they do in the car ride? They are not carsick but just they are bored from looking at same scenery (trees, farms and a few houses) along the highway.

honestly, parent better. Kids this age and in the age of portable electronics should be able to handle a 3.5 hr car ride and last a solid 5 hr without stops, jesus. Why do people allow their children to be whiny brats?

Download a few movies on the ipad and tell them to suck it up.

When I was growing up we drove from Boston to Myrtle beach with 3 kids across the backseat of a sedan.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op here. They are 9 and 6. My ipad has no data plan, what can they do in the car ride? They are not carsick but just they are bored from looking at same scenery (trees, farms and a few houses) along the highway.

honestly, parent better. Kids this age and in the age of portable electronics should be able to handle a 3.5 hr car ride and last a solid 5 hr without stops, jesus. Why do people allow their children to be whiny brats?

Download a few movies on the ipad and tell them to suck it up.

When I was growing up we drove from Boston to Myrtle beach with 3 kids across the backseat of a sedan.

Not OP, but it takes practice for kids (and parents!) to figure out this kind of thing. My family drove cross country when I was a kid — 5 8-hour days in the car with no A/C, no screens, and three kids ages 8, 9, and 11 — and we have fond memories of it. But we regularly did 4-8 hour drives to visit relatives so it wasn’t as big a deal as the very first time a 6yo has to sit still for 3 hours, especially if the parents also aren’t used to long trips and haven’t planned.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op here. They are 9 and 6. My ipad has no data plan, what can they do in the car ride? They are not carsick but just they are bored from looking at same scenery (trees, farms and a few houses) along the highway.

honestly, parent better. Kids this age and in the age of portable electronics should be able to handle a 3.5 hr car ride and last a solid 5 hr without stops, jesus. Why do people allow their children to be whiny brats?

Download a few movies on the ipad and tell them to suck it up.

When I was growing up we drove from Boston to Myrtle beach with 3 kids across the backseat of a sedan.

Not OP, but it takes practice for kids (and parents!) to figure out this kind of thing. My family drove cross country when I was a kid — 5 8-hour days in the car with no A/C, no screens, and three kids ages 8, 9, and 11 — and we have fond memories of it. But we regularly did 4-8 hour drives to visit relatives so it wasn’t as big a deal as the very first time a 6yo has to sit still for 3 hours, especially if the parents also aren’t used to long trips and haven’t planned.

At 9 and 6 kids go to school and have to sit still. We aren't talking 2 yr olds.
At 4 my kid took their first transpacific flight. Doesn't take the best parent in the world to figure out a few games for kids to survive 3.5 hrs in the car and even if they are "bored" I can't imagine my kids whining so much that we have to stop every hour.

and OP said they have never gone further than 1.5 hr with a 9 and 6 yr old... how is that possible. My commute home has taken longer than that...lol.

[Anonymous]

Op here. This is our 2nd road trip ever with kids. All of our relatives & grandparents live local, within 30 min. drive. Their schools are a few minutes away drive from home, and all of camps/classes are within 5 min to max 1 hr drive. I think the biggest 2 problems is DH listening to his favorite metal music while driving & the 6 year old talking nonstop/bothering 9 year old. I can't complain much because he is the driver, and he says that he wants to enjoy his drive listening to his music. No one loves that heavy metal music in the car, except him.

We are flying to CA from DC in August, and I have to make sure that they both have window seats to look at clouds.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here. This is our 2nd road trip ever with kids. All of our relatives & grandparents live local, within 30 min. drive. Their schools are a few minutes away drive from home, and all of camps/classes are within 5 min to max 1 hr drive. I think the biggest 2 problems is DH listening to his favorite metal music while driving & the 6 year old talking nonstop/bothering 9 year old. I can't complain much because he is the driver, and he says that he wants to enjoy his drive listening to his music. No one loves that heavy metal music in the car, except him.

We are flying to CA from DC in August, and I have to make sure that they both have window seats to look at clouds.

well your DH is an a**. I would be miserable in that car too.

Do you never travel? not even to the beach? I can't imagine 9 yrs of never going more than 1.5 hrs away. That is mind boggling to me.

And for the flight... bring devices with movies downloaded and noise canceling headphone. Save the other passengers from having to listen to your kids. because clouds will not entertain them for 6 hrs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here. This is our 2nd road trip ever with kids. All of our relatives & grandparents live local, within 30 min. drive. Their schools are a few minutes away drive from home, and all of camps/classes are within 5 min to max 1 hr drive. I think the biggest 2 problems is DH listening to his favorite metal music while driving & the 6 year old talking nonstop/bothering 9 year old. I can't complain much because he is the driver, and he says that he wants to enjoy his drive listening to his music. No one loves that heavy metal music in the car, except him.

We are flying to CA from DC in August, and I have to make sure that they both have window seats to look at clouds.

Oh wait.. I am a sucker. This is clearly a TROLL...lol good one.