Chelsea Kaplan’s Musings About Life... After Birth
Posted by Chelsea on August 18, 2008
Long car trips with kids are about as enjoyable as visits from your mother-in-law (well, not if you’re Momtourage member Alison, because hers, Grandmomtourage member Marcia, is awesome). Whether it’s watching four straight hours of Dora, stopping for 15 potty breaks or enduring screams from your baby until you find a rest stop at which you can feed him, car rides with the kids can be so excruciating that you’re tempted to bag family car trips until your kids are in middle school.
There are a few road trip essentials that can make your car trip easier, however. Here are three of my favorites:
1) Munchkin Car Bottle Warmer, $6.39, amazon.com
Store your bottles cold, but when it comes time for a feeding, pop one into this handy warmer, which plugs into any car adapter outlet. Bonus: it also works for baby food jars as well! And don’t worry about leaving it plugged in amidst the chaos - there’s an safety switch that shuts off the warmer when the bottle or jar is removed.
2) Sony DVPFX810/L Portable DVD Player, $129.99, amazon.com
When we got our SUV (I know, I know, I am contributing to the destruction of the planet…. but seriously, it holds so much stuff and so many people!), my husband and I opted to not add the built-in DVD player. Initially, I regretted the decision, but now, I realize that if we had it, each and every car ride with Big Bro would involve begging to watch “Bigfoot Presents: Meteor and the Mighty Monster Trucks”. With a portable DVD player, however, you get to control when the viewing opportunities present themselves. For a total “serenity now” moment, invest in some headphones as well.
3) Toy catalogs
When your kids have had their fill of movies, bust out the reading material. Because books can be a little short (read: not sufficiently attention-holding), I always have a stack of toy catalogs on hand. Nothing keeps big bro occupied more than looking at toy catalogs; honestly, he can leaf through one for a good 45 minutes. To get yourself hooked up, go to some of your favorite toy brands’ websites (try learningcurve.com, step2.com and intplay.com) and request a catalog of their products or hang on to those One Step Aheads that come in your mailbox every week..
What are your car-trip survival tips?
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on a long drive from dallas to hot springs, arkansas, my mom kept my little brother and i (i think we were about 5 and 7? something around there) entertained by giving us small presents every hour. i remember one of them being a little keychain flashlight. they were wrapped, so we loved that, and i also loved to read, so she had a stack of books for me too.
You never know when 129.99 would save the trip. Good choice!!
I bet you could get the player for 110. that would be a better deal!
Toy is a must, especially for long drive. I remember my son asked million questions along the way. And better to have two kids together - make sure they won’t fight or - it’ll be worse!!
I have heard about the Munchkin Car Bottle Warmer, but it has pros and cons. The pros are that you can heat up a bottle during a car vacation, which is most mothers’ dream, and it has safety switch that shuts off the warmer when the bottle or jar is removed. The cons are slow warming, burnt though the heating band. It is said that the heating band is burning through the plastic and is very slow to warm up before the burning problem…
Besides Amazon, Can I get the bottle warmer in any store??
The Portable DVD Players looks cute.!
I would love to have that portable DVD. But I don’t think it’s practical for me to buy one.
-M from Mexico
When my munchkin was still a “wee little munchkin”, I taook photos of her favorite people and things (relatives, pets, the Sesame Street show we went to, etc.) and put them in a small photo album. I kept it in the glove box and pulled it out only on car trips or grocery store visits. She loved looking at all her favorite things in one glorious collection.
I like the Portable DVD Players!
A Portable DVD player is really very essential. I have one for my daughter, she gets bored easily so i bought her dvds of her favorite cartoons so she could watch it while were on a car trip.
Another must-have is the car seat cover by nomie baby. It is a comfy, cozy, removable, washable and waterproof cover for infant and toddler/convertible car seats. No more crying over spilled milk - or worse! The nomie baby car seat cover is ideal for messy kids, all of them, as well as those who tend to get car sick! This makes cleaning up a snap. Simply slip the nomie baby off, throw it in the washing machine and dryer, and start all over again without having to take the car seat out of the car or wrestle to remove the straps! Another plus is the price at $34 it’s a definite must-have!
Enjoy the Happy-mess!
The travel tips are useful.Another is know first what your kids favorite past time so that you can make adjustments on what to bring, to avoid heavy luggage while traveling.
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The longer a trip lasts, the more people can get on each other’s nerves, especially in a cramped car. If you’re going to be out for a while, build some time into each day’s schedule for everyone to split up and do his or her own thing.
An electrical adapter may enable connection of a socket used in one region to a plug used in another by offering connections for the disparate contact arrangements.Windows 7 Drivers