I don’t know about you, but I loved Abby’s post with tips on traveling with kids.
You see, the littles and I are on a road trip right now driving from Montana to California for a two-week visit with Grammi and PopPop. So I followed a lot of her advice. I made homemade treats (like popcorn and soaked oatmeal bars), I packed a lot of organic fruit (pre-washed in apple cider vinegar), kombucha for everyone, and I packed a personal bag for each of the kiddos with a select group of toys and activities (coloring book and a few favorite dolls for imagination play for our little girl …board books and a plushy for the little guy).
But I also packed a secret weapon.
Our friend Lieana told me this story about a trip she took with her three kids from Montana to San Jose. She brought jump ropes with her and at every stop they made (to fill up or for a rest) they “competed” …how many jumps before we’re back in the car.
Genius!
A great release of pent-up energy from sitting in the car. A wonderful way to get endorphins pumping. And just plain fun!
But jumping rope is a tad advanced for a three year old and a one year old.
So I needed to find a way to adapt her idea.
And I think I nailed it.
Hoola hoops.
Three of them.
One adult size ($7.99 at Target) and two little ones ($5.99 each).
The best $19.97 I’ve spent in a long time.
At every gas station there seemed to be a small plot of grass …just big enough to plop the hoops down and start jumping. Lined up in a row, they make a great obstacle course. If mom holds them they become a tunnel. Raise them a few inches off the ground and it’s all of a sudden fun to see how high you can go and keep climbing through. It also seemed to be a fun game to play keep away from little brother.
So fun.
My camera stayed packed for most of this trip, but I wish I had taken pictures.
But alas, it was enough to just change a diaper, take one to the potty, eat a snack and hoop for 15 minutes and then hop back into the car without incident. (UPDATE: my potty trained princess didn’t have even ONE accident on this trip. Amazing.)
