Surviving a Road Trip with Kids

We’re veterans of the “Road Trip” now! We are the ultimate powerhouse behind surviving a road trip with our kids. And we thrived throughout our summer road trip with our children. And they don’t hate us. We didn’t hate them. Want to know how we did it? Want to know the trick to survive a road trip with your kids?

Here are my tips for surviving a road trip with your kids:

1. Pack a cooler full of their favourite snacks and small meals. Fruits, trail mixes and granola bars are big hits with my children, so I was sure to have a lot on hand. The reason is – they like to snack and nothing is worse than being away from home, without their normal comforts and no cheese strings. God forbid there are no cheese strings or yogurt drinks!
2. Charge that iPad and iPhone at your accommodations or have a USB charger for the car because as much as we ask them to look out the window and play games like “I Spy” with us, it only lasts so long! Especially when you are spending 4-7 hours in one day driving, “I Spy” is incredibly boring for long periods. Spare me the “I’d never let my kids do that…”, I’d rather they zone out on downloaded episodes of Paw Patrol than yell at each other while I am driving on a highway in a place I’ve never been before.
3. Stop often for breaks. I know, it slows you down. You don’t get anywhere quickly but recognize that not everyone pees at the same time. Truthfully, not everyone needs to stretch their legs at the same time, not everyone wants lunch at the same time. Try to accommodate as much as possible by planning stops every couple hours. Seek out historical monuments in advance to make a stop out of… or a road stop with a big moose statue to pose for pictures at!
4. Let them eat the damn ice cream. Dessert every day is probably not the best idea, but dessert every other day while on vacation, especially if it’s a “try a new flavour” adventure might buy you a pass. And some peace and quiet.
5. Scream therapy. Allow me to explain this one. You’re in the wilderness, you’ve been in the car with your littles for a few hours, and they’re arguing about how long they have been in the car, what day it is, what to watch on the iPad, what colour the jack of hearts is (I know, I know…), and you need an outlet! you need to let it out! Get those frustrations out! It can become a game to see whose voice travels the farthest at a beach, in a valley, on a hill, by a waterfall, etc, etc, etc… think of how much better that will make you feel!
6. Take them on something they’ve never been on before to break up the road trip – for us, it was the Ms. Chi-Cheemaun ferry from Tobermory to South Baymouth on Manitoulin Island. Total novelty! See the video blog below.
7. Take them hiking in the wilderness. Run around on a beach. Wander around a marina and marvel at boats. Get them out and expend energy. All the energy. Let the kids run so hard and fast that they want to sleep when they are back in the car!

What about you? Any tips and tricks to add? What is your fail-safe survival technique?

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