Tips on keeping kids entertained while driving 15 hours to WDW o_O

MrsUqdah

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We will be driving to WDW in May 2014. This is the first time we will be driving this long. What are some good tips and ideas for keeping the family entertained and happy while driving. What games can we all play together. My kids are 14, 6 and 2. We have a DVD player in the van but I'm sure the kids will get bored with that after awhile. HELP!
 
I-Pods
I-Pads
Handheld video game system (Nintendo DS or the like)
Books
Coloring books (you can find and print out coloring pages, and word searches and all sorts of stuff on line).
Have frizbee or ball you can play with at rest stops. Take a break and let them run of some energy!:)
Boggle for the older kids
 
I-Pods I-Pads Handheld video game system (Nintendo DS or the like) Books Coloring books (you can find and print out coloring pages, and word searches and all sorts of stuff on line). Have frizbee or ball you can play with at rest stops. Take a break and let them run of some energy!:) Boggle for the older kids

Thanks Maxiesmom ;)
 
Colored pipe cleaners to make sculptures. Audiobooks. The game Rubberneckers. Mix it up. We even declare a nap time, which usually works out.
(My kids are 9 & 6 and haven't napped for awhile, but still will in the car. I think they like the way time "magically" passes while asleep.)
 

depending on time of year, look at colored pencils instead of crayons. missed crayon on seat while stopped for lunch. ruined seat and pair of shorts, brand new. could not remove melted crayon from seat of van. other thing my grandsons love are the "magic" marker books where the you color an area and the hidden picture comes out. younger kids loved making things out of pipe cleaners. we have to watch the time spent reading and watch videos as a couple of the kids get car sick. car chargers for any elec game sets and phones. unless asleep, everyone must get out and walk to bathroom at every stop. if room to safely run a little then add to stop. if stopping for night on way stop early enough to swim or some active time before bed
 
depending on time of year, look at colored pencils instead of crayons. missed crayon on seat while stopped for lunch. ruined seat and pair of shorts, brand new. could not remove melted crayon from seat of van. other thing my grandsons love are the "magic" marker books where the you color an area and the hidden picture comes out. younger kids loved making things out of pipe cleaners. we have to watch the time spent reading and watch videos as a couple of the kids get car sick. car chargers for any elec game sets and phones. unless asleep, everyone must get out and walk to bathroom at every stop. if room to safely run a little then add to stop. if stopping for night on way stop early enough to swim or some active time before bed

I love the "magic" marker book idea for my 2 year old :) and the color pencils instead of crayons. THANKS!!!
 
When the kids were little and we did road trips I would make little gift bags for them. Paper sacks with a few things I thought each child would like. That way I could customize things by age and interest. Harder puzzles for the older children and easy ones for the youngest. Also a magazine such as Tiger Beat or Highlights. A couple snacks to start out the trip, and a little spending money. It is always fun to spend your own $10 at a rest stop on goodies.
 
Model Magic by Crayola is a play-dough alternative that is super clean and won't leave crumbs. Then you can either put it back in the container or let it dry and keep the sculpture. Blending two colors together to make a new one takes a good long time too.

Sometimes we try to find a semi in every color of the rainbow, if your 2 year old knows colors, they can help keep an eye out. My DD also spent one summer tallying all the different colors of semis she saw on the road, then figured out which colors were most and least common.

Most license plates around here have 3 letters, so we try to make phrases that start with those three letters. For example if we see "MOZ" someone might say it stands for "Mom's Other Zebra". Or think of a word that has those three letters, and in that order.

We also have the game Rubberneckers, but don't really follow the rules or scoring, and don't do the cards that have you interacting with people in other vehicles! It's still fun. Or, you can just make up your own lists of things to try to spot.
 
Model Magic by Crayola is a play-dough alternative that is super clean and won't leave crumbs. Then you can either put it back in the container or let it dry and keep the sculpture. Blending two colors together to make a new one takes a good long time too. Sometimes we try to find a semi in every color of the rainbow, if your 2 year old knows colors, they can help keep an eye out. My DD also spent one summer tallying all the different colors of semis she saw on the road, then figured out which colors were most and least common. Most license plates around here have 3 letters, so we try to make phrases that start with those three letters. For example if we see "MOZ" someone might say it stands for "Mom's Other Zebra". Or think of a word that has those three letters, and in that order. We also have the game Rubberneckers, but don't really follow the rules or scoring, and don't do the cards that have you interacting with people in other vehicles! It's still fun. Or, you can just make up your own lists of things to try to spot.

Thanks for the ideas :)
 
We also have the game Rubberneckers, but don't really follow the rules or scoring, and don't do the cards that have you interacting with people in other vehicles! It's still fun.

Yeah, we keep 5 or 6 cards "live" at any time, and keep one team score. We started doing that last piece a few trips ago, and keep the final score written down -- so "Southbound Sept. 2012" was our highest score, for instance... :goodvibes
 
We make up state bags. Paper bags that contain little gifts/snacks/activities for each state we enter. The dollar store is were most of the items are purchased. We usually pick up travel games, coloring activity, trivia game etc. and for snacks we have done fruit snacks, favorite candy, small bag of chips and a juice box. My favorite bags are the bedtime ones that contain a small bag of teddy grahams, milk, ear plugs and an eye mask!
 
We make up state bags. Paper bags that contain little gifts/snacks/activities for each state we enter. The dollar store is were most of the items are purchased. We usually pick up travel games, coloring activity, trivia game etc. and for snacks we have done fruit snacks, favorite candy, small bag of chips and a juice box. My favorite bags are the bedtime ones that contain a small bag of teddy grahams, milk, ear plugs and an eye mask!

Thanks Gritzel4...that's a great idea!
 



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