Travel trays for kids while driving?

[mommy2paris]

Has anyone bought or used something similar to this?
http://www.fisher-price.com/fp.aspx?st=900002&e=storeproduct&pid=39015&section=on_sale_view_all

We were thinking of getting these for our dd's, almost 2 & 4 when we travel in December. With airlines the way things are going, we have pretty much decided to drive, unless we get a great ding later on.

I thought the trays would be nice to allow them to color on etc...

Just wondering how something like this has worked our for others. Thanks!

 

[MNdisneymom]

I had that exact one when my ds 5 was little...It is very small, won't fit even a coloring book on it. The cushioning is nice, but that's about it. (Maybe for your younger one it might be ok?)

There is one at One step ahead that I like though...it is bigger, has sides so crayons can't roll off, and is a collapsible foam (in case of crash, god forbid, nothing hard.)

 

[mlynn]

I'm going over to Micheals crafts tonight. They have the plastic media trays. 2 for $10 this week. I'm going to get them

http://www.michaels.com/art/online/displayProductPage?productNum=kd0947

 

[Leonsmom]

I'm going over to Micheals crafts tonight. They have the plastic media trays. 2 for $10 this week. I'm going to get them

http://www.michaels.com/art/online/displayProductPage?productNum=kd0947

That is the same one we have only with Pixar CARS on it. We've had it for almost 2 years and DS5 still uses it. It's big but it is really great!! It fits perfectly over the sides of his booster seat and the side compartments are huge. One side we put drink and snacks in and on the other we put crayons and a small sketch pad. It fits so perfectlt over his booster that he does not feel as if it is constantly balancing on his lap. i would definatly go with this one. There are alot of these out there with Disney Charaters on them or you can get this one from Michaels and personalize it.

 

[mommy2paris]

Thanks guys... I did think it looked a little small.

I'll have to check out one step ahead, and I didn't even think about the plastic trays... One of our dd's already has one!

How do you think that will work out with the car seat? Maybe I Could just slide it under the arm rests to stabilize it some?

 

[Leonsmom]

I'm going over to Micheals crafts tonight. They have the plastic media trays. 2 for $10 this week. I'm going to get them

http://www.michaels.com/art/online/displayProductPage?productNum=kd0947

Thanks guys... I did think it looked a little small.

I'll have to check out one step ahead, and I didn't even think about the plastic trays... One of our dd's already has one!

How do you think that will work out with the car seat? Maybe I Could just slide it under the arm rests to stabilize it some?

They stablize pretty well right ontop of the arm rests but you could also use bungee cords to keep thm on

 

[mlynn]

That is the same one we have only with Pixar CARS on it. We've had it for almost 2 years and DS5 still uses it. It's big but it is really great!! It fits perfectly over the sides of his booster seat and the side compartments are huge. One side we put drink and snacks in and on the other we put crayons and a small sketch pad. It fits so perfectlt over his booster that he does not feel as if it is constantly balancing on his lap. i would definatly go with this one. There are alot of these out there with Disney Charaters on them or you can get this one from Michaels and personalize it.

I saw these in the sale paper and my girls love to do crafts so I'm going to let them design it how they want.

 

[DonaldDuckFamily]

We've been driving from Wisconsin to Disney for 2 years now. For my 2 youngest the first time we drove (they were 2 and 4 at the time) I bought the Taby Tray and LOVED IT!!!! It is a large white tray that hooks around the car seat. It has a cup holder, crayon holder and enough room for coloring books. They would use it to color, read and eat on the go. It was great and well worth the investment.

You can find it at the Leaps and Bounds website for $19.95.

 

[mom2aiden]

I just bought this one for our 7 hour drive to the beach in a few weeks. I haven't received it yet, but it got good reviews. My son's carseat has a drink holder, so I didn't feel I needed one that held a cup.

Plus I like it b/c it's soft in the event of an accident.

http://www.amazon.com/Star-Kids-Sna...ie=UTF8&s=baby-products&qid=1218214584&sr=8-1

 

[perkinsrose]

I'm going over to Micheals crafts tonight. They have the plastic media trays. 2 for $10 this week. I'm going to get them

http://www.michaels.com/art/online/displayProductPage?productNum=kd0947

I've used similar ones (I bought mine at Meijer or Kmart) for same price. Not great for eating because there is some slide issue if you're driving. But like other person said, maybe bungee cord would help??

For drawing/reading, i think this is a good/cheap buy for car trips and universal enough to get some use out of the car as well. We have two and they stack easy when not in use.

 

[all4fun]

I have seen the FP one in the OP's post recommended by car safety techs as a safe choice. It does seem a little on the small side to me too, though.

I was cheap. I bought a sheet of foam core board from the Dollar store, trimmed it down to a size so that it would just overlap the sides of ds car seat, and then used the scraps to make thin strips which I glued around the edges to make a border so stuff wouldn't just roll off of it. Someone else i know just glued pipe cleaners around the edges. Very easy and lightweight, and it worked great when he was about 2-1/2yrs old on an 18hr road trip (1 way,split up into to legs).

I liked it because it was very lightweight and if it became a projectile, it likely wouldn't hurt anyone.

 

[wtpntigger2]

We bought this http://www.onestepahead.com/catalog...Id=85193&categoryId=85251&subCategoryId=86245 for our road trip from IL to DC to TN and home. It's very easy to use and the foot rest is what sold us on it. Our dd always complained how much her legs hurt on long car drives and this solved that problem. In fact, the foot rest part is still in my car and she uses it on a daily basis. It's a little pricey, but totally worth it!

 

[all4fun]

I don't know, that tray & footrest doesn't look very safe to me. Adding anything under the car seat could affect the install, and how the seat reacts in a crash. Plus all that hard plastic could break and/or become a projectile in a crash. I am just wary of that. I do know that car seat mfgrs are pretty strict about adding aftermarket products to their seats and discourage their use (their wording is usually to the affect that it voids the car seat warranty, in addition, it would probably release them from liability should a child be hurt while using such a product).

You can actually make a footrest fairly cheaply and safely using a piece of pool noodle and a piece of rope or a belt threaded around the base of the seat, or thru the fwd facing belt path.

 

[ChristusG]

We have this one: http://www.tabytray.com/?gclid=CJ_Y9-L0hZUCFRJexwoddBnAbg

We got it from One Step Ahead and you can use it with a carseat, stroller, or just in a regular chair.

We bought it earlier this summer for our 4 year old when we made a 10 hour drive to Tennessee. She loved using it and it worked well! Never slipped off, she was able to color/play people/eat on it, etc.

We liked it so much we just recently found another one on craigslist and bought it for our one year old to use.

 

[BLAMBKY]

At our Dollar General Store they carry the same kind of trays offered from Michael's but they have Disney characters on them. They (I think) are $5 or $8. I had not even thought of needing this item- glad I read this post.