Developmental Delays

Hey Everyone –

I’m looking for some ideas on how to keep my 2 year old (just turned 2 in August) busy during our LONG 12 hour trip we are making to visit my family this Thanksgiving.  We just made a 17 hour ride this summer due to traffic and construction that would have normally only been about an 9 hour drive.  Well it was HORRIBLE!! 

We have a DVD player in the van but that only got us so far, we tried snacks galore and we brought those magic marker things… you know the ones that only work in the special color books… my son is into cars and that is it!! 

My husband is dreading the drive not to monition it’s his in-laws we are going to visit…lol I know that can’t help.  So I looking to you guys for some ideas on how to keep my toddler busy and to keep him from screaming the whole entire way!! 

At this point I’m up for any suggestions because I’m half temped to just feed him candy and suckers the whole way since suckers are like magic…hahaha I’m not even sure what he would be like with all that sugar because he doesn’t get them often!

Looking forward to your suggestions & I know I can count on you guys to get some good ones.  I think I might post this on a few other boards I frequent just get as many suggestions as possible.

Thanks!!!!

-Heather

Drive in the evening or night if it's possible, then at somewhere around typical bed time stop and do PJ's and story ( or what ever the usual routine is) and hopefully that will give you a good amount of quiet time. We have always done this for our 9 hour flights, sometimes we only get a few hours but sometimes we get alot more!.
You could also break the drive up, and leave the night before you plan to and just drive 4-5 hours then stop at a hotel. The 2 shorter drives might be more manageable for everyone and well worth the hotel costs!

Good luck!!

Well, its been a while since my son was little but I used to go to walmart or the dollar store and buy a bunch of new toys, cheap ones. Books, cars, they have magnetic playsets if he would be safe with that. Its hard for me to remember specifics. I would pull a new things out as he got bored. Night is a good idea but by son didn't really do well with that. Good luck. I hope this one is shorter and better than the last one.

Kari

Try to plan your time in the car a little bit...knowing you will have to be flexible :) Example: play, snack, movie, music...hopefully nap :)....start over again. I would tell my girls you are going to play and then it will be snack time. After snack time we will watch a show. If they whined, i would just restate that it is movie time and when movie is over we will listen to our music and have another snack or rest. or something like that. so they always knew we do this...and then we will do that. not just a free for all "give me, give me" trip. not sure how your little one will do with that...my 2 year old would not understand this. but maybe your little one will. if anything, it gives you an idea of some sort of schedule/sanity...so you are not constantly feeling like you are catering to your little one. although I know that is the very thing that ends up happening with little ones :(   It is tough I know.

When we drove cross-country with a 6, 5, 3, and 1 year old (yikes!) my neighbor put together a small laundry basket with brown paper lunchbags filled with a movie or cd or dvd, treats, and a little toy/somethine to hold or keep busy with. She numbered these bags, one through 5 or something like that. For each kid. Then we let them have a bag a day or a bag in the morning and a bag in the evening. It was so clever and they loved it. Not sure how well that would work for your 2 year old...my 2 year old would have no clue to this whole thing and would want everything up front...but it is an idea.

Try cd's of songs. We just borrowed disney songs fromt the library. my kids love it...and so did I...and so did my 2 year old (she loves music)...for our 9 hour drive to see my family.

Try stories on cd.

Try weird toys/things. Vibrating toys, those stretchy things/balls, velcro/pull apart fruits and veggies, things that aren't necessarily "toys" but would interest your baby...are new to them.

Lastly.....CANDY. :)

Katy   Blessed mom of 6 girls, youngest Sarah born May '07 with hypotonia, vertical nystagmus, developmental delays