Every spring the countdown to summer vacation begins. And every year the same dread of what happens when you’re 250 miles away from home realizing you left the garage door open or your car overheats or the kids get sick. How do you avoid the infamous, “Are we there yet?” Whatever happens on the road stays on the road, right?
Wrong. If you’re dreading your families annual roadtrip, or making one for the first time here are some simple tips on how to have fun, stay safe, and enjoy your vacation without all the hassle.
- Tune up your car before you head out the driveway. Fill your tires, vacuum out the dirt, change your oil and get any needed maintenance out of the way. If your car is up to date on all of its maintenance, you’ll feel safer driving long distances.
- Pack emergency supplies. Water bottles, blankets, snacks, toilet paper, BandAids, flares, a flash light, hand sanitizer, baby wipes and a small cooler will all help in the event of an emergency like a dead car battery.
- Bring interactive games for your whole family. Road Bingo, flashcards, books on tape, a portable DVD player or iPod can keep everyone entertained when your halfway there. A good playlist can keep spirits high even if you’re far from your destination.
- Use metal cookie sheets as backseat desks. Whether your child wants to write, play cards, color pictures or eat a snack a metal cookie sheet creates a perfect surface and it’s easy to store under the back seats.
- Keep a journal as a family. Give a particular day or event to each child to record in the family journal. Keep the journal in the car so that as you drive from destination to destination your kids are excited to put down their most recent memories. If you have the money, buy each child a cheap digital camera or disposable camera so that they can record their favorite sights and memories from the trip and add it to a family scrapbook at the end. This gives them the ability to notice things you might be too busy to appreciate.
- Using your smartphone, record your family having a conversation in the van. Let your children interview each other about where you’re headed and what you’ll be doing when you get there. Post this to Facebook or a private blog so that family and friends can follow and see where you are.
April 20th, 2012
Tushar Mathur
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