It is silly to stress about how I will entertain my preschooler. Honestly, she will pop bubble wrap for hours, make a box into a fairy palace, and play in a blanket fort until I drag her out of it. However, some stimulation is needed and this is most important in the car.
In the near future, we are going to travel to Disney World and will be in the car for about seven hours. The driving portion of the trip is often the most stressful portion for me. Since it would be a challenge to let her play with a box along the way and popping bubble wrap would drive me insane, I need to find another solution. Sure she could veg out to movie after movie for the entire journey, but I would feel bad and like a negligent parent.
I try to plan the road trip entertainment to coincide with my driving phases. For example, when I first start the trip, I want silence to get my bearings and get settled into my lane. This is why I am all about playing a movie for the kids right away. They usually just woke up right before we leave and this starts their day slowly and keeps them quiet for me.
Next, after I am comfy and they are bored with their movie, we play a road game. My daughter loves I spy and recently travel bingo. Another of my favorites is to start with a color and then the next person say something that is that color, For instance, I say “green†and you say “green – grass.†Then it passes to the next person and they have to start from the beginning and say another word that “grass†makes them think about. Maybe “green – grass – lawnmower.†This game can get really fun and challenging to remember all the words.
After I am ready to stop playing games, it is usually jam fest. We simply play the kids music and all sing like rock stars. One fun variation of this is to turn off the radio and one person start to sing. Then another person tells you to change the channel and you have to start singing a different song. This is a really fun game for the kids.
Bottom line is there are numerous ways to entertain your preschooler while on a road trip. You can have fun with them and make the trip memorable instead of simply watching movie after movie.