Long car rides with kids?

So tomorrow me, my mom and the girls are heading to kamloops to visit my sister and niece. This will be a 8 to 12 hour car ride through the mountains. The half way point which is 4 hours is Jasper so we plan to stop to let the girls stretch their legs, run around and have lunch. But for 4 hours stretch they will be in a car. Ideas on entertainment for a 2 year old that hates car seats for long periods and a 8 year old that has to pee all the time!! I've never done this and the girls hasn't done this either.... Ideas please!!!

coloring books, video games (leapfrog) or mini dvd player, snacks, potty breaks before you go.
I'd also leave as early in the AM as possible so they will be more likely to sleep in the car. If this isnt possible still wake them up early, they will be exhausted and sleep in the car.

Hmmm, no ideas on the peeing issue, except don't let her drink unless you are prepared to stop!

We've done long drives like that and we just last week did a 6 hour drive there and 6 hour back. We only stopped once both times.

Movies, ipod, books, coloring books/crayons/markers, play "i spy", bring lots of snacks (and drinks if prepared to stop), SLEEP.....

Technology, fun snacks they don't usually get etc etc.........

We often do the 12 hour drive to MB, so good luck, there is no fun in it at all, but movies and ipads etc will certainly help!

Our public library has both DVD's and kid's books on tape/DVD. This has saved my behind many times. Also, don't know if you have Redbox but we LOVE LOVE LOVE Redbox. I went to Goodwill the other day and found this cool tracing fashion design set (same set full price is $7 at WalMart). Kept O busy the entire 3 hour ride to the lake. we also do the Ipod/MP3/DVD technology thing.

We have taken the kids 7,5, and newborn on 12 hour drives lots. for us, we don't usually break out the DVDs until at least the 6 hour mark. I have each pack a "go bag" which I hang over the head rest of the seat in front of them so they can get at it, and I bought them each a lap table. They can pack what ever they want for the car ride. its usually color books, small hand held puzzle type games, action figures, silly putty, that kind of stuff. They keep themselves amused for hours. I pack my own snacks, to save $ on those gas station visits. Grapes, string cheese, and gold fish crackers usually work pretty good. It also helps us that we start out super early in the morning, like, 3am. They are still pretty sleepy and will sleep part of the way. Our drive is so long that if we don't start out that early, the kids will be trapped in the car all the live long day, and we will get there just in time to put them to bed. Not cool.

We have dvd players for the van that we only use for long car rides - our ride to my parents' house is 4 hours and they're usually fine as long as they can be watching something. We try to shut it off between movies for awhile so they can look out the window and not just have their eyes glued to the screen for 4 hours. We also like to bring along books for them to look at, and a bag of toys that are easy to play with in the car, and coloring stuff. 8-12 hours sounds rough - good luck! The only time we've had either of the kids in the van for that long was when Andrew was 1 and we drove the 10 hours to the Black Hills in SD. He screamed almost the whole way and it was completely miserable.

we are headed to the black hills at the end of July. That is our 1/3 way point in our 12 hour journey to grandmas house in Wyoming. Bleh. Last time we went to the black hills Al fell asleep, peed in her car seat, we changed her, the sun went down, she got car sick, Puked all over the built in car seat, my seat, her self, and me. We drove into our camp site with her naked, and our car smelling like a mixture of pee and puke. FUN!

Nintendo DS and books are what works best for the girls....they are both fantastic car sleepers, luckily. They also bring some toys and play car games - the Alphabet game and My father owns a grocery store are our favorites.


I usually bring snacks and small toys for Bobby and when he gets cranky I just hand him something new....I also talk his sisters into amusing him for periods of time. Plus we are more frequent stoppers because I have to pee constantly....that helps too.

Mya did that too on our first 8 hr drive to Oma's..It's when we discovered she gets car sick..still does.
I tell you the smell could choke a donkey.
Ok just had to sympathize on that one..

Annika is the world's worst about stopping every single exit we pass. This trip was great. I started little games like counting ____ colored vehicles, What city do you want to travel too?, coloring books (draw gma a picture or whoever you are going to visit), portable DVD player with activity related DVDs, count the semis, count the Jeeps, there are lots to distract them from "peeing". Stick them in a pull up if you have to.

We just got to NJ (a 11 ride) we left at bedtime and they pretty much slept the whole way. Now Tim was tired but he'll make it

Glad to know that your trip went well.