I recent flew cross country with my 1.5 and 3 year old.
Here is what we carried with us to get us through the adventure of traveling with children:
Early Literacy
- Imagine Cards – These cards are for your children to create stories. They are easy to carry and carry a big punch.
- Mini Board Books & Thin Books – Small is often better in these cases. These books are light enough for your child to carry in his own backpack.
Art
- Coloring Book – I bought a new and different coloring book, a thin and sturdy one, to make a fun surprise. The one in this image is a Charlie Harper coloring book. Amazing shapes and images sure to captivate your child.
- Crayons – I purchased this convenient crayon carrier from a local children’s shop. If you were crafty enough as a sewer, it seems this contraption would be relatively easy to make for your child. The pack rolls up neatly with a tie with a special pocket for each crayon to be neatly placed.
Logic & Problem Solving
- Memory Game – Memory games will keep your kids busy. You don’t have to purchase one, although the one in this image was really great. Simply print out and laminate images or purchased inexpensive cards.
- Mini Tangrams – This little travel game was sweet. The pieces are small, though, so I recommend keeping them snug in the bag and having your child reach in and grab one by one. You could carry a case to hold this whole game in to contain the pieces. We used this one at the airport itself and not on the plane.
- Mystery Bag – A Mystery Bag is fun because you can bring along familiar objects from home and change it up along your travels. Kids love digging in and finding the treasures. You can also play games where the child uses only his hands to pull out an object, guessing what it is before he reveals it. Or you ask him to find the “shell”, for example, and have him use his hands to do the work. There are many variations to this activity so go crazy!
- Jumbo Popsicle Sticks with Velcro – Super simple. Buy jumbo popsicle sticks and rounded pieces of velcro to stick on the ends. Your child can create many letters and design shapes from these sticks.
Traveling with children doesn’t have to be so challenging with a little preparation and cool entertainment ideas like these. Â The other Quirky Mommas have a few more ideas to share as well:
I love the popsicle stick/velcro idea! I’m flying across the country with a 3 1/2 yr old and a 15 month old next month. This is gonna come in handy! Thank you!
We usually bring a dvd player for the older one. She can watch George the whole flight. I had a car for the younger one, which was great until it went flying during landing and we had to search for it on our way out.
Usually if I have enough snacks everyone is happy! Usually.
I swear sometimes it feels like we have parallel lives – reminded of just a few months ago when I flew across country with the baby (about 9 months at the time) and toddler (not quite 2.5 yo at the time). I love seeing what you took!