Seeking Moms - Louisville, KY

the DVD player is great for long trips, but another thing that works for us is toys that light up and play music when buttons are pushed. not only do they keep their interest, they often end up falling asleep to the music.

Another trick is to put away some of her favorite toys a few weeks prior, then give them to her on the trip, they will seem like new toys. We also get a few small toys from the dollar store that she cannot have until the trip. At that age, my girl loved stickers. Hope this helps.

Kidsongs is great for singing along. If you dont know what it is, the story line is young kids probably under 13 that are producing a tv show and the show is all about singing and dancing multiple songs. I have a couple and they are everyday songs, and really fun to watch. I know that Walmart has them on the $1 dvds rack and so they are inexpensive. Good luck!

Backyardigans and Barney DVD's keep their attention. Lots of singing and very colorful! Worked for both of my kids. Good luck!

How about Mary Poppins!? Nice and long and lots of singing/dancing. We used that when my daughter was about to turn 3 and drove to Florida. Worth a try! And you could get it from the library? We've also used the Hap Palmer videos. Good luck!

Baby einstine (sp?) has great sing alongs for toddlers. Try once upon a child if you don't want to shell out too much$ they always have gently used dvds. Read along cd's would be good to. When we travel, my son takes a dry erase brd & markers. Jus tbe sure to protect the seats (WE use a old table cloth under his booster seat. Good luck!

wasn't going to let dd watch tv til she was 2, but we put The Sound of Music in for her a month ago and she loves it. of course she knows that we can skip it forward to "these are a few of my fav things" and the puppet show song, so we do. but overall it is a slow moving movie, so little eyes can follow easily and the music is nice. try it!

We recently drove about 16 hours to NC from OH and then 14 or so hours back. On the way there we didn't have a dvd player but decided to buy one on the way back. On the way there we stopped at a lot at McDonalds play areas, what a lifesaver!
Our kids were 2.5 and 1 so the play area helped a ton!
On the way back the dvd player and the movies we bought helped tremendously although we still stopped to let them out and play at Mcdonalds play areas.
But to answer your question(s) Elmo movies tend to have more interactive "stuff" i believe and the Backyardigans have a lot of singing and dancing, my kids love these.

But be prepared to stop so your kids can get a bit of exercise and somewhat enjoy the ride there. I think you and your hubby/sig other will appreciate in the long run, it'll make the trip easier.

We also travel a lot. My kids loved Little Einsteins - music and movement all together. They also loved home movies of all of us. They felt like the people were talking to them all over again.
Best widhes.

My 2 1/2 year old loves Barney!! I would also try Baby Einstein movies. My 2 1/2 year old is not one to sit still, but these have worked for me. Also, bring lots and lots of snacks!! We travel a lot and I would even suggest suckers and snacks that take a while to consume. Pretzels, apples, grapes. Believe me, 18 hours is a long time! Good Luck.

I don't know about videos but don't forget to pack small toys and books and things that she likes to play with to keep her attention. Also snacks and drinks.

When my daughter was that age her favorite videos were Elmo's World, Dora & Diego, Little Einsteins and Laurie Berkner. All ask the kids to participate as they do things. We have family that lives in Northern Michigan, it's a 10 hour drive & she was quite occupied with Elmo, Dora & Little Einsteins. I would also recommend stopping at a few of the fast food places that have playscapes to let her burn off a little energy, let her run around while the rest of you eat & let her eat in the car. It helps, trust me! Good luck!

I would recommend Elmo's world videos. When my son was 2 he wouldn't watch more than 15 min of something and the Elmo's world movies have like 3 or 4 - 15 min segments they all have music too. Thats what he really liked. Or if you don't mind alot of music Veggie Tales has whole videos of their silly songs that my kids really enjoy- your 6 year old would probably like them too- they can just get a little irritating if they watch them over and over! Good luck- sounds like you have quite a trip on your hands!!

Khalil loves blues clues and recently anything with elmo. Before you leave find out what she will sit for and rotate them throughout your trip. I will be in the same boat next year. Just me and him for 10 hours. hope my advice works for me too. Good luck

My daughter absolutely loved and still loves Kidsongs....there are all kinds of DVD's and i have recently seen them at Walmart for $1.00. Some of the titles are Let's Dance, A Day at the Beach, Learn about Animals,We love Dogs and We love trucks......all kinds of fun songs like Little Bo peep, The Farmer in the Dell etc. Another favorite of my daughters at that age was a Sesame Street tape, not sure if out on DVD but it was called Kid Songs 2.........we took that on a road trip of our own, we listened to it MOST OF THE TIME.....Laurie Berkner is another good one. Good luck on your trip and hope you have a wonderful Christmas season!!

I would most recommend a Backyardigans DVD. the majority of the show involves dancing and singing.

The trick is finding something that she will love but won't make you want to drive the van into a pole after listening to it for hours! My 5 and 9 year olds (and myself) love Choo Choo Soul (from playhouse disney although I hear the dvd's are hard to find though unless you order online). If you have a dvd recorder, you can always record Playhouse disney shows off the tv (not sure how many of the shows you can actually buy on dvd.) Good luck

BABY SONGS! Hap Palmer music is themed to each video. We would rent them out from the library and did invest in a few...my son is 3 and he enjoys BABY SONGS ABC and 123's. They date back to the 1990s and are a bit corny, but the kids love them. Kids sing and dance and act out the Theme of each song.

Happy travels!

You can 'rent' DVD's for free from the library, so you can try out a variety. One of my kids all time favorites at this age and beyond in the "Wheels On The Bus" freaturing Roger Daltry at The Dragon who is the bus driver. It is full of song plus a visit to the aquarium, the farm, a neighboorhood clown party and the zoo.

Visit half.com for inexpensive DVDs.... Madeline, Angelina Ballerina, Barney, Sesame Street, Calliou, Dora the Explorer, Clifford, Finding Nemo, Bob the Builder, 101 Dalmations, Barbie movies, Thomas the Tank Engine, Bear in the Big Blue House, Toy Story, Go Diego Go, Wonder Pets, Backyardigans, Blue's Clues, The Wiggles, Scooby Doo, Lady and the Tramp, Fox and the Hound...

Hope this helps!

We love Little Einstiens (lots of participation from my 3 year old), Muppets Movie, Muppet Caper and Muppets take Manhattan, Sesame Street has all sorts of videos, Scholastic has videos that are the books such as Good Night Gorilla.

Well, those are our faves that I can think of. Probably already tried with you. I would get them from the library.

Good luck.

V.,

The Laurie Berkner Band (my boys enjoy it)

Borrow things from your local library.
Ask the Kid's Librarian as I'm sure she knows what little ones enjoy.

Best wishes,
K.

Maybe try Disney sing alongs or backyardigans- you could check them out at the library and to see if see like them before you buy them.

Hope you have a good trip

My child is obsessed with Barney. She loves the songs and sings some of them. She loves it!

My daughter is 22 months and she's loves the Doodle Bops (from disney), Dora the Explorer, and Barney. If you can find any there's an old show called Kid Songs, they do singing and dancing on them. I found a dvd at my consignment shop and she loves it!

S.

My daughter (31 months) loves to watch the Elmo's World DVD's in the car. We drove to Massachusetts this summer (3 days in the car) and they kept her attention. We also have a Sesame Street sing along video but she has never watched it. I think I got them at Babies R Us. Good luck with your trip!

Hi V.,
Your daughter may like The Wiggles (there's a lot of singing and dancing). There are also some cute Strawberry Shortcake Stories that have a lot of singing. The one we have is about Strawberry trying to find spring! It's really cute with lots of fun songs. Also, Little Mermaid is really cute with lots of beautiful and fun songs!! You can rent these vs buying.
I have 2 girls (4 and 6)...
One more idea. . . They both loved Blue's Clues. Singing and mystery!! :)
P.

My daughter love Veggie tales and 321 Penguins. She also likes Elmo. Not sure if this will help but those entertain my 2 yr old.

Hi V.,

You can't go wrong with Barney, Pooh or Disney and Veggie Tales are great too. She can dance along in her seat! good luck, that's a long trip. She will probably sleep a bit too. Have a wonderful trip, be safe and have lots of fun.

My story: I'm a full-time working Mom of a 9 3/4 year old(going on 16) girl. Momhood, the hardest job you will ever have, but the best and most rewarding! Merry Christmas to all and I hope 2008 brings you joy, love and good health.

Mb Germantown, OH

try Disney's "Miss Spider" videos or" The Doodle Bops" or "Dragon Tails" they are good for kids that age. Also try her pillow and her favorite stuffed toy so she feels like home. That will work for your 6yr. old as well. Anything that reminds them of bed so they can relax. Snacks are always a good idea (just watch the suger)Good Luck! D.

my daughter is the same age and she adores The Wiggles and the Backyardigans. Both of those are full of songs and dances. My in-laws live 3.5 hours away so we have a DVD player for the car as well. These keep her pretty satisfied on the long trips...especially if we sing along and act silly with her!

My daughter really enjoyed "They Might be Giants: Here come the ABC's" It is a collection of songs/videos emphasizing different letters or the whole alphabet.
Best wishes!!

yes, I agree with the moms who said

Baby Einstein
Barney
Wiggles
we and our kids loved "More Baby Songs" by Hap Palmer - we still sing someo of the songs and haven't watched the tape in quite some time. Since our kids are bigger now.

If you rely on the library - check the fines for past due items -- in our library we can only have DVDs for 1 week and the fine is 50 cents per day overdue.