Mom Talk Q&A: Tips for Traveling with Children

Moms Talk is a new feature on Your Patch Site that is part of a new initiative on our Patch sites to reach out to moms and families.

Sayville Patch invites you and your circle of friends to help build a community of support for mothers and their families right here in Sayville. Each week in Moms Talk, our and smart moms take your questions, give advice and share solutions.

Moms, dads, grandparents and the diverse families who make up our community will have a new resource for questions about local neighborhood schools, the best pediatricians, 24-hour pharmacies and the thousands of other issues that arise while raising children.

Moms Talk will also be the place to drop in for a talk about the latest parenting hot topic. Do you know of local moms raising their children in the Tiger Mother's way and is it the best way? Where can we get information on local flu shot clinics for children? How do we talk to our children about the Tucson shootings? How can we help our children's schools weather their budget cutbacks?

So grab a cup of coffee and settle in as we start the conversation today with a question from Tara.

Are you traveling over President’s Week? What are some of your best tips for traveling with younger children?

Our Mom Council weighs in:

Donna Haakonson: Be prepared! Have a lot of snacks and activities (handheld games, crayons & coloring books, DVD player, books). A game we like to play is I spy. We'll make a rule as to whether or not we are playing with just objects in the car or objects out of the car. It's a fun way to pass the time.

Kiersten Bartolotta: My kids each get a backpack to bring their "travel stuff" - what they are going to use in the car or plane. I buy travel friendly snacks such as individual packs of chips or cookies. I also buy each child a new notebook and a new box of crayons so they can write and draw easily on their laps. Before we leave for our trip, I will go to the dollar store and buy some little surprises like stickers, games, and puzzles. I have the kids pack their bags with their snacks, crafts, new toys and a stuffed animal. They usually keep pretty busy with their full backpacks but I always hear the dreaded words, "are we there yet?" at least a couple of times!

Kathleen Prokesch: For long car or plane trips - pack a special bag for each child with "new" activities and treats. These don't need to be expensive items, just things they haven't had access to before - or toys they haven't played with in a while. Mom or Dad should be the keeper of the bag so the kids don't rifle through all of the goodies in the first hour. Our daughter couldn't get enough of sticker books, sketch pads and books on tape from the library while our son can spend hours in the car playing with those little army men.