Taming the Travel Tantrums

When my son was almost 4 and my daughter was 13 months old, our family traveled to Nicaragua for a two-week vacation. Although we had flown before as a family — to Alaska and Mexico and other places with our children, that flight to Nicaragua was the longest trip ever.

We started out before dawn in Spokane and had layovers in Seattle and Houston before finally landing in Managua, where we still had to catch a taxi for the 45-minute ride to our hotel in Granada. It was close to midnight when we finally went to bed.

I share this story because when we embarked on that trip almost two years ago, we didn’t have a portable DVD player or anything electronic at the time to entertain our kids. We brought a few toys, lots of books and a bag of snacks. We also ran around the airport during layover so that our son would get tuckered out and take a nap on the plane.

Now that my kids are a little older, I’m wondering if I’m being too inflexible about the DVD player and other electronics. It’s really hard to travel with kids – on planes, in cars, while towing them in the bike trailer. My kids move a lot more, talk a lot more and nap a lot less. When I shared my disdain of portable DVD players, a good friend of mine just laughed. “What do you want? A mommy medal?” she asked. “Do you really think your kids are better than everyone else’s for not watching a DVD on the plane?”

Another friend sent me a press release about this very topic of traveling with kids and how one company has come up with special activity books. Here’s an excerpt:

Pam Herbert dreaded their annual trip to Florida. She loved sitting by the pool and swimming in the ocean and seeing the relatives. But getting there was something else again with a feisty 3-year-old and restless 5-year-old. Keeping them buckled during the flight was a major ordeal and nobody within ten rows could get a minute’s rest. Lucky for Pam, her sister mailed two i*M Smart fun activity books that made the flight a snap and the rest of the vacation a breeze.

“They arrived just as I was leaving,” says Pam, a stay-at-home mom. “They saved my life. I highly recommend them to anyone traveling with kids.”

The unique i*M Smart fun books are filled with age-appropriate activities that make them think outside the box. Every child needs one and each i*M Smart book comes with a page of stickers for even more enjoyment! These are not throwaway coloring books. They record a child’s birth and special things they say. Once they are completed, tuck them away for a trip down memory lane later on. They are especially important for twins and triplets to see how alike (or differently) they think.

My friend also referred to a recent interview with the actress, Julia Roberts. Although Roberts’ kids are banned from watching TV or eating junk food at home, they’re allowed to during long airplane rides to help keep them quiet.

Am I being too weird about the portable DVD player? Do I just need to lighten up? What other advice do you have to tame the travel tantrums?