On the road

Lately, we have been having a bit of an issue with Mallory on long car trips. Gone are the days when the start of the engine would lull her to sleep – these days, if we don’t plan a long road trip to coincide exactly with naptime, then we have some logistics to figure out to ensure we all survive the trip with our sanity intact. We bring books, we bring her doll, we bring food and drink… but still we sometimes suffer.

She is pretty good at entertaining herself for a little while. First, she strips off her socks and shoes (as she has done in the top photo). For whatever reason, car rides are now the realm of the bare feet. Then, she babbles to herself for a while, which can be cute but can also get pretty loud and therefore, distracting! And then the crankiness sets in – when she is done with her monologue, she wants some attention. This is where the snacks seem to come into play best. We made it to London a few weeks back sustained on nothing but a bag of Creamy Dill chips – she LOVED them. (I had planned them as a snack for Chad and I after the kids fell asleep, but Liam woke up when he heard the bag pop open, and Mallory never fell asleep in the first place!)

We did get a portable DVD player at Christmas, which we have used exactly once to date. Liam was not all that crazy about it - I don't think he liked the sensation of the earphones blocking out the noises of the outside world. That was back in January, so it is high time that we give it another try. From then til now I guess we have done a stellar job of coordinating our long road trips with naptime! I am thinking that even if Liam still doesn't like the DVD player, Mallory may be a good candidate for it now.

When she’s tired, thankfully, sometimes all she needs is her doll, who lives in the car now – just to provide that snuggle she’s looking for at the end of a long day.