Healthy Snacks for Traveling

It's no secret I love food. I love going grocery shopping. I love cooking and baking. I love to eat. When I am traveling for the holidays or just in general, it's all about the food. We used to bring snack bags on trips with us. My Grandma Rose always made the best snack bags. She would have one waiting for us and have one for us to take with us on the way home. It was one of my favorite things. I would give anything to have one right now. When Noah was about three, I started making Noah a snack bag for when we travel. It is a great way to give him healthy choices while saving money. Buying snacks every time we stop is not practical or affordable. The choices are not the best and well Noah is extremely picky. I have to make sure while we are traveling for the holidays, he has good choices for snacks and drinks. Gas stations don't really offer much when it comes to kids' drinks. He likes some juice and keeping gas station milk ice cold can be challenging even with a cooler. I am teaching him about healthy foods and that treats are fine in moderation but when you only have junk as a choice something needs to be done.

Be sure to read this post about what I put in our Holiday Snack Bag for Travel

The Importance of Car Winter Safety Kits

Sometimes your car has trouble, maybe it's your car malfunctioning and maybe it's the weather, and maybe it's an accident. You could get a flat tire or run out of gas. You need to prepare for these situations. I remember times my cousin and I would run out of gas in her car. I am pretty sure her gas gauge had problems. We were lucky enough where it would happen close to a gas station or as we were pulling in to it. There has been other times where the car has died or we were stuck in the snow. The Midwest is great for snow. It always makes me laugh when southern states get an inch of snow and everyone freaks out. I understand they aren't used to it but I still makes me chuckle a little. There are certain things you can keep in your car in case of an emergency. Regardless where you live I recommend car safety kits for all drivers. The weather can be unpredictable. It could be 54 degrees one day and then the next day have four inches of snow fall in one afternoon. You don't want to be stuck without supplies or food in subzero temps. Having a well put together winter safety kit could help save your life or help someone who you see stranded.

Here's how to make a Winter safety kit  for all drivers

The Adventures of Traveling with Noah

Riding in a car can be boring. Noah's been traveling in the car his whole life. When Noah was two months old, we went to Virginia Beach. We had been in the car for hours and hours when Noah had enough. Right at that moment, his toy broke and that was the one thing that stopped his crying. I couldn't hold him because we were riding in the car. We were almost to the hotel so I tried everything I could think of. I started singing the Car-X commercial jingle over and over again and he stopped crying. When he was three, we would go visit my sister often. She lived three hours away. Noah started saying Wanna go down the road and asking are we there yet? I had to come up with things to entertain him in the car. Thankfully, I grew up going on vacations in the car. I was able to use my experiences and had an advantage with ideas. I didn't have my mom's smart phone, my mom doesn't have a smart phone, or a tablet, so my ideas were good old fashion fun. I didn't have any screens to watch movies, now kids have it easy. I try and limit Noah's screen time so I don't let him have it in the car. I prefer games, reading and other things that help his brain develop. It's also extra stuff to lug around. We have some fun times in the car together. I use this time together to make fun memories with him like my mom did. I still love to sing Billy Joel and Carly Simon like I did many times throughout the years. 

Be sure to check out my post about How to Entertain Kids in the Car.